J Korean Neuropsychiatr Assoc.  2015 Aug;54(3):291-298. 10.4306/jknpa.2015.54.3.291.

Gender Differences in the Formal Thought Disorder in Patients with Schizophrenia

• Kim B
• Yu JM
• Kim S
• Choi S
• Lee HS
• Lee KU
• Choi J
• Park SC

• KMID: 2035962
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4306/jknpa.2015.54.3.291

Abstract

OBJECTIVES
Formal thought disorder has been regarded as an essential symptom in the diagnostic criteria for schizophrenia. The aim of our study was to present gender differences in the formal thought disorder among patients with schizophrenia.
METHODS
We tested for potential gender differences in the formal thought disorder among 167 inpatients with schizophrenia (86 men and 81 women). The Scale for the Assessment of Thought, Language and Communication (TLC scale), Clinical Language Disorder Rating Scale (CLANG), Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale, Young Mania Rating Scale, and Calgary Depression Scale for Schizophrenia were used for evaluation of thought disorder, language disorder, overall symptoms, manic symptoms, and depressive symptoms, respectively. Using the analysis of covariance for continuous variables and logistic regression analysis for discrete variables, gender differences in the formal thought disorder were evaluated.
RESULTS
After adjusting for the effects of marital status and religious affiliation, men showed a significantly higher score on the perseveration (TLC scale ; F=7.538, p=0.007), blocking (TLC scale ; F=8.956, p=0.003), stilted speech (TLC scale ; F=6.921, p=0.009), lack of details (CLANG ; F=7.375, p=0.007), dysfluency (CLANG ; F=21.250, p<0.0001), and dysarthria (CLANG ; F=31.198, p<0.0001) items than women.
CONCLUSION
Our study has a virtue of exploring gender differences in the formal thought disorder in patients with schizophrenia. Based on our findings, further study might enlighten regarding neural correlates (namely, cerebral asymmetry/lateralization) for gender-differed patterns of the formal thought disorder in patients with schizophrenia.

Keyword

Formal thought disorder; Thought; Language; Gender; Schizophrenia

MeSH Terms

Bipolar Disorder
Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale
Depression
Dysarthria
Female
Humans
Inpatients
Language Disorders
Logistic Models
Male
Marital Status
Schizophrenia*
Virtues

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