Corollary discharge dysfunction in auditory verbal hallucinations: N100 suppression measured with semi-dry electrodes

18/10/2026

AI Summary

N100 suppression negatively correlated with hallucination severity in patients (r = -0.54, p = 0.047), indicating impaired corollary discharge.
Between-group fronto-central analysis showed a non-significant trend toward greater N100 suppression in controls (p = 0.095, Cohen's d = 0.64).
Findings support using PSYRATS-AHS and symptom-specific measures; semi-dry electrode EEG approach promising but replication in larger samples required.

TL;DR (AI Generated)

OBJECTIVE: Corollary discharge dysfunction in patients with auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) is reflected in failure to attenuate the N100 event-related potential.

CONCLUSIONS: Hallucination severity is related to impaired corollary discharge mechanisms, supporting its role as a mechanistic basis for auditory hallucinations.

Basic summary

Clin Neurophysiol Pract. 2026 Oct 6;11:851-857. doi: 10.1016/j.cnp.2026.10.001. eCollection 2026.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: Corollary discharge dysfunction in patients with auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) is reflected in failure to attenuate the N100 event-related potential. Previous research has shown mixed findings regarding N100 suppression and hallucination severity, generally using broad symptom scales rather than AVH-specific measures. This study investigated corollary discharge and its relationship with comprehensively characterized auditory hallucinations.

METHODS: Corollary discharge was investigated in 14 patients with persistent auditory hallucinations and 15 healthy controls using an EEG paradigm using semi-dry electrodes where participants self-generated sounds in a “talk” condition and listened to playback in a “listen” condition. N100 suppression was calculated as the peak-amplitude difference (μV) between talk and listen in the 60-150 ms window. Auditory hallucinations were assessed with the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scales Auditory Hallucination Subscale (PSYRATS-AHS).

RESULTS: Between-group analysis of the fronto-central ROI (Fz-Cz) showed a statistically non-significant trend toward greater N100 suppression in healthy controls compared to AVH patients (p = 0.095, Cohen’s d = 0.64). N100 suppression showed significant negative correlation with hallucination severity in the AVH group (r = -0.54, p = 0.047).

CONCLUSIONS: Hallucination severity is related to impaired corollary discharge mechanisms, supporting its role as a mechanistic basis for auditory hallucinations.

SIGNIFICANCE: The preliminary correlation with PSYRATS-AHS suggests potential value in using symptom-specific assessment tools in research on auditory hallucinations, warranting replication in larger samples.

PMID:42893072 | PMC:PMC13675898 | DOI:10.1016/j.cnp.2026.10.001

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