Eyes test performance among unaffected mothers of patients with schizophrenia

• Published in: Türk psikiyatri dergisi Vol. 26; no. 1; pp. 33 - 39
• Main Authors: Birdal, Seval, Yıldırım, Ejder Akgün, Arslan Delice, Mehtap, Yavuz, Kasım Fatih, Kurt, Erhan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Turkish
• Published: Turkey Turkiye Sinir ve Ruh Sagligi Dernegi (Turkish Association of Nervous and Mental Health) 2015
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Case-Control Studies; Facial Expression; Female; Genetic Predisposition to Disease; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Mothers - psychology; Neuropsychological Tests; Schizophrenia - genetics; Theory of Mind - physiology
• ISSN: 1300-2163; 2651-3463
• DOI: 10.5080/u7460

Theory of Mind (ToM) deficit is a widely accepted feature of schizophrenia. A number of studies have examined ToM deficits of first degree relatives of schizophrenic patients as genetic markers of schizophrenia. Examination of mentalization capacity among mothers of schizophrenia patients may improve our understanding of theory of mind impairments in schizophrenia. The aim of this study is to use Reading Mind in the Eyes test to examine theory of mind capacity among mothers of schizophrenic patients.
Performance during the test "Reading the Mind in the Eyes" (Eyes Test) was compared between the mothers of schizophrenic patients (n=47) and mothers whose children have no psychotic mental illness (n=47). Test results were analyzed based on the categorization of test items as positive, negative, and neutral.
Mothers of schizophrenic patients displayed poorer performance during the Eyes Test compare to mothers in the control group, particularly in the recognition of positive and neutral mental representations. There was no statistically significant difference in the recognition of negative mental representations between mothers of patients and the control groups.
The results of this study indicate that mothers of schizophrenic patients differ in some theory of mind patterns. Theory of mind may be an important developmental or endophenotipic factor in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and should be further evaluated using other biological markers.