Lyon M, Lyon N, Magnusson M S
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock 72205.
Schizophr Res. 1994 Aug;13(1):45-56. doi: 10.1016/0920-9964(94)90059-0.
THEME, a new method for analyzing the temporal structure of responding on a two-choice task, is described. This method reveals the time relationships (temporal patterns) between all response events, even those not occurring in direct sequence. It selects those temporal patterns that are significantly different (p < 0.0001) from the patterns found in a random Poisson distribution of the same events. The method was applied to data from Lyon et al. (1986) in which n = 17 outpatient schizophrenics were compared with n = 17 age-, sex-, and education-matched normal control subjects. Results revealed that responding of schizophrenic outpatients, in comparison to control subjects, had a larger number of significant temporal patterns, more different types of patterns, and more branching (connectivity) of patterns at a higher level. The latter indicates a higher degree of internal structure. These results are not predicted by standard (DSM-III-R) diagnostic procedures, but are in agreement with studies of two-choice behavior in schizophrenia based on the Lyon-Robbins (1975) theory of behavioral change, which has possible relationship to dopamine/acetylcholine imbalance in the brain. Diagnostic procedures in schizophrenia might benefit from tests oriented toward these findings, which are also consistent with Bleuler's original descriptions of schizophrenic symptomatology.
本文描述了一种名为THEME的新方法，用于分析二选一任务中反应的时间结构。该方法揭示了所有反应事件之间的时间关系（时间模式），即使是那些并非直接依次发生的事件。它会从相同事件的随机泊松分布中找出显著不同（p < 0.0001）的时间模式。此方法应用于Lyon等人（1986年）的数据，其中将17名门诊精神分裂症患者与17名年龄、性别和教育程度匹配的正常对照受试者进行了比较。结果显示，与对照受试者相比，门诊精神分裂症患者的反应具有更多显著的时间模式、更多不同类型的模式以及更高层次上更多的模式分支（连通性）。后者表明内部结构程度更高。这些结果并非标准（DSM - III - R）诊断程序所能预测，但与基于Lyon - Robbins（1975年）行为改变理论对精神分裂症二选一行为的研究结果一致，该理论可能与大脑中多巴胺/乙酰胆碱失衡有关。精神分裂症的诊断程序可能会受益于针对这些发现的测试，这些发现也与Bleuler对精神分裂症症状学的原始描述一致。
