Experiential negative symptoms are more predictive of real-life functional outcome than expressive negative symptoms in clinical high-risk states

BACKGROUND: Negative symptoms are key features of psychosis-spectrum disorders linked to psychosis development and functional impairments. This study investigated the predictive strength of negative symptoms domains on multiple aspects of real-life functional outcome in individuals at clinical high-risk (CHR) for psychosis.

METHODS: A total of 146 UHR individuals were enrolled in a randomized, clinical trial (RCT), with this being analyses secondary to the RCT. The participants were assessed at baseline with the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) encompassing the four domains of affect, alogia, avolition, and anhedonia. Functioning measures, encompassing overall-, social-, and role functioning, self-report social functioning, and quality of life, were obtained at 12-month follow-up. Regression analyses elucidated on the relationship between the four negative symptom domains and functional outcomes.

RESULTS: Anhedonia and avolition were the aspects of negative symptoms most predictive of real-life functioning at 12-month follow-up explaining 7-20% of the variance on the outcome measures. Alogia was predictive of social functioning. These findings were maintained when controlling for the effect of neurocognition, antipsychotic medication, and depressive symptoms.

DISCUSSION: Our findings show experiential negative symptoms to predict multiple areas of real-life functioning and quality of life, while expressive negative symptoms exert a modest influence on the functional prognosis of CHR individuals. Experiential negative symptoms may therefore constitute an important treatment target in intervention approaches aimed at enhancing the functional outcome of CHR individuals.