Why is contour integration impaired in schizophrenia? New insights from a cross-diagnostic parametrically varying behavioral task

Background. Schizophrenia patients poorly integrate disconnected oriented elements into cohesive contours and shapes; the impairment worsens as the stimulus is globally scaled down in size (d=1.7; Keane et al., 2016). What stimulus features drive this scaling effect and how specific is it to schizophrenia? Addressing this issue will yield clues for building behavioral tasks that flag current or impending psychosis; it will also clarify the...