A test of the Broen-Storms theory of cognitive deficit in schizophrenia

Abstract

Broen and Storms have developed a popular behavioristic theory t.0 explain schizophrenic thought disorder. It holds that thought disorder results from schizophrenics' having higher drive levels and lower res onse-strength ceilings than non-schizophrenics. As a result, the strength o r appropriate (usually strong) res onses is rivaled by that of inappropriate, ordinarily-weak responses. TI%, in Broen and Storms' the0 is the cause of disorganized, schizophrenic behavior. We tested several T y otheses derived from Broen and Storms' assumptions that schizophrenics Rave higher drive and lower response strength ceilings than controls in a paired-associates learning study. We did not find support for our hypotheses that schizophrenics would show better early-trials learning than controls, that a presumably drive-inducing threat of pain would enhance early trials learning in schizophrenics or controls that either threat of pain or schizophrenia would be associated with a low /earning asymptote, or that either the ositive or ne ative effects of pain would be accentuated in schizophrenics. %he results $id not support the theory. (1961, 1964, 1966) have proposed a Hullian theory in which cognitive deficit in schizophrenia is attributed to the high drive levels and/or low response strength ceilings believed to characterize schizophrenics. While high drive levels ordinarily would strengthen both appropriate and inappropriate responses, the low ceiling limits the strength of the appropriate, generally strong, ones to a greater degree than it does those of weaker, inappropriate behaviors. Thus, the high drive level tends to increase the strength of the weaker, inappropriate responses more than it does those of stronger, appropriate behaviors in schizophrenics. Disorganized, schizophrenic behaviors result. This ingenious, authors are indebted to $eresa Kucala for her contributions to this research. Broen and Storms

Maintenance of induced muscle tension, stimulus generalization performance, and schizophrenia

“…In spite of studies that support Broen's response disorganization theory (Broen, 1968), several research studies have been unable to demonstrate the predicted arousalinduced schizophrenic performance decrements (Paulman & Meyers-Abell, 1980;Watson, Wold, Anderson, Schulte, & Jacobs, 1981). Tests of the theory typically have been conducted in the context of a stimulus generalization paradigm that permits the associative strengths of both dominant and competing responses to be varied while arousal or drive levels are manipuated by requiring subjects to grip a hand dynamometer at varied percentages of maximum tension strength (e.g., Storms & Acosta, 1974).…”