A decline in self-defining memories following a diagnosis of schizophrenia

Purpose: Receiving a diagnosis of schizophrenia can be a profound life transition that often has a negative influence on the patient's sense of self. The present study is the first to examine how self-defining memories are temporally distributed around age at diagnosis of schizophrenia. Method: 25 patients and 25 matched control participants identified 3 self-defining memories from their lives. In addition, participants were assessed with standardized interviews and questionnaires on negative and positive symptoms as well as tests of cognitive function. Results: Patients' self-defining memories increased in the years leading up to diagnosis and declined abruptly in the years immediately following diagnosis. The pre-diagnosis increase in self-defining memories was not attributable primarily to a rise in disease-related recollections. Conclusion: The sharp post-diagnosis memory decline suggests that patients find it difficult to establish new or evolve existing definitions of self. Implications for models of schizophrenia and for clinical practice are discussed. (C) 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.