Deficits in access consciousness, integrative function, and consequent autonoetic thinking in schizophrenia.
Medical Hypotheses October 1, 2021 Nicholas S Patniyot
In schizophrenia, disruptions in self-awareness and a loss of agency point to alterations in consciousness. Applying Ned Block's concept of access consciousness helps clarify deficits in reflective thought and autonoetic thinking. Theories such as Global Workspace Theory describe consciousness as recursive and integrative, functions that access consciousness contributes to. In schizophrenia, an integrative deficit prevents prior cognitive outputs from being incorporated into new working schemas. Disrupted cortical circuits related to integrative functions may cause subsequent cognitive dysfunction and symptoms. Constitutive failures to integrate information could block experiential unity and content management in autonoetic consciousness. Aberrant reasoning in schizophrenia, including problems with hierarchical relational reasoning and source monitoring, may also reflect alterations in access consciousness.