1 research outputs found
Supplementary Material for: Mirroring the Self: Testing Neurophysiological Correlates of Disturbed Self-Experience in Schizophrenia Spectrum
<p><b><i>Background:</i></b> Self-disorders (SDs) have been described as
a core schizophrenia spectrum vulnerability phenotype, both in classic
and contemporary psychopathological literature. However, such a core
phenotype has not yet been investigated adopting a trans-domain approach
that combines the phenomenological and the neurophysiological levels of
analysis. The aim of this study is to investigate the relation between
SDs and subtle, schizophrenia-specific impairments of emotional
resonance that are supposed to reflect abnormalities in the mirror
neurons mechanism. Specifically, we tested whether electromyographic
response to emotional stimuli (i.e. a proxy for subtle changes in facial
mimicry and related motor resonance mechanisms) would predict the
occurrence of anomalous subjective experiences (i.e. SDs). <b><i>Sampling and Methods:</i></b>
Eighteen schizophrenia spectrum (SzSp) patients underwent a
comprehensive psychopathological examination and were contextually
tested with a multimodal paradigm, recording facial electromyographic
activity of muscles in response to positive and negative emotional
stimuli. Experiential anomalies were explored with the Bonn Scale for
the Assessment of Basic Symptoms (BSABS) and then condensed into
rational subscales mapping SzSp anomalous self-experiences. <b><i>Results:</i></b>
SzSp patients showed an imbalance in emotional motor resonance with a
selective bias toward negative stimuli, as well as a multisensory
integration impairment. Multiple regression analysis showed that
electromyographic facial reactions in response to negative stimuli
presented in auditory modality specifically and strongly correlated with
SD subscore. <b><i>Conclusions:</i></b> The study confirms the
potential of SDs as target phenotype for neurobiological research and
encourages research into disturbed motor/emotional resonance as possible
body-level correlate of disturbed subjective experiences in SzSp.</p