Abstract
Schizophrenia is associated with deficits in theory of mind (ToM) (i.e., the ability to infer the mental states of others) and cognition. Associations have often been reported between cognition and ToM, and ToM mediates the relationship between impaired cognition and impaired functioning in schizophrenia. Given that cognitive deficits could act as a limiting factor for ToM, this study investigated whether a cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) that targets nonsocial cognition and metacognition could improve ToM in schizophrenia. Four men with schizophrenia received CRT. Assessments of ToM, cognition, and metacognition were conducted at baseline and posttreatment as well as three months and 1 year later. Two patients reached a significant improvement in ToM immediately after treatment whereas at three months after treatment all four cases reached a significant improvement, which was maintained through 1 year after treatment for all three cases that remained in the study. Improvements in ToM were accompanied by significant improvements in the most severely impaired cognitive functions at baseline or by improvements in metacognition. This study establishes that a CRT program that does not explicitly target social abilities can improve ToM.
Highlights
In schizophrenia, cognitive deficits are recognized as a core feature of the disorder [1,2,3], with 80% of patients exhibiting deficits in at least one cognitive domain [1, 4]
The aim of this study was to investigate whether a cognitive remediation therapy (CRT) program (CIRCuiTS) that targets cognitive and metacognitive functions can lead to improvements in theory of mind (ToM) abilities in patients with schizophrenia
Our results suggest that patients that present with multiple severe cognitive deficits at baseline may benefit more from a CRT that first targets general cognition, as these deficits could act as limiting factors for their ToM performance
Summary
Cognitive deficits are recognized as a core feature of the disorder [1,2,3], with 80% of patients exhibiting deficits in at least one cognitive domain [1, 4]. These deficits do not typically resolve following antipsychotic treatments [1, 2]. We refer to cognition as including all nonsocial cognitive functions such as memory or executive functions. Social cognition refers to the mental processes underlying social interactions, including the abilities involved in perceiving and interpreting social information in order to guide social interactions [7]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
