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Stability and validity of memory-based subtypes of schizophrenia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 October 2006

STEPHANIE MCDERMID VAZ
Affiliation:
Cleghorn Early Intervention in Psychosis Program, St. Joseph's Healthcare, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
R. WALTER HEINRICHS
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Abstract

This study assessed whether verbal memory performance indexed by the California Verbal Learning Test (CVLT) can organize and reduce the heterogeneity of schizophrenia. The temporal stability, cognitive and clinical validity of: (a) a putatively cortical-subcortical-normative typology derived from dementia patients' scores on the CVLT and (b) a memory performance dichotomy based on a psychometric criterion and 1 CVLT summary score were evaluated. These memory subtypes were examined in 102 schizophrenia patients, 55 of whom were assessed again 3 years later. The results indicate that both methods yield potentially valuable illness distinctions on a cross-sectional basis, but fail to show truly trait-like properties. Furthermore, the evidence favors the validity of a parsimonious dichotomy over a more complex dementia-based typology. (JINS, 2006, 12, 782–791.)

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© 2006 The International Neuropsychological Society

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