Intra-dimensional/extra-dimensional set-shifting performance in schizophrenia: Impact of distractors

Abstract

Background: We sought to determine if a representative group of young chronic patients with schizophrenia would demonstrate selective impairments in set shifting processes of the CANTAB Intra-dimensional/extra-dimensional (IDED) task. We predicted that patients would have prominent difficulties with Compound Discrimination (C_D) (stage of the task in which irrelevant stimuli are introduced) and Extra-Dimensional Shifting (EDS) (stage of the task in which a new stimulus dimension must be attended) on the basis of the results of cortical hypodopaminergic states in subhuman primates (for C_D) and effects of dorsolateral prefrontal cortical lesions on set shifting and prior results in schizophre..