Complex rule-based auditory processing is abnormal in individuals with long-term schizophrenia (SZ), as demonstrated by reduced mismatch negativity (MMN) to deviants in rule-based patterns and reduced auditory sustained potential (ASP) that appears when grouping tones together. Together, this suggests deficits later in the auditory processing hierarchy in Sz. Here, MMN and ASP were elicited by deviations from a complex zig-zag pitch pattern that cannot be predicted by simple linear rules. Twenty-seven SZ and 26 matched healthy controls (HC) participated. Frequent groups of patterns contained eight tones that zig-zagged in a two-up one-down pitch-based paradigm. There were two deviant patterns: the final tone was either higher in pitch than expected (creating a jump in pitch) or was repeated. Simple MMN to pitch-deviants among repetitive tones was measured for comparison. Sz exhibited a smaller pitch MMN compared to HC as expected. HC produced a late MMN in response to the repeat and jump-deviant and a larger ASP to the standard group of tones, all of which were significantly blunted in SZ. In Sz, the amplitude of the late complex MMN was related to neuropsychological functioning, whereas ASP was not. ASP and late MMN did not significantly correlate in HC or in Sz, suggesting that they are not dependent on one another and may originate within distinct processing streams. Together, this suggests multiple deficits later in the auditory sensory-perceptual hierarchy in Sz, with impairments evident in both segmentation and deviance detection abilities.
