Reduced activation in the ventral striatum during probabilistic decision-making in patients in an at-risk mental state.

Background: Patients with schizophrenia display metacognitive impairments, such as hasty decision-making during probabilistic reasoning - the "jumping to conclusion" bias (JTC). Our recent fMRI study revealed reduced activations in the right ventral striatum (VS) and the ventral tegmental area (VTA) to be associated with decision-making in patients with schizophrenia. It is unclear whether these functional alterations occur in the at-risk mental state (ARMS).

Metamemory in schizophrenia: retrospective confidence ratings interact with neurocognitive deficits.

Prior studies with schizophrenia patients described a reduced ability to discriminate between correct and false memories in terms of confidence compared to control groups. This metamemory bias has been associated with the emergence and maintenance of delusions. The relation to neuropsychological performance and other clinical dimensions is incompletely understood.

Overconfidence in incorrect perceptual judgments in patients with schizophrenia.

Background: Patients with schizophrenia show overconfidence in memory and social cognition errors. The present investigation examined whether this cognitive distortion also manifests in perceptual tasks.

Methods: A total of 55 individuals with schizophrenia, 58 with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) as well as 45 non-clinical controls were presented 24 blurry black and white pictures, half of which contained a hidden object; the other half contained ("snowy") visual noise.

Increased orbitofrontal cortex activation associated with "pro-obsessive" antipsychotic treatment in patients with schizophrenia.

Background: Patients with schizophrenia have an approximately 10-fold higher risk for obsessive-compulsive symptoms (OCS) than the general population. A large subgroup seems to experience OCS as a consequence of second-generation antipsychotic agents (SGA), such as clozapine. So far little is known about underlying neural mechanisms.

Neurocognitive capabilities modulate the integration of evidence in schizophrenia.

Previous studies have demonstrated a cognitive bias in the integration of disconfirmatory evidence (BADE) in patients with schizophrenia. This bias has been associated with delusions. So far, it is unclear how the integration of evidence is associated with neurocognitive capabilities.