The role of endophenocognitypes in cognitive performance

  • Authors:

  • Kenneth Revett

  • Affiliations:

  • Faculty of Informatics and Computer Science, The British University in Egypt, El Sherouk City, Cairo 11837, Egypt

  • Venue:
  • International Journal of Cognitive Performance Support
  • Year:
  • 2013

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Abstract

The endophenotype concept was introduced into the literature by Gottesman and Gould in 1973 to bridge the gap between complex multi-factorial disease processes and the underlying genetic basis for such diseases. The concept has been useful in developing a more comprehensive approach to understanding a number of disease processes through the application of extra-genetic analytical approaches. The approach focuses on aspects of disease processes that are more directly linked to measurable function and hence will tend to be more informative with respect to disease process identification than the complex genetics which ultimately may underlie the disease process. The concept has been applied most rigorously to identifying psychopathologies such as schizophrenia. Recent work has established its successful application to a wider range of cognitive disorders such as major depression and anti-social behaviour. In the process, a considerable body of cognitive processing features has been elucidated in the context of investigating the cognitive basis for these cognitive disorders. These cognitive processing features have been termed 'endophenocognitypes.' This concept retains the scientific framework proposed by Gottesman, but emphasises the building blocks relevant to cognitive functioning directly. The focus in this paper is to discuss why the endophenocognitypes might should be deployed in the context of modelling and the subsequent development of UIs.