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Affect processing and positive syndrome schizotypy in cannabis users.

Skosnik PD, Park S, Dobbs L, Gardner WL

Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA. pskosnik@indiana.edu

While cannabis is associated with positive syndrome schizophrenia (SZ), it is unclear whether cannabinoids are also related to negative symptoms such as affective blunting. We examined whether cannabis use is associated with schizotypy and utilized event-related potentials (ERPs) to assess affect processing. Cannabis users demonstrated increased P300 amplitudes for unpleasant trait words, and demonstrated higher positive syndrome schizotypy which correlated with levels of cannabis use. The cannabis group also exhibited lower negative syndrome schizotypy. The lack of blunted responses during the affect ERP and decreased negative subscale schizotypy scores provide evidence that the endocannabinoid theory of schizophrenia may be primarily relevant in relation to positive syndrome SZ.

Published 6 December 2007 in Psychiatry Res, 157(1): 279-82.
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