Potentiated automatic memory in schizotypy

Schizophrenia has been reported to be associated with potentiated automatic memory (implicit memory). We sought to determine whether schizotypy is also associated with potentiated automatic memory using a two phase psychometric high-risk paradigm. In the first phase, undergraduates (n=216) completed a new multifaceted self-report measure of schizotypy, the Thinking and Perceptual Style Questionnaire (TPSQ). The internal consistency of the TPSQ was good and the factor structure provided some evidence of construct validity. In the second phase, schizotypy (n=20) and control (n=20) groups were compared on a word stem completion task administered within the framework of the process dissociation procedure. Analyses of unadjusted and extended measurement model estimates of automatic memory indicated automatic memory was potentiated in schizotypy. There was also some evidence that recollection (explicit memory) was impaired in the schizotypy group. This evidence adds to the converging pattern of potentiation on tests of automatic information processing in schizophrenia and schizotypy. Reliance on a novel measure of schizotypy indicates that the study warrants replication.