Symptom formation as an expression of disordered information processing in schizophrenic children.

The possible mechanisms that underlie symptom formation in childhood schizophrenia are discussed. A body of research evidence has been reviewed in which dissociation in relation to information processing was examined for its possible consequence in the formation and expression of symptomatology. Schizophrenic children have been found to exhibit dissociation of integrative processes among the sense systems at a level which is several years below normal expectation, and they usually fail to improve as age increases. The clinical manifestations of schizophrenia are considered to be the consequence of the conflict, distortion, and deprivation that derive from failure in information processing. These consequences can best be understood within a developmental framework which encompasses the different age-stages of function. This approach to the understanding of symptom formation is discussed in relationship to other evidence which suggests that primary neurological abnormality is present in schizophrenic children. Thus the identification of abnormality of intersensory integrative function may increase our understanding of etiology as well as of the mechanisms of symptom formation in schizophrenic children.