# Neurophysiology of social processing and underlying perceptual deficits in schizophrenia

> **NIH NIH F30** · UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER · 2022 · $51,752

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Schizophrenia (SZ) is a debilitating and complex disorder with many symptoms, and current treatments often
don't address the totality of the illness. One symptom that is often overlooked is social processing deficits, and
these difficulties can cause significant functional impairment for these patients. Patients with SZ are also
known to have subtle perceptual deficits, and it is possible that these may be related to social processing
deficits. More research examining how these social and perceptual processing difficulties manifest in the brain
is needed, especially research utilizing naturalistic stimuli that mimic real life. Here, we use episodes of the
comedy TV show, The Office, as our stimulus because it contains a rich variety of social interactions, including
some that may be violating social norms (i.e., awkward events). These episodes are also rich in speech
content that will allow us to examine language at many different hierarchical levels of processing. We will use
two complementary neuroimaging imaging modalities to examine social brain network differences in patients
with SZ and how more basic perceptual language processing deficits may be influencing these measures. Our
analysis will allow us to quantify specific stimulus parameters related to social understanding, like
awkwardness, and language processing, such as low-level envelope tracking and higher-level linguistic
meaning. We will then quantify how the neural signal reflects these stimulus parameters using linear methods.
For Aim 1, we will use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) techniques to characterize neural
dynamics of social and perceptual processing deficits in SZ. We will first assess the neural tracking of
language features during the episodes utilizing a general linear model approach (GLM). Next, we will quantify
group differences in how the brain tracks with social parameters, like awkwardness. We will also characterize
neural dynamics between important nodes in the social processing brain network. For Aim 2 will use
electroencephalography (EEG) to characterize neural tracking of speech features with more temporal precision
compared to fMRI. We will also examine how social features are reflected in the neural signal and characterize
functional connectivity of social processing regions within specific frequency ranges. We predict that across
both aims, the brains of patients with SZ will track less with the perceptual and social features of the stimulus,
and that any perceptual deficits may be contributing to social deficits. We aim to recruit the same participants
for aim 1 and 2, so we can capitalize on the strengths of both methods and examine how these measures may
be providing complementary information about language and social processing deficits. We hope that this
research can be used to inform future research for biomarkers of SZ and ultimately improve healthcare
outcomes for patients with SZ.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10464268
- **Project number:** 1F30MH130104-01
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER
- **Principal Investigator:** Emily Joyce Doyle Przysinda
- **Activity code:** F30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $51,752
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-04-01 → 2026-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10464268

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10464268, Neurophysiology of social processing and underlying perceptual deficits in schizophrenia (1F30MH130104-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10464268. Licensed CC0.

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