@article {76096, title = {Social anhedonia is associated with neural abnormalities during face emotion processing}, journal = {Neuroimage}, volume = {58}, number = {3}, year = {2011}, pages = {935-45}, abstract = {Human beings are social organisms with an intrinsic desire to seek and participate in social interactions. Social anhedonia is a personality trait characterized by a reduced desire for social affiliation and reduced pleasure derived from interpersonal interactions. Abnormally high levels of social anhedonia prospectively predict the development of schizophrenia and contribute to poorer outcomes for schizophrenia patients. Despite the strong association between social anhedonia and schizophrenia, the neural mechanisms that underlie individual differences in social anhedonia have not been studied and are thus poorly understood. Deficits in face emotion recognition are related to poorer social outcomes in schizophrenia, and it has been suggested that face emotion recognition deficits may be a behavioral marker for schizophrenia liability. In the current study, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to see whether there are differences in the brain networks underlying basic face emotion processing in a community sample of individuals low vs. high in social anhedonia. We isolated the neural mechanisms related to face emotion processing by comparing face emotion discrimination with four other baseline conditions (identity discrimination of emotional faces, identity discrimination of neutral faces, object discrimination, and pattern discrimination). Results showed a group (high/low social anhedonia) {\texttimes} condition (emotion discrimination/control condition) interaction in the anterior portion of the rostral medial prefrontal cortex, right superior temporal gyrus, and left somatosensory cortex. As predicted, high (relative to low) social anhedonia participants showed less neural activity in face emotion processing regions during emotion discrimination as compared to each control condition. The findings suggest that social anhedonia is associated with abnormalities in networks responsible for basic processes associated with social cognition, and provide a starting point for understanding the neural basis of social motivation and our drive to seek social affiliation.}, keywords = {Adult, Anhedonia, Brain, Brain Mapping, Emotions, Facial Expression, Female, Humans, Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Schizophrenia, Visual Perception}, issn = {1095-9572}, doi = {10.1016/j.neuroimage.2011.06.059}, author = {Germine, Laura T and Garrido, Lucia and Bruce, Lori and Hooker, Christine} } @article {76091, title = {Theory of mind skills are related to gray matter volume in the ventromedial prefrontal cortex in schizophrenia}, journal = {Biol Psychiatry}, volume = {70}, number = {12}, year = {2011}, pages = {1169-78}, abstract = {BACKGROUND: Among individuals with schizophrenia, deficits in theory of mind (ToM) skills predict poor social functioning. Therefore, identifying the neural basis of ToM may assist the development of treatments that improve social outcomes. Despite growing evidence that the ventromedial prefrontal cortex (VMPFC) facilitates ToM skills among healthy individuals, methodological challenges, such as the influence of general cognitive deficits, have made it difficult to identify the relationship between ToM processing and VMPFC function in schizophrenia. METHODS: We used voxel-based morphometry and a multi-method behavioral assessment of ToM processing, including performance-based (Recognition of Faux Pas Test), self-report (Interpersonal Reactivity Index, Perspective-Taking), and interview-rated (Quality of Life Scale-Empathy score) ToM assessments, to investigate whether ToM skills were related to VMPFC gray matter volume (GMV). Standardized neuropsychological measures were used to assess global cognition. Twenty-one schizophrenia and 17 healthy control subjects participated. RESULTS: Between-group behavioral analyses showed that, as compared with healthy participants, schizophrenia participants had worse ToM performance and lower self-reported ToM processing in daily life. The between-group analysis of GMV showed that schizophrenia participants had less VMPFC GMV than healthy participants. Moreover, among schizophrenia participants, all three measures of ToM processing were associated with VMPFC GMV, such that worse ToM skills were related to less VMPFC GMV. This association remained strong for self-reported and interview-rated ToM skills, even when controlling for the influence of global cognition. CONCLUSIONS: The findings suggest that among individuals with schizophrenia, reduced VMPFC GMV is associated with deficits using ToM skills to enhance social relationships.}, keywords = {Adult, Case-Control Studies, Empathy, Female, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Organ Size, Prefrontal Cortex, Reference Values, Schizophrenia, Schizophrenic Psychology, Social Perception, Theory of Mind, Young Adult}, issn = {1873-2402}, doi = {10.1016/j.biopsych.2011.07.027}, author = {Christine I. Hooker and Bruce, Lori and Sarah Hope Lincoln and Fisher, Melissa and Vinogradov, Sophia} } @article {14221, title = {Can I trust you? Negative affective priming influences social judgments in schizophrenia}, journal = {Journal of Abnormal Psychology}, volume = {120}, number = {1}, year = {2011}, pages = {98-107}, abstract = {Successful social interactions rely on the ability to make accurate judgments based on social cues as well\ as the ability to control the influence of internal or external affective information on those judgments.\ Prior research suggests that individuals with schizophrenia misinterpret social stimuli and this misinterpretation\ contributes to impaired social functioning. We tested the hypothesis that for people with\ schizophrenia, social judgments are abnormally influenced by affective information. Twenty-three\ patients with schizophrenia and 35 healthy control participants rated the trustworthiness of faces\ following the presentation of neutral, negative (threat-related), or positive affective primes. Results\ showed that all participants rated faces following negative affective primes as less trustworthy than faces\ following neutral or positive primes. Importantly, this effect was significantly more pronounced for\ participants with schizophrenia, suggesting that schizophrenia may be characterized by an exaggerated\ influence of negative affective information on social judgment. Furthermore, the extent that the negative\ affective prime influenced trustworthiness judgments was significantly associated with patients{\textquoteright} severity\ of positive symptoms, particularly feelings of persecution. These findings suggest that for people with\ schizophrenia, negative affective information contributes to an interpretive bias, consistent with paranoid\ ideation, when judging the trustworthiness of others. This bias may contribute to social impairments in\ schizophrenia.}, author = {Hooker, C.I and Tully, L.M and Verosky, S.C and Fisher, M. and Holland, C and Vinogradov, S} }