Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

This research project aims to investigate social functioning in individuals with schizophrenia. Impairments in social functioning are pervasive and debilitating in the schizophrenia population, with major consequences for daily living and quality of life. Social skills deficits may even preclude individuals from obtaining treatment for their disorder, as many treatment modules rely on these skills. Studies have demonstrated that social functioning may be remediated with treatment; however, only modest improvements have been seen thus far. Increased understanding of the mechanisms underlying social functioning is necessary to inform treatment interventions targeting these impairments in schizophrenia. My project involves the investigation of social mimicry and its potential role in social functioning in schizophrenia. Social mimicry is the tendency for people to mimic the speech, facial expressions, gestures, and postures of others. Researchers have shown that mimicry increases liking, rapport, and empathy among individuals, and thus it appears to be an adaptive communication tool. I hypothesize that individuals with schizophrenia will show attenuated mimicry of others compared to the typical population, especially with respect to expressions of emotion. Furthermore, I hypothesize that this decrease in mimicry may contribute to the social impairment seen in schizophrenia. The insights derived from this research can inform the development of treatments aiming to increase emotion perception, expression, and theory of mind, which are skills that are of the utmost importance in achieving successful social interactions and competence in daily social living. Effective treatment of the social impairment inherent in schizophrenia is integral to improve quality of life for those afflicted with the disorder; however, this is achievable only with a deeper understanding of social functioning and its implications for functional capacity.