Trajectories and predictors of response to social cognition training in people with schizophrenia: A proof-of-concept machine learning study.

Miley K, Bronstein MV, Ma S, Lee H, Green MF, Ventura J, Hooker CI, Nahum M, Vinogradov S. Trajectories and predictors of response to social cognition training in people with schizophrenia: A proof-of-concept machine learning study. Schizophrenia Research. 2024 Feb 21; 266:92-99.

Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects.

If you have VA-Intranet access, click here for more information vaww.hsrd.research.va.gov/dimensions/

VA staff not currently on the VA network can access Dimensions by registering for an account using their VA email address.    Search Dimensions for VA for this citation
* Don't have VA-internal network access or a VA email address? Try searching the free-to-the-public version of Dimensions

Search for Abstract from PubMed

---

Abstract:

BACKGROUND: Social cognition training (SCT) can improve social cognition deficits in schizophrenia. However, little is known about patterns of response to SCT or individual characteristics that predict response. METHODS: 76 adults with schizophrenia randomized to receive 8-12 weeks of remotely-delivered SCT were included in this analysis. Social cognition was measured with a composite of six assessments. Latent class growth analyses identified trajectories of social cognitive response to SCT. Random forest and logistic regression models were trained to predict membership in the trajectory group that showed improvement from baseline measures including symptoms, functioning, motivation, and cognition. RESULTS: Five trajectory groups were identified: Group 1 (29 %) began with slightly above average social cognition, and this ability significantly improved with SCT. Group 2 (9 %) had baseline social cognition approximately one standard deviation above the sample mean and did not improve with training. Groups 3 (18 %) and 4 (36 %) began with average to slightly below-average social cognition and showed non-significant trends toward improvement. Group 5 (8 %) began with social cognition approximately one standard deviation below the sample mean, and experienced significant deterioration in social cognition. The random forest model had the best performance, predicting Group 1 membership with an area under the curve of 0.73 (SD 0.24; 95 % CI [0.51-0.87]). CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that there are distinct patterns of response to SCT in schizophrenia and that those with slightly above average social cognition at baseline may be most likely to experience gains. Results may inform future research seeking to individualize SCT treatment for schizophrenia.