Impaired Smooth Pursuit Eye Movement: Vulnerability Marker for Schizotypal Personality Disorder in a Normal Volunteer Population

Impaired smooth pursuit eye movement has been proposed as a possible biologic marker for schizophrenia. Preliminary studies have suggested that this impairment may be associated with social introversion and related psychopathology in a nonpsychiatric population. To evaluate the relationship between dysfunctional smooth pursuit eye movement and schizophrenia-related psychopathology, the authors screened a new, volunteer sample of 284 male college students for eye tracking accuracy. Volunteers identified as lowaccuracy trackers were significantly more likely to be diagnosed (blindly) as having a schizotypal personality disorder by DSM-III criteria than those identified as high-accuracy trackers. The authors suggest that disordered smooth pursuit eye movement may reflect a vulnerability marker for schizotypal personality disorder. (AmJ Psychiatry 141:1560-1566, 1984)