The relationship between theory of mind and insight in obsessive-compulsive disorder


Tulacı R. G., Cankurtaran E. Ş., Özdel K., Öztürk N., Kuru E., Özdemir İ.

Nordic Journal of Psychiatry, vol.72, no.4, pp.273-280, 2018 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 72 Issue: 4
  • Publication Date: 2018
  • Doi Number: 10.1080/08039488.2018.1436724
  • Journal Name: Nordic Journal of Psychiatry
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus
  • Page Numbers: pp.273-280
  • Keywords: insight, Obsessive-compulsive disorder, theory of mind
  • Uşak University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Background: It is known that obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) patients with poor insight display more severe neuropsychological impairments than other patients with OCD. There are limited studies of OCD and theory of mind (ToM). Aim: To investigate ToM skills in patients with OCD and the relationship between insight and ToM skills by comparing OCD patients with good and poor insight. Methods: Eighty patients with OCD and 80 healthy controls completed the structured clinical interview for DSM-IV axis I disorders, the Yale Brown Obsessive-Compulsive Scale, the Beck Anxiety and Beck Depression Inventories, and the Brown Assessment of Beliefs Scale. To assess ToM skills, first- and second-order false-belief tests, a hinting test, a faux pas test, a reading the mind in the eyes test, and a double-bluff test were administered. Results: Patients with OCD had poorer ToM abilities than healthy controls. All ToM scores were significantly lower in the poor insight group than in the good insight group (p <.001). A significant negative correlation was found between the BABS-total scores and all the ToM test mean scores (p <.05). Conclusions: The finding of significantly lower ToM skills in OCD with poor insight than in OCD with good insight may contribute to the idea of OCD with poor insight being a subtype with different clinical and neuropsychological characteristics.