Electrodermal activity as a predictor of schizophrenic relapse.

Electrodermal activity and self-report of affect were recorded from schizophrenic patients with their relative absent and present, at index admission and on two subsequent occasions after discharge. It was hypothesised that it would be possible to discriminate at index admission patients who relapsed in the subsequent 2-year period from those who remained well, and that these differences would be stable over time and independent of illness episode. The former hypothesis was supported in part, but not the second. The results did not support electrodermal hyperactivity as a stable, enduring vulnerability marker.