Schneider's First-Rank Symptoms of Schizophrenia: Prevalence and Diagnostic Use

Abstract

The prevalence of Schneiderian first-rank symptoms in 75 schizophrenic in-patients was found to be 67%. The commonest were somatic passivity, thought broadcast, and thought insertion. This suggests a considerable variation in the prevalence of first-rank symptoms and their individual frequencies in different cultures. First-rank symptoms thus have inherent weaknesses.