A Study of Trait Anhedonia in Non-Clinical Chinese Samples: Evidence from the Chapman Scales for Physical and Social Anhedonia

Background: Recent studies suggest that anhedonia, an inability to experience pleasure, can be measured as an enduring trait in non-clinical samples. In order to examine trait anhedonia in a non-clinical sample, we examined the properties of a range of widely used questionnaires capturing anhedonia. Methods: 887 young adults were recruited from colleges. All of them were administered a set of checklists, including Chapman Scale for Social Anhedonia (CRSAS) and the Chapman Scale for Physical Anhedonia Scale (CPAS), The Temporal Experience of Pleasure Scale(TEPS), and The Schizotypal Personality Questionnaire (SPQ). Results: Males showed significantly higher level of physical (F = 5.09, p<0.001) and social (F = 4.38, p<0.005) anhedonia than females. As expected, individuals with schizotypal personality features also demonstrated significantly higher scores of physical (t = 3.81, p<0.001) and social (t = 7.33, p<0.001) trait anhedonia than individuals without SPD features, but no difference on self-report anticipatory and consummatory pleasure experience. Conclusions: Concerning the comparison on each item of physical and social anhedonia, the results indicated that individuals with SPD feature exhibited higher than individuals without SPD features on more items of social anhedonia than physical anhedonia scale. These preliminary findings suggested that trait anhedonia can be identified a non-clinical sample. Exploring the demographic and clinical correlates of trait anhedonia in the general population may provide clues to the pathogenesis of psychotic disorder.China. Ministry of Science and Technology. National Key Technologies R&D Program (2012BAI36B01)National Science Fund China (Grant no. 81088001)National Science Fund China (Grant no. 91132701)Chinese Academy of Sciences. Knowledge Innovation Project (KSCX2-EW-J-8

Neurological and Neuropsychological Endophenotypes in Schizophrenia Spectrum Disorders

Increasing efforts to identify alternate expressions of mental disorders that are broader than the DSM or ICD diagnostic criteria needed to diagnose them reflects a growing consensus that multidimensional expressions of psychiatric disorders may advance the search for underlying etiological or modulatory factors. These alternate phenotypes or &ldquo;endophenotypes&rdquo; (e.g., social, psychophysiological or neuropsychological abnormalities) of disorders may be more specific and amenable to objective measurement than clinical symptoms, which presumably reflects variation among smaller numbers of genes than more distal clinical symptoms. These features support the current usefulness of endophenotypes in genetic studies, and their potential usefulness in the development of strategies for early intervention. In this chapter, we review potential neurological and neuropsychological endophenotypes for schizophrenia and for schizophrenia spectrum disorders, with an emphasis on key conceptual criteria for assessing endophenotypes, including their relationships to schizophrenia, to non-psychotic relatives, and to heritability. Future directions for establishing the validity of endophenotype research are also discussed.</p

SPD and non-SPD group compared on CPAS, CRSAS and TEPS.

<p>SPD and non-SPD group compared on CPAS, CRSAS and TEPS.</p

Correlations between RCSAS, CPAS, TEPS and SPQ.

***<p>: p<0.001; **: P<0.01; *: p<0.05.</p

CPAS and CRSAS compared between SPD and non-SPD group.

<p>On both physical and social anhedonia scales, SPD group presents higher anhedonic feature than non-SPD group. ^*** : p< 0.001 (2-tailed).</p

Coping flexibility in young adults: Comparison between subjects with and without schizotypal personality features

The current study examined characteristics of coping patterns adopted by college students in mainland China. In particular, it examined the coping strategies adopted by subjects with schizotypal personality (SPD) features compared to those without SPD features, and compared the relative effectiveness of their coping. Four types of coping flexibility were identified among the college sample (n = 427), including active-inflexible, passive-inflexible, active-inconsistent, and passive-inconsistent styles. The passive-inconsistent style was related to the worst outcomes. When comparing subjects with SPD features with those without SPD features, subjects with SPD features endorsed significantly more emotion-focused strategies in uncontrollable situations than those without SPD features. The SPD group experienced higher levels of trait anxiety, depression, paranoid ideation and general health problems. The SPD group also generally perceived more, less controllable stress than the non-SPD group and randomly used all four categories of coping strategies. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

A Study of Trait Anhedonia in Non-Clinical Chinese Samples: Evidence from the Chapman Scales for Physical and Social Anhedonia

Background: Recent studies suggest that anhedonia, an inability to experience pleasure, can be measured as an enduring trait in non-clinical samples. In order to examine trait anhedonia in a non-clinical sample, we examined the properties of a range of widely used questionnaires capturing anhedonia