Deficits in emotional awareness in schizophrenia and their relationship with other measures of functioning.

Conscious awareness of emotion is adaptive and its disruption in schizophrenia can impact social functioning. This study assessed levels of emotional awareness for self and others in social scenarios (Levels of Emotional Awareness Scale) in 21 individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSD) and 20 healthy individuals. Individuals with SSD had lower levels of emotional awareness for others in complex social scenarios, but not simple social scenarios; no difference was found in emotional awareness for self. Higher levels of emotional awareness were associated with better quality of life in patients. Patients also reported higher social anhedonia. Healthy individuals' higher levels of emotional awareness for self were associated with lower anhedonia, but this relationship was not found in SSD patients. Individuals with schizophrenia have particular difficulty anticipating others' emotional responses in complex social situations. Further, this deficit is independent of anhedonia in SSD patients, indicating a systemic disruption in the integration of emotional processing.