ID 522 – Neural substrates of cognitive and affective perspective-taking in schizophrenia: A meta-analysis

Abstract

Introduction Schizophrenia is a neurodevelopmental disorder and patients suffering from this disorder have difficulties in daily functioning and social interactions. These difficulties are better explained by deficit in social cognition than by general neurocognitive deficit. Method We meta-analyzed neuroimaging studies involving perspective-taking tasks in schizophrenia using seed-based d Mapping. The perspective taking of affective and cognitive mental states were considered separately. Results Processing of cognitive mental states in people with schizophrenia, compared to healthy controls, were associated with hyperactivation in left temporo-parietal junction, left temporal lobe, and bilateral prefrontal areas and hypoactivation in medial prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate, right temporal lobes, insula and left cuneus. Similarly, processing of affective mental states were associated with hyperactivation in primary somatosensory cortex, prefrontal cortex and left cuneus, and hypoactivation in ventrolateral prefrontal cortex and anterior cingulate. In addition, the abnormal brain activation in schizophrenia was present also when no deficit in behavioral performance was found. Summary People with schizophrenia showed abnormal activation in areas associated with perspective-taking. The findings supports the idea the deficit in social cognition in schizophrenia has biological nature and that it is connected to both affective and cognitive aspects of perspective-taking.