Neural Correlates of a Perspective-taking Task Using in a Realistic Three-dimmensional Environment Based Task: A Pilot Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

OBJECTIVE: Perspective-taking ability is an essential spatial faculty that is of much interest in both health and neuropsychiatric disorders. There is limited data on the neural correlates of perspective taking in the context of a realistic three-dimensional environment. We report the results of a pilot study exploring the same in eight healthy volunteers. METHODS: Subjects underwent two runs of an experiment in a 3 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) involving alternate blocks of a first-person perspective based allocentric object location memory task (OLMT), a third-person perspective based egocentric visual perspective taking task (VPRT), and a table task (TT) that served as a control. Difference in blood oxygen level dependant response during task performance was analyzed using Statistical Parametric Mapping software, version 12. Activations were considered significant if they survived family-wise error correction at the cluster level using a height threshold of p<0.001, uncorrected at the voxel level. RESULTS: A significant difference in accuracy and reaction time based on task type was found. Subjects had significantly lower accuracy in VPRT compared to TT. Accuracy in the two active tasks was not significantly different. Subjects took significantly longer in the VPRT in comparison to TT. Reaction time in the two active tasks was not significantly different. Functional MRI revealed significantly higher activation in the bilateral visual cortex and left temporoparietal junction (TPJ) in VPRT compared to OLMT. CONCLUSION: The results underscore the importance of TPJ in egocentric manipulation in healthy controls in the context of reality-based spatial tasks.

Needs of Siblings of Persons with Psychosis: A Systematic Descriptive Review

Research on caregivers of psychosis has predominantly focused on parents and spouses. Issues related to siblings of persons with psychosis (SOPP) are yet to be evaluated comprehensively. Like parents and spouses, SOPP also share the caregiver burden and have their own issues and needs. This systematic descriptive review aims to identify the types of needs of SOPP in the published literature and gives implications for further practice and research. The primary data search was carried out with predefined protocol in PubMed database and an additional hand search was done in EBSCOhost, ProQuest, Scopus, and PsychINFO. All the searches yielded a total of 862 titles. After screening for necessary inclusion criteria, seven studies were included in the final review. The results are discussed under six major themes that emerged from this review. Six out of seven studies highlighted the need for information on siblings' illness and participation in caregiver support group. Other important needs were illness management or rehabilitation needs; help in managing their own psychosocial issues; treatment related informational needs; and inclusion in treatment process. The socio-demographic details of these studies showed that majority of the participants were female siblings of Caucasian or white British ethnicity and from developed countries. SOPP predominantly have specific needs such as informational and support group needs, which are different in the priority of other primary caregiver needs. Paucity of literature from developing countries and the limitations of the existing studies warrant further systematic research.