Discussion
A discrepancy exists between the objective and subjective responses to sensory stimuli in people with SSD: measures of sensory processing indicate hyporeactivity whereas their subjective reports of sensory flooding are consistent with hyperexcitability . Access to SSD populations can be challenging. We approached this issue by testingnon-clinical individuals with varying degrees of schizotypy traits to test whether those with high schizotypy exhibited patterns of behavior consistent with hyperexcitability (higher reports of perceived visual illusions) or hyporeactivity (fewer reported illusions) in an online presentation of the PGT. Data from two samples, totaling 913 participants, found that individuals with higher schizotypy traits reported more illusions than those with fewer traits.The disorganization factor robustly predicted Pattern Glare scores, whereas the interpersonal and cognitive-perceptual factors did not. The findings are consistent with ahyperexcitability account.
Our findings suggest that the non-clinical population experiencing abnormal disorganized thinking is associated with a greater Pattern Glare score. Consistent with our findings, former research has found a link between disorganized schizotypy and attentional deficits (Chen et al., 1997; Cicero & Kerns, 2010; Kemp et al., 2021), which has been described as a symptom of perceptual abnormalities and sensory flooding (Bunney et al., 1999; McGhie & Chapman, 1961). Disorganized schizotypy has been associated with greater affective deficits, affective ambivalence, and impairments in communication (Cicero & Kerns, 2010; Kemp et al., 2018; Kerns, 2006; Kerns & Becker, 2008).