A Continuum View of Schizotypy

Dr. Neus Barrantes-Vidal

Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (Spain)

University of North Carolina at Greensboro (US)

Sant Pere Claver – Fundació Sanitària (Spain)

CIBERSAM – Investigación Salud Mental en Red (Spain)

Dimensional Model of Schizotypy

Genetic variation x Environm. & Epigenetic? Factors

Nervous system type

Temperamental dispositions (Continuously inherited)

Individual Differences Vulnerability to certain disorders

Adapted from Claridge (1985, 1997)

Schizotypy

EndophenotypesCognitive style / Personality traits

Personality

disorders

Psychosis

Psychosis

Spectrum

G x E

Clarifications about the Dimensional Model

Kelleher & Cannon (2011); Binbay et al. (2012); van Os (2009 & 2014); Zanvos et al. 2014; Barrantes-Vidal, Grant &

Kwapil (2015)

Shared sociodemographic and etiological risk factors

Familial clustering

Phenotypic continuity is not isomorphic with etiological continuity, but…

Differences in the effect size of some risk factors across the

continuum?? Continuum-threshold model?

S c h i z o t y p y

At risk syndromesSchizotypal PD

Schizophrenia

Schizophreniform

Psychotic Experiences

Error measurement or

transdiagnostic

perspective?

Is this Relevant?

Healthy expression and advantageous features at the non-disordered low

end of the quantitative dimension of schizotypy (NOT “bening”

schizophrenia?!?), such as creativity (Mohr & Claridge, 2015; Power et al.,

2015)

Important to map both the positive as well as deleterious manifestations to

understand schizotypy and psychosis and to promote health and preventive

strategies in those with increasing risk (Barrantes-Vidal, 2014)