Joanna Katsanis

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• Katsanis, J., & Newman-Smith, K. C. (2014). ATINER's Conference Paper Series SOS2014-1327. Conference paper.
• Moreno, F. A., Delgado, P. L., Katsanis, J., Laukes, C., Manber, R., Mcgahuey, C., & Opbroek, A. (2002). Emotional blunting associated with SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction. Do SSRIs inhibit emotional responses?. The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology, 5(2), 147-51. doi:10.1017/s1461145702002870
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  Anecdotal and published case reports suggest that some patients taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) experience diminution in emotional responsiveness. This study aims to define the individual components of emotion disturbed in these patients. Fifteen patients reporting SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction completed the Laukes Emotional Intensity Scale (LEIS), a questionnaire about various emotions. Compared to controls, patients reported significantly (p
• Opbroek, A., Delgado, P., Laukes, C., McGahuey, C., Katsanis, J., Moreno, F., & Manber, R. (2002). Emotional blunting associated with SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction. Do SSRIs inhibit emotional responses?. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, 5(2). doi:10.1017/S1461145702002870
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  Anecdotal and published case reports suggest that some patients taking selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) experience diminution in emotional responsiveness. This study aims to define the individual components of emotion disturbed in these patients. Fifteen patients reporting SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction completed the Laukes Emotional Intensity Scale (LEIS), a questionnaire about various emotions. Compared to controls, patients reported significantly (p < 0.05) less ability to cry, irritation, care about others' feelings, sadness, erotic dreaming, creativity, surprise, anger, expression of their feelings, worry over things or situations, sexual pleasure, and interest in sex. Total score on the LEIS did not correlate with total score on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale. In our sample, 80% of patients with SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction also describe clinically significant blunting of several emotions. Emotional blunting may be an under-appreciated side-effect of SSRIs that may contribute to treatment non-compliance and/or reduced quality of life.
• Bell, M., Bryson, G., Wexler, B., Conklin, H., Curtis, C., Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. (2001). Verbal working memory impairment in schizophrenia [12] (multiple letters). American Journal of Psychiatry, 158(4). doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.158.4.660
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., Curtis, C. E., & Conklin, H. M. (2001). Ms. Conklin and Colleagues Reply. American Journal of Psychiatry, 158(4), 660-a-661. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.158.4.660-a
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., Hammer, M. A., & Calkins, M. E. (2001). The misclassification of blinks as saccades: Implications for investigations of eye movement dysfunction in schizophrenia. Psychophysiology, 38(5), 761-767. doi:10.1111/1469-8986.3850761
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  It is important to have a simple, accurate method for recording eye movements. Of the two popular approaches commonly adopted, electro-oculography (EOG) and infrared oculography (IROG), IROG is often accepted as the more accurate, and it is the method that is currently used most frequently to examine eye movements in schizophrenia. This study investigated whether the misclassification of blinks as saccades affects saccade rates when the presence of a blink is determined using only IROG recordings of eye position. Both vertical electro-oculography (VEOG), which can be used to objectively identify blinks, and IROG were recorded while 17 schizophrenia patients and 19 healthy controls were presented with sinusoidal stimuli. Of the blinks identified with the VEOG for the total group of participants, a substantial number (37%) were misclassified as catch-up and anticipatory saccades when only the IROG was used. Furthermore, in the schizophrenia group, but not in the healthy control group, the use of the IROG led to a significant misclassification of blinks as anticipatory saccades. Therefore, when IROG alone is used to identify blinks, the misclassification of blinks as saccades is likely to introduce measurement error into estimates of saccade rates, particularly estimates of anticipatory saccade rates in schizophrenia patients.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., Curtis, C. E., & Conklin, H. M. (2000). Verbal working memory impairment in schizophrenia patients and their first-degree relatives: evidence from the digit span task.. The American journal of psychiatry, 157(2), 275-7. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.157.2.275
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  The evidence for verbal working memory deficits in schizophrenia has been inconsistent. Few studies have evaluated verbal working memory in the first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients, who likely share the genetic diathesis for schizophrenia but not the potential confounds associated with chronic mental illness..The Wechsler Digit Span Task was used to investigate verbal working memory in 52 schizophrenia patients, 56 of their first-degree relatives, and 73 nonpsychiatric comparison subjects..The nonpsychotic relatives showed no impairment on the forward digit span task, a measure of general attention, but did show impairment on the backward digit span task, a measure of verbal working memory. Schizophrenia patients showed impairment on both the forward and backward digit span tasks..These results indicate that the forward and backward digit span tasks tap different cognitive abilities that are differentially associated with the diathesis for schizophrenia. Working memory deficits associated with schizophrenia appear to be generalized and not limited to the spatial modality.
• Stassen, H., Katsanis, J., Malone, S., Iacono, W., Propping, P., Hell, D., & Guggenbühl, S. (2000). Non-genetic pathologic developments of brain-wave patterns in MZ twins. American Journal of Medical Genetics - Neuropsychiatric Genetics, 96(4).
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  Evidence from previous studies has suggested that the inter-individual differences of human brain-wave patterns (EEG) are predominantly determined by genetic factors, and that the EEG maturation is under strict genetic control. Yet investigations into monozygotic (MZ) twins discordant and concordant for schizophrenia yielded a reduced within-pair EEG concordance as compared to healthy control twins, and the severity of illness, as derived from EEG-differences between affected and unaffected individuals, was closely related to the severity of illness as provided by psychopathology scores and axis-V overall social functioning. Consequently, EEG abnormalities associated with schizophrenia and manifested differently in the co-twins concordant for schizophrenia were hypothesized to reflect nongenetic, pathologic developments of genetically identical brains. Little is known about the "normal" range of EEG variation throughout the process of brain maturation. Our study of 337 healthy, adolescent twin pairs with repeated assessments at 3-year intervals, together with EEG recordings of their parents, aimed to determine normative data with respect to EEG maturation and the developmental synchronies in MZ and DZ (dizygotic) twins during adolescence. It turned out that the within-pair EEG similarity in MZ/DZ twins was, at each stage of development, identical in magnitude to that of adult MZ/DZ twins, while the parent-offspring EEG similarity during adolescence was significantly lower than that seen with adult offspring.
• Taylor, J., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Hammer, M. A. (2000). Heritability of different measures of smooth pursuit eye tracking dysfunction: A study of normal twins. Psychophysiology, 37(6), 724-730. doi:10.1111/1469-8986.3760724
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  Research studies have found that smooth pursuit eye movement dysfunction may serve as an index of genetic liability to develop schizophrenia. The heritability of various measures of smooth pursuit eye tracking proficiency and the saccades that occur during smooth pursuit was examined in 64 monozygotic (MZ) and 48 dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs. Two age cohorts were assessed (11-12 and 17-18 years of age). Intraclass correlations indicated significant similarity in the MZ twins for almost all measures in both age cohorts, whereas few of the DZ twin correlations attained significance. Biometrical modeling indicated that genetic mechanisms influence performance on both global and specific eye tracking measures, accounting for about 40% to 60% of the variance. These findings suggest that the underlying brain systems responsible for smooth pursuit and saccade generation during pursuit are under partial genetic control.
• Lebow, B. S., Lake, D. S., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Curtis, C. E. (1999). Acoustic startle reflex in schizophrenia patients and their first-degree relatives: evidence of normal emotional modulation.. Psychophysiology, 36(4), 469-75. doi:10.1017/s0048577299980757
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  We investigated emotional disturbances in 36 schizophrenia patients, 48 of their first-degree relatives, and 56 controls to determine if abnormal affective startle modulation could be associated with genetic risk for schizophrenia. Both patients and relatives had a pattern of startle modulation indistinguishable from controls, with potentiated startle amplitude while viewing negative valence slides and attenuation while viewing positive slides. Patients with flat affect did not differ from those without in startle modulation or slide ratings. The patients and their relatives had lower pleasantness ratings of positive slides and the patients had higher pleasantness ratings of the negative slides than controls. The startle paradigm may not be useful for identifying individuals with a genetic liability for schizophrenia. The results suggest that low-level defensive and appetitive behaviors are unaffected in schizophrenia.
• Mertz, A. K., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Carlson, S. R. (1999). Substance dependence and externalizing psychopathology in adolescent boys with small, average, or large P300 event-related potential amplitude.. Psychophysiology, 36(5), 583-590. doi:10.1111/1469-8986.3650583
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  To determine if the P300 component of the event-related potential indexes risk for substance use and related disorders, we presented a community sample of 377 16-18-year-old males a visual oddball task and selected 31 subjects with the smallest and 31 subjects with the largest P300 amplitudes. An additional 31 subjects whose amplitudes fell in the middle of the amplitude distribution were assigned to the average group. The small and average amplitude groups were more likely to have alcohol dependence and more symptoms of alcohol dependence than the large amplitude subjects. The small amplitude group had more symptoms of illicit drug dependence than the other groups. There was also a significantly larger proportion of subjects with externalizing disorders in the small amplitude group than in the large P300 group. These findings suggest that P300 amplitude may index a spectrum of risk for disinhibited psychopathology.
• Zald, D. H., Snitz, B. E., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Curtis, C. E. (1999). Neuropsychological and oculomotor correlates of spatial working memory performance in schizophrenia patients and controls.. Schizophrenia research, 38(1), 37-50. doi:10.1016/s0920-9964(98)00178-9
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  Recent reports of spatial working memory deficits in schizophrenia provide evidence for dorsolateral prefrontal cortical (DLPFC) dysfunction. However, the question of how spatial working memory performance relates to other task impairments in schizophrenia considered reflective of frontal dysfunction, such as the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST) and smooth pursuit eye tracking, has been largely unexplored. Spatial working memory, as measured by a computerized visual-manual delayed response task (DRT), was evaluated in 42 schizophrenia patients and 54 normal controls. Subjects also completed a battery of neuropsychological and oculomotor tasks. Schizophrenia patients performed as accurately as controls on a no-delay, sensory-motor control condition, but showed a significant impairment in spatial accuracy with the addition of an 8-s delay and verbal distraction task. For the patients, working memory impairment was associated with fewer categories on the WCST, impaired eye tracking, fewer words learned on the Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test, but not with measures of general cognitive and clinical functioning. Results suggest the presence of a sub-group of schizophrenia patients with common pathophysiology that accounts for the co-variance of several tasks implicating prefrontal dysfunction.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Harris, M. W. (1998). Development of oculomotor functioning in preadolescence, adolescence, and adulthood.. Psychophysiology, 35(1), 64-72. doi:10.1111/1469-8986.3510064
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  We examined developmental differences in smooth pursuit eye tracking proficiency in a large sample of preadolescent, adolescent, and adult males. Smooth pursuit was quantified using general measures of oculomotor functioning and by examining the frequency and dynamic characteristics of specific saccadic events. Examination of age effects using general measures indicated that, by late adolescence, the smooth pursuit system reached adult levels of functioning. No significant differences were found between the adolescent and adult groups on most global measures. However, both groups had better eye tracking than the preadolescent group, suggesting that during preadolescence the oculomotor system is still developing and is not yet capable of optimal performance. Examination of the frequency and dynamic characteristics of the saccadic events yielded additional information regarding the nature of the smooth pursuit eye tracking differences of the three age groups.
• Mcgue, M., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Carlson, S. R. (1998). Erratum: Heriability of the P300 components of the event-related potential: A study of monozygotic and dizygotic twins (Psychophysiology (1997) 34 (47-58)). Psychophysiology, 35(1).
• Mcguire, K. A., Mcgue, M., Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. G. (1998). Genetic influences on the spontaneous EEG : An examination of 15-year-old and 17-year-old twins. Developmental Neuropsychology, 14(1), 7-18. doi:10.1080/87565649809540698
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  In this study, the authors investigated the presence of genetic influences and development on the spontaneous electroencephalogram (EEG) by examining the similarity of 15‐ and 17‐year‐old monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins. A total of 50 (nMZ = 33, nDZ = 17) 15‐year‐old and 69 (nMZ = 45, nDZ = 24) 17‐year‐old twin pairs were assessed. Spontaneous EEG was recorded from the vertex and 2 lateral posterior sites while participants rested with eyes closed. Measures of both absolute and relative power were derived for delta, theta, alpha, and beta frequency bands. The intraclass correlations of all bands across all sites for both absolute and relative power were significant for the MZ twins, indicating moderate to high degrees of MZ similarity on these measures. All MZ intraclass correlations were larger than the corresponding DZ correlations, and they were significantly larger for over 70% of the MZ‐DZ comparisons involving the 2 age cohorts. Biometric modeling of EEG spectral data suggested a substanti...
• Kortenkamp, S., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Grove, W. M. (1997). Antisaccade performance in patients with schizophrenia and affective disorder.. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 106(3), 468-472. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.106.3.468
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  The authors examined psychotic patients with schizophrenia, major depression, and bipolar disorder; "normal" participants; and 1st-degree relatives of patients with schizophrenia on an antisaccade task in which participants were instructed to move their eyes in the opposite direction of a target that moved unpredictably and abruptly either to the left or right of central fixation. Patients with schizophrenia were found to make significantly more errors than their relatives, and the latter made more errors than the controls. The poor performance of the relatives could not be attributed to their having a psychiatric disorder. Comparison of the 3 patient groups indicated that antisaccade deficits were more pronounced in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
• Mcgue, M. K., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Carlson, S. R. (1997). P300 event-related potential heritability in monozygotic and dizygotic twins.. Psychophysiology, 34(1), 47-58. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8986.1997.tb02415.x
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  The present study examined the heritability of the P3 waveform and the N1, P2, and N2 components by assessing the visual event-related potential (ERP) of 30 monozygotic (MZ) and 34 dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs. Electroencephalogram activity was recorded from Pz, P3, and P4 scalp sites while individuals performed a reaction time task involving two conditions differing in difficulty. Genetic modeling indicated substantial genetic influence on P3 amplitude, P3 latency, and manual reaction time for the difficult condition. No significant heritability was found for the latency of P3 or manual reaction time for the easy condition, but P3 amplitude was heritable for this condition. The amplitude of the early components (N1, P2, and N2) was heritable, but no significant genetic influences were found for the latency of these components. Compared with the DZ twins, the greater similarity of the MZ pairs on the event-related potential measures was not due to their greater similarity in either head dimensions or mental ability, despite the facts that IQ scores were weakly correlated with P3 and N2 amplitude and that amplitude and latency were related to some measures of head size. These findings suggest that P3 amplitude and the amplitude of earlier ERP components are under partial genetic control, supporting the notion that these ERP components could perhaps be used to identify genetic risk for psychopathology.
• Mcgue, M., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Carlson, S. R. (1997). Emotional modulation of the startle reflex in twins: preliminary findings.. Biological psychology, 46(3), 235-46. doi:10.1016/s0301-0511(97)00014-8
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  This study investigated twin similarity in general startle reflex reactivity and emotional modulation. Seventeen monozygotic (MZ) and 12 dizygotic (DZ) male twin pairs received startling acoustic stimuli while viewing emotionally positive, negative and neutral slides. Electromyographic (EMG) responses were recorded from the orbicularis oculi. Members of MZ twin pairs had similar response amplitudes under all three valence conditions. In addition, modulation scores for the positive and negative conditions, representing the percent change in response amplitude between the affective and the neutral conditions, also showed significant similarity within MZ twin pairs. Overall, members of DZ twin pairs were not found to be significantly similar of any of the measures. These preliminary findings suggest that emotional modulation of the startle reflex shows familial resemblance within MZ pairs. Given the lack of resemblance between DZ twins, it is tentatively suggested that affective modulation may be under partial genetic control.
• Carlson, S., Iacono, W. G., Katsanis, J., & Mertz, A. K. (1996). Alcohol dependence and related disorders in subjects with small, average, and large P300 event-related potential amplitude. PsycEXTRA Dataset. doi:10.1037/e526132012-102
• Hammer, M. A., Harris, M., Iacono, W. G., & Katsanis, J. (1996). Smooth pursuit eye tracking heritability in monozygotic and dizygotic twins. PsycEXTRA Dataset. doi:10.1037/e526132012-187
• Iacono, W. G., Katsanis, J., & McGuire, K. A. (1996). Genetic influences on the spontaneous EEG: An examination of 15-year-old and 17-year-old twins. PsycEXTRA Dataset. doi:10.1037/e526132012-230
• Iacono, W. G., Katsanis, J., McGuire, K. A., & Mertz, A. K. (1996). EEG characteristics in adolescent males at risk for developing alcoholism. PsycEXTRA Dataset. doi:10.1037/e526132012-234
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Beiser, M. (1996). Eye-tracking performance and adaptive functioning over the short-term course of first-episode psychosis.. Psychiatry research, 64(1), 19-26. doi:10.1016/0165-1781(96)02889-2
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  We examined the relationship of smooth pursuit eye tracking to the course of first-episode psychosis. Various measures of social, occupational, and psychological functioning were obtained for 134 persons with diagnoses of schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or psychotic mood disorder at the time of their psychosis and 9 and 18 months later. Poor eye-tracking performance was associated with generally impaired functioning over the 18-month course of disorder for patients with schizophrenia. A similar association between smooth pursuit and adaptive functioning was not found in patients with schizophreniform or affective disorder. The results suggest that patients with schizophrenia who are characterized by poor eye tracking have a more severe disorder, indications of which are present at the onset of their psychosis.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Beiser, M. (1996). Visual event-related potentials in first-episode psychotic patients and their relatives.. Psychophysiology, 33(3), 207-17. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8986.1996.tb00418.x
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  We conducted a comprehensive examination of the sensory visual event-related potential (ERP) of psychiatric patients and their relatives using a methodology that improves upon those used previously by other investigators. One hundred thirty-five patients at the onset of their first psychotic episode, 146 first-degree relatives of these patients, and 113 normal controls were exposed to light flashes of four different intensities while their ERPs were recorded from three central scalp sites. For most analyses, various ERP amplitude measures did not discriminate the different psychiatric groups or their relatives either from one another or from the normal controls. These findings indicate that patients with schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, and affective disorder at the early stage of their illnesses do not display significant deficits in the processing and regulation of simple sensory visual stimulation.
• Mcgue, M. K., Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. G. (1996). The association between P300 and age from preadolescence to early adulthood.. International journal of psychophysiology : official journal of the International Organization of Psychophysiology, 24(3), 213-21. doi:10.1016/s0167-8760(96)00063-3
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  The present study examined the latency and amplitude of P300 in a large sample of subjects between 11 and 21 years old. The P300 components of the visual event-related potential showed consistent and significant age-related changes. Peak amplitude was found to diminish with increasing age, whereas peak latency decreased. Our data indicate that a linear relationship best explains the association between age and P300 amplitude and latency. The changes in P300 amplitude and latency across the different ages are likely to reflect developmental changes in mental processing that are not due to a decrease in general cortical reactivity with increasing age or the result of subject noncompliance.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Hammer, M. A. (1995). The relationship between negative symptoms and neuropsychological performance.. Biological psychiatry, 37(11), 828-30. doi:10.1016/0006-3223(95)00040-n
• Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. G. (1994). Electrodermal activity and clinical status in chronic schizophrenia. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 103(4), 777-783. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.103.4.777
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  The present study investigated the association between electrodermal nonresponsiveness and clinical state in schizophrenia. Sixty-three patients with a DSM-III diagnosis of chronic schizophrenia served as subjects. Clinical status was assessed using multiple measures, including age of onset, symptom severity, illness duration, hospitalization history, global functioning, and occupational functioning. Electrodermal hypoactivity was found to be associated with poorer functioning and a more severe form of illness. In addition, hyporesponsive patients displayed more conceptual disorganization and alogia.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Beiser, M. (1993). Smooth-pursuit eye tracking, chronicity and clinical status in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research, 9(2-3), 160-161. doi:10.1016/0920-9964(93)90297-v
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., Grove, W. M., Gooding, D. C., & Beiser, M. (1993). The association between lithium carbonate and smooth pursuit eye tracking among first-episode patients with psychotic affective disorders.. Psychophysiology, 30(1), 3-9. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8986.1993.tb03199.x
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  The association between treatment with lithium carbonate and smooth pursuit eye tracking performance was investigated in first-episode patients with psychotic affective disorders. The horizontal pursuit performance of patients with major depression and bipolar disorder who were receiving lithium carbonate was contrasted with that of patients not receiving lithium carbonate. In addition, the accuracy and quality of pursuit eye tracking was examined in bipolar patients whose lithium status changed from the time of initial testing to the time of retest 10 months later. For the combined group of depressed and bipolar patients, treatment with lithium carbonate was not associated with worse pursuit performance. Bipolar disordered patients on lithium did not differ in tracking proficiency from those not on lithium; bipolar patients whose lithium status changed from intake to retest also did not display a significant change in pursuit performance.
• Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. G. (1992). Temporal lobe dysfunction and electrodermal nonresponding in schizophrenia.. Biological psychiatry, 31(2), 159-70. doi:10.1016/0006-3223(92)90202-b
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  The present study examined the biological correlates of electrodermal activity in 63 patients with DSM-III diagnosed chronic schizophrenia. Subjects were administered a battery of neuropsychological tests sensitive to temporal lobe, frontal lobe, and overall brain functioning. Brain morphology was evaluated by calculating the size of the lateral ventricles, measuring the width of the third ventricle, and rating the extent to which cortical sulci were visible. Electrodermal hyporesponsiveness was associated with impaired performance on tests that assessed temporal lobe functioning. No association was found between the brain morphology indices and electrodermal activity.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., Ficken, J. W., & Beiser, M. (1992). Season of birth and electrodermal activity in functional psychoses.. Biological psychiatry, 31(8), 841-55. doi:10.1016/0006-3223(92)90316-r
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  The present study examined the association between electrodermal activity (EDA) and season of birth in a sample of first-episode patients with schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, and affective disorder with psychotic features, and in a normal control group. Patients with schizophrenia who were born during the season of excess risk (January-April) were less responsive than those born during other times of the year. They had lower skin-conductance levels and fewer skin-conductance responses. No such effects were found in patients with schizophreniform or affective disorder, or in the normal subjects. When compared with the control group, winter-born schizophrenics showed significantly more evidence of hyporesponsivity. In contrast, nonwinter-born patients did not differ from normal subjects in skin-conductance level or number of skin-conductance responses. Schizophreniform patients born during the other seasons of the year were more likely to be hyporesponsive. The above results provide supporting evidence for the validity of the season of birth phenomenon. We hypothesize that a viral infection, or some other perinatal complication associated with winter and early spring births, leads to temporal lobe damage and consequent dysregulation of electrodermal activity in patients with schizophrenia.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., Grove, W. M., & Clementz, B. A. (1992). Smooth pursuit ocular motor dysfunction in schizophrenia: evidence for a major gene.. The American journal of psychiatry, 149(10), 1362-8. doi:10.1176/ajp.149.10.1362
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  Evidence suggests that poor eye tracking relates to genetically transmitted vulnerability for schizophrenia. The authors tested competing models for the genetic transmission of poor eye tracking in a search for major gene effects..Samples from three studies (conducted in Minneapolis, New York, and Vancouver, B.C.) were pooled. Probands (N = 92) were diagnosed as schizophrenic by DSM-III criteria. Of the comparison subjects (N = 171), Vancouver patients were an epidemiologic first-episode group; at other sites unselected admitted patients were studied. First-degree relatives (N = 146) of 65 probands were also studied. Eye tracking was measured while subjects followed a horizontally moving, sinusoidally driven (0.4 Hz) spot of light on a screen. Performance was quantified by root mean square error. Data analysis was by complex segregation analysis (Bonney's class D regressive models)..A single major gene is needed to account for poor eye tracking in schizophrenic patients and their relatives. This gene alone can explain about two-thirds of the variance in eye tracking performance. A single gene alone (regardless of dominance) will, however, not account for the data; polygenic factors are also required..Results support postulation of a single gene for ocular motor dysfunction, which may be a risk factor for schizophrenia. Eye tracking may be useful as a gene carrier test in genetic studies of schizophrenia.
• Lacey, L., Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Beiser, M. (1992). Clinical correlates of anhedonia and perceptual aberration in first-episode patients with schizophrenia and affective disorder.. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 101(1), 184-191. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.101.1.184
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  We examined the association between scales measuring physical anhedonia, social anhedonia, and perceptual aberration and premorbid functioning, clinical state, and current level of adjustment in 91 psychotic subjects. The patients were examined at the onset of their first psychotic episode and again 18 months later. For patients with schizophrenia, anhedonia was significantly related to premorbid functioning. No association was found between the scales and clinical state or level of adjustment at intake or follow-up. In affective disorder patients, no correlation was found between premorbid functioning (a stable characteristic) and scale scores, but moderately large correlations emerged between the scales and clinical state and level of adjustment at both assessment times. These results suggest that schizophrenic and affective disorder patients endorse items on these scales for different reasons. We hypothesize that for patients with schizophrenia, the scales assess enduring personality characteristics, whereas for the affective disorder patients, they assess clinical condition at the time of testing.
• Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. G. (1991). Clinical, neuropsychological, and brain structural correlates of smooth-pursuit eye tracking performance in chronic schizophrenia.. Journal of abnormal psychology, 100(4), 526-34. doi:10.1037//0021-843x.100.4.526
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  The relation of smooth-pursuit eye tracking dysfunction to neuropsychological performance, brain structural anomalies, and clinical state was examined in a sample of 61 patients with chronic schizophrenia. No association was found between impaired pursuit oculomotion and measures of chronicity or clinical state. Likewise, no association emerged between eye-tracking integrity and brain structural anomalies. Patients with dysfunctional eye tracking were more likely to have impaired performance on tests that assess frontal lobe functioning. In addition, negative symptoms and a relative absence of positive symptoms. Because negative symptoms are often found among patients with frontal lobe impairment, their association with abnormal eye tracking provides converging support for the hypothesis that the cortical locus of deviant smooth-pursuit eye tracking is in the frontal lobes.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Beiser, M. (1991). Relationship of lateral ventricular size to psychophysiological measures and short-term outcome.. Psychiatry research, 37(2), 115-29. doi:10.1016/0165-1781(91)90069-2
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  To examine clinical and psychophysiological correlates of lateral ventricular size, computerized tomographic (CT) scans were obtained on a sample of 88 patients who had experienced their first psychotic episode. Patients met DSM-III criteria for schizophrenia, schizophreniform disorder, or affective disorder with psychotic features. For patients with schizophrenia, large lateral ventricles were associated with unfavorable outcome. No association between outcome and ventricular size was found in patients with affective or schizophreniform disorder. Patients with mood disorders who had large ventricles consumed significantly greater amounts of alcohol than those with small ventricles. No differences were found between patients with large or small ventricles in premorbid functioning, smooth pursuit eye tracking, or electrodermal activity.
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., Grove, W. M., & Clementz, B. A. (1991). Psychometric detection of schizotypy: perceptual aberration and physical anhedonia in relatives of schizophrenics.. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 100(4), 607-612. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.100.4.607
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  We administered scales of Perceptual Aberration (PERAB) and Physical Anhedonia (PHYSAN), traits that may be related to risk for schizophrenia, to 54 schizophrenics, 146 of their first-degree relatives (evaluated for schizophrenia-related disorders), and 178 normal subjects (screened for psychotic disorders in them or their relatives). For both scales, there was a significant effect of group membership. For the PERAB scale, the schizophrenics had higher scores than the normal subjects, who had higher scores than the relatives. For the PHYSAN scale, schizophrenics had higher scores than their relatives, who had higher scores than the normal subjects. Patterns of familial correlations also suggested that physical anhedonia, but not perceptual aberration, may be familial among schizophrenics and their relatives. The PHYSAN scale, but not the PERAB one, may be a useful indicator of liability for schizophrenia among the relatives of affected probands.
• Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. G. (1990). Left-handedness and ventricle size in schizophrenic patients (I: Reply). American Journal of Psychiatry, 147(5).
• Katsanis, J., Iacono, W. G., & Beiser, M. (1990). Anhedonia and perceptual aberration in first-episode psychotic patients and their relatives.. Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 99(2), 202-206. doi:10.1037/0021-843x.99.2.202
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  One hundred eighteen psychiatric patients, each experiencing his or her first lifetime episode of psychosis, 125 of their first-degree relatives, and 155 normal subjects were assessed using the physical anhedonia, social anhedonia, and perceptual aberration scales of Chapman et al. (1976, 1978). We hypothesized that psychotic subjects would obtain higher scores on these scales than their relatives and the controls, and we expected the group of relatives to score more deviantly than the normal controls. The physical anhedonia and social anhedonia scales successfully differentiated the psychiatric patients from the relatives and the latter from the normal subjects. These findings testify to the construct validity of the scales and suggest that they tap a predisposition to psychosis. Unexpectedly, the relatives scored lower on the perceptual aberration scale than did the normal controls, perhaps because the relatives adopted a defensive response set.
• Cappelli, M., Katsanis, J., Lascelles, M. A., MacDonald, N. E., & McGrath, P. J. (1989). Parental care and overprotection of children with cystic fibrosis. British journal of medical psychology. doi:10.1111/j.2044-8341.1989.tb02837.x
• Cappelli, M., McGrath, P., MacDonald, N., Katsanis, J., & Lascelles, M. (1989). Parental care and overprotection of children with cystic fibrosis. British Journal of Medical Psychology, 62(3). doi:10.1111/j.2044-8341.1989.tb02837.x
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  Parental overprotection has often been clinically associated with the psychological maladjustment of children with a chronic disease. The purpose of this study was to examine parental care and overprotection in children with cystic fibrosis compared to healthy controls. Results indicated no differences in the level of parental care or overprotection between controls and children with cystic fibrosis. However, a number of significant correlations were found between parental care and overprotection and children's psychosocial functioning. In particular, positive correlations were found between parental overprotection and poor psychosocial functioning in children with cystic fibrosis, whereas, poor psychosocial functioning in healthy children was associated with lack of parental care. Parental overprotection and care appear to play important roles in the emotional and psychological functioning of healthy and chronically ill children. 1989 The British Psychological Society
• Katsanis, J., & Iacono, W. G. (1989). Association of left-handedness with ventricle size and neuropsychological performance in schizophrenia.. The American journal of psychiatry, 146(8), 1056-8. doi:10.1176/ajp.146.8.1056
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  Left-handed schizophrenic patients showed lateral ventricular enlargement and generally poorer performance on intelligence and neuropsychological tests compared with right-handed schizophrenic patients. These results suggest that left-handed schizophrenic patients have more cerebral dysfunction than right-handed schizophrenic patients.
• Katsanis, J., Spanos, N. P., & Barnard, J. (1989). Self-Predictions, Interpretational Set and Imagery Vividness as Determinants of Hypnotic Responding. Imagination, Cognition and Personality. doi:10.2190/ywdw-06kf-1187-e691
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  Two studies assessed the effects of self-predictions and interpretations of suggested demands on hypnotizability. Subjects overestimated their responsiveness to suggestions. Those who believed that they would fail all or almost all suggestions invariably attained low hypnotizability scores. However, those who believed that they would be highly responsive exhibited wide variability in their actual hypnotizability. Among subjects who self-predicted high responsiveness, those who adopted a passive “wait and see” interpretation toward suggestions scored significantly lower in hypnotizability than those who believed that they should actively bring about suggested effects. Study 2 also found that the relationship between adopting an active interpretation and hypnotizability was moderated by subjects' level of imagery vividness. Theoretical implications are discussed.
• Spanos, N. P., & Katsanis, J. (1989). Effects of instructional set on attributions of nonvolition during hypnotic and nonhypnotic analgesia.. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 56(2), 182-188. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.56.2.182
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  Fifty highly hypnotizable subjects were assigned to four treatment groups or a no-treatment control group and then underwent two pain stimulation trials. Half the treated subjects were administered hypnotic analgesia, half waking analgesia. Within hypnotic and nonhypnotic treatments, half the subjects were given actively worded analgesia instructions, half passively worded instructions. Subjects in the four treated groups reported equivalent pain reduction and equivalent use of coping imagery, although hypnotic subjects rated themselves as more deeply hypnotized than did nonhypnotic subjects. Both hypnotic and nonhypnotic subjects given passive instructions rated their pain reduction as occurring involuntarily, whereas those given active instructions reported that their pain was reduced through their active use of coping strategies. These findings support sociocognitive formulations of hypnotic responding that view ratings of involuntariness as reflecting contextually guided interpretations of behavior.
• Boland, M., Cappelli, M., Fried, P. J., Katsanis, J., MacDonald, N. E., & McGrath, P. J. (1988). Parent, family, and disease factors as predictors of psychosocial functioning in children with cystic fibrosis.. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science. doi:10.1037/h0079938