ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: People with psychotic symptoms are reported to have a characteristic reasoning style in which they jump to conclusions. To date, little research has been conducted to investigate if this style changes over time and is associated with improvements or worsening of symptoms. This study considered these questions. METHODS: Thirty-one service users were recruited from a first-episode service and completed measures of reasoning, psychotic, and non-psychotic symptomatology at two time points over 2 years. RESULTS: Over time, people with psychosis generally became less hasty in their decision-making. Those who became less hasty in their reasoning were less symptomatic. For those who remained very hasty in their reasoning, this was associated with a worsening specifically of the delusional beliefs. CONCLUSIONS: This work supports the notion that there is a critical time in the first few years of psychosis during which symptoms and reasoning can change. However, where reasoning style does not change, this may be associated with greater difficulties associated with delusional beliefs.
Subject(s)
Delusions , Psychotic Disorders/diagnosis , Psychotic Disorders/psychology , Thinking , Adult , Decision Making , Delusions/diagnosis , Delusions/psychology , Female , Humans , Judgment , Longitudinal Studies , Male , Problem Solving , Psychiatric Status Rating Scales , Time FactorsABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION: People with delusional beliefs "jump to conclusions" (JTC). This finding is well replicated. However, there is only limited exploration of the factors that might lead a person to JTC. The aim of the present study was to explore the contribution of working memory processes (WM) and IQ to hasty decision making and to investigate the stability of this bias over time. METHODS: A single group cross-sectional design was utilised. The study was conducted in 2 phases: (1) an initial screening phase and (2) an experimental phase whereby we explored and tested hypotheses regarding the cognitive origins of the JTC bias. In Study 1, participants completed the beads task as well as measures of mood and symptoms. In Study 2, the same participants repeated the beads task, and completed a battery of neuropsychological tests designed to assess different facets of WM and IQ. RESULTS: In most cases, "jumpers" were indistinguishable from "nonjumpers" in terms of their neuropsychological profiles. The only exception to this pattern was for visual working memory, in which "jumpers" performed better than "nonjumpers". In terms of the temporal stability of the JTC bias, 8 individuals (out of the 29) effectively switched from being "jumpers" at T1 to "nonjumpers" at T2. CONCLUSIONS: This study casts doubt on reduced global WM as an explanation of JTC. Rather it may be that the differences in reasoning are related to the manipulation of visual material and do not extend to other areas of neuropsychological functioning. However, as our sample is small it may be underpowered to detect important differences. Future work is therefore needed to replicate these findings.
Subject(s)
Decision Making , Delusions/psychology , Memory, Short-Term , Psychotic Disorders/psychology , Adolescent , Adult , Cross-Sectional Studies , Female , Humans , Intelligence , Judgment , Male , Neuropsychological Tests , Pilot ProjectsABSTRACT
AIM: People with psychotic symptoms are reported to have a characteristic reasoning style in which they jump to conclusions (JTC). The aims of this research were threefold. The first was to establish how prevalent this style is in people with first-episode psychosis. The second was to examine the specificity of JTC to delusions. The third was to examine explanatory factors that may account for the JTC style. This was investigated by attempting to replicate, with a large sample, previous studies indicating that JTC is associated with specific psychotic and non-psychotic symptoms and processes. METHODS: Seventy-seven service users were recruited from a first-episode service and completed measures of reasoning and psychotic and non-psychotic symptomatologies. A well-established criterion was used to compare the JTC performance of those people with and without JTC. RESULTS: JTC was present in over 40% of the sample, which is consistent with previous studies of people with long-standing psychotic symptoms. Unlike previous research, no strong associations were found in relation to symptoms and other processes. CONCLUSIONS: JTC is a phenomenon common in many people in first-episode services. In this large cohort sample, no clear associations with symptoms or other psychological processes were evident. Hence, the reason people JTC is still unclear.
