The social self in schizophrenia: A neural network perspective on integrative external and internal information processing

Abstract

Social impairment is recognized as a basic aspects of schizophrenia. Although the nature of aberrant self-other relationship in schizophrenia is still poorly understood, it has been suggested that some social impairments could have their roots in self-disturbances typical of schizophrenia. For instance, experiencing otherness could become problematic with anomalous self-recognition. Furthermore, deficits in the processing of self-relatedness of social stimuli disconnect the self from its social environment. On the one hand, this could lead to problems in self-other distinction caused by misattributions of ownership of experience and agency in social interaction. On the other hand, this could result in feelings of isolation and reduced intersubjectivity due to interrupted self-referential processing of social stimuli, likely also mediated by memory and emotion. Brain networks involved in self-referential processing, sense of ownership, and agency also have been implied in social cognition. Whereas cortical midline structures are associated with self-referential processing of external stimuli including social information, sensorimotor and affective networks involved in bodily and interoceptive self-processing are also involved in the ability to share others’ experiences. Schizophrenia has been linked with a reduced integrity of these networks underlying various aspects of self and social impairments, though rather separately. Recent neuroimaging findings will be highlighted explaining how self-disturbances can pervade the social domain in schizophrenia. In particular, disruptions of the social self in schizophrenia will be addressed from a neuronal network and connectiomics perspective providing a unifying framework.Disclosure of interestThe author has not supplied his declaration of competing interest.