Relationships between self-reflectiveness and clinical symptoms in individuals during pre-morbid and early clinical stages of psychosis

Background Self-reflectiveness, one dimension of cognitive insight, plays a protective role in an individual’s mental state. Both high and low levels of self-reflectiveness have been reported in patients with schizophrenia and individuals at clinical high risk for the illness. Aims This study aimed to explore the relationship patterns between self-reflectiveness and clinical symptoms in individuals during the pre-morbid and early clinical stages of psychosis. Methods A total of 181 subjects, including individuals with attenuated positive symptoms (APS, n=122) and patients with first-episode psychosis (FEP, n=59), completed the Beck Cognitive Insight Scale and were evaluated using the Schedule of Assessment of Insight and Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale. All subjects were classified into three groups according to their level of self-reflectiveness: low level (LSR, n=59), medium level (MSR, n=67) and high level (HSR, n=55). Both linear and non-linear relationships between self-reflectiveness and clinical symptoms were explored. Results More individuals with APS were classified into the MSR group, while more patients with FEP were classified into the LSR group. The LSR group demonstrated less awareness of illness than the MSR and HSR groups, more stereotyped thinking and poorer impulse control but less anxiety than the MSR group, and lower levels of blunted affect and guilt feelings than the HSR group. The MSR group demonstrated lower stereotyped thinking than the HSR group. Compared to the LSR group, the MSR group had increased self-reflectiveness, improved awareness of illness, decreased stereotyped thinking, and better impulse control, but increased feelings of guilt. The HSR group showed increased stereotyped thinking when compared to the MSR group, but the other variables did not change significantly between these two groups. Overall, self-reflectiveness demonstrated an approximately inverse S-shaped relationship with the awareness of illness, a U-shaped relationship with stereotyped thinking and poor impulse control, and an almost linear relationship with anxiety and guilt feelings. Conclusions Self-reflectiveness demonstrates complex relationships with clinical symptoms and fails to exert significant positive effects when reaching a certain high level.