Treatment of Negative Symptoms of Schizophrenia With Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS)

This study will test whether repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is helpful in treating negative symptoms and social deficits of schizophrenia. This will be the first rTMS study to assess social function and social cognition. 1. Hypoactivity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) has been implicated in generating the negative symptoms of schizophrenia. Abnormalities in the left inferior parietal lobe (IPL) have also been associated with negative symptoms. We hypothesize that high frequency rTMS applied to the hypoactive left DLPFC or to the left IPL in individuals with schizophrenia will reduce negative symptom severity more than sham (placebo) rTMS as assessed by the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) negative symptoms subscale. 2. We hypothesize that high frequency rTMS applied to the left DLPFC or to the left IPL in schizophrenia patients will improve social dysfunction more than sham (placebo) rTMS as assessed by the Social Adjustment Scale, the Social Adaptation Self-Evaluation Scale and the Social Functioning Scale.