Predicting work performance in schizophrenia: The role of clinical symptoms, neurocognition, emotion perception, and coping
Abstract
Occupational functioning is often impaired in schizophrenia, as only 15% of people with schizophrenia are competitively employed. The aim of the present study is to predict work performance in people with schizophrenia involved in vocational rehabilitation. This is an important addition to the current literature because if predictor variables are identified, then vocational rehabilitation programs can capitalize on or attempt to remediate these variables. This study examined the relative influences of neurocognition (including attention, working memory, secondary verbal memory, and executive functioning) and social cognition (including emotion perception and coping) on occupational functioning, and specifically investigate whether social cognition is a mediator between cognitive functioning and work performance. This study also utilized logistic regression analyses to build predictive models for (1) whether or not people continue to work during a 3 month time period, and (2) whether or not their work performance improves over the 3 month time period. Results from this study suggest that neurocognition and social cognition are related to each other. Emotion perception appears to be generally related to neurocognition. However, there appear to be fewer and more specific relationships with regards to neurocognition and coping preferences. With the exception of attention being related to social skills on the job, neurocognition was not related to work performance. Neither emotion perception nor coping style preferences were related to work performance. Hostility was the only symptom domain related to work performance. Neither emotion perception nor coping style preference functioned as a mediator between neurocognition and work performance at three months. Neurocognition, social cognition, and symptomatology together were able to predict whether or not individuals with schizophrenia continued to work throughout the three months, correctly classifying 83.1% of individuals. However they were unable to significantly classify whose work improved over the three months in the vocational rehabilitation program. Based on the results of this study as well as the current body of literature, a new model of functioning is proposed.
Degree
Ph.D.
Advisors
Evans, Purdue University.
Subject Area
Psychotherapy|Occupational psychology|Mental health
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