Park S, Gibson C, McMichael T
Department of Psychology, Vanderbilt University, Wilson Hall, 111, 21st Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37240, USA.
Neuroscience. 2006 Apr 28;139(1):373-84. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2005.06.034. Epub 2005 Dec 7.
Working memory deficit in schizophrenia is a core cognitive feature of the disorder and is reliably associated with abnormalities of the prefrontal circuitry. Working memory deficits are also associated with impaired social functioning and present a major obstacle toward successful rehabilitation in schizophrenia. Although the role of prefrontal cortex in working memory has been extensively investigated, the intricate relations among the prefrontal circuitry, working memory and social behaviors are not clearly understood. In this study, we manipulated social context and observed its effects on spatial working memory. In experiment 1, the effects of social and asocial reinforcements on spatial working memory were examined in schizophrenic patients and healthy controls. The results show that social but not asocial reinforcements facilitated spatial working memory in schizophrenic patients. In experiment 2, the effects of human voice reinforcements (with or without affect) on working memory was investigated. Voice reinforcements did not facilitate working memory relative to the no-reinforcement condition. There was no difference between high-affect vs flat-affect voice conditions. In experiment 3, the effects of direct and indirect social interactions on spatial working memory were studied. Direct but not indirect social interaction facilitated working memory in schizophrenic patients. These results suggest that social context might facilitate working memory in schizophrenic patients perhaps by activating frontal lobe systems. In addition, the possibility of improving cognitive functions such as working memory using seemingly non-cognitive methods might lead to potential remediation strategies.
精神分裂症患者的工作记忆缺陷是该疾病的核心认知特征，且与前额叶神经回路异常存在可靠关联。工作记忆缺陷还与社交功能受损有关，是精神分裂症患者成功康复的主要障碍。尽管前额叶皮质在工作记忆中的作用已得到广泛研究，但前额叶神经回路、工作记忆和社会行为之间的复杂关系仍未完全明晰。在本研究中，我们操纵了社会环境并观察其对空间工作记忆的影响。在实验1中，我们考察了社会和非社会强化对精神分裂症患者及健康对照者空间工作记忆的影响。结果表明，社会强化而非非社会强化促进了精神分裂症患者的空间工作记忆。在实验2中，我们研究了人类语音强化（有情感或无情感）对工作记忆的影响。相对于无强化条件，语音强化并未促进工作记忆。高情感与平淡情感语音条件之间没有差异。在实验3中，我们研究了直接和间接社会互动对空间工作记忆的影响。直接而非间接社会互动促进了精神分裂症患者的工作记忆。这些结果表明，社会环境可能通过激活额叶系统促进精神分裂症患者的工作记忆。此外，使用看似非认知方法改善诸如工作记忆等认知功能的可能性可能会带来潜在的补救策略。
