Date of Award

3-28-2007

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Psychology

First Advisor

F. Ric Ferraro

Abstract

Given that many theories of schizophrenia postulate that a lack of cognitive inhibition is a hallmark of the disorder, a measure of cognitive inhibition is often used to study how variables such as gender, severity of symptoms, or type of symptoms in individuals displaying symptoms of schizophrenia/schizotypy shape the degree of cognitive inhibition. The present study investigated how gender, the degree and type of schizotypal traits, as measured by the Oxford-Liverpool Inventory of Feelings and Experiences (O-LIFE), interacted to affect the outcome of two semantically different negative priming tasks (a computerized Stroop Task and a Letter Identification Task). Several multiple regression analyses were conducted on data from the 543 subjects who completed the study. High Lie Scale scores were removed in an attempt to improve the accuracy of the self-report measure, however with little added benefit. One significant model emerged in which the IA scale (a measure of negative symptoms) was found to predict 1.4% of the variance in scores on the Stroop Task. These variables were positively correlated such as reaction time increased, scores on the IA scale also tended to increase. Significant differences for gender or symptom severity were not found. Implications of these findings and limitations of the current study are discussed.

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