In a recent study with individuals with schizophrenia it was found that errors due to cognitive difficulties were uncommon and significantly impair decision making capacity.

Additionally, 90.5 percent of participants understood that the study was voluntary after hearing the study information only once. When the information was repeated, all but one participant understood the voluntary nature. "Despite concerns regarding the potential for coercion, the fact that the vast majority of participants in the present study recognized the voluntary nature of participation suggests that perceived coercion is uncommon," the researchers commented.
Based on their findings, the researchers identified ways to increase the likelihood that individuals with schizophrenia will make informed decisions about participating in research. Though 55 of the 84 participants made errors in recalling study information, repetition of relevant information led to perfect or nearly perfect recall in 36.4 percent of them; 47.3 percent had improvements in recall, though they continued to miss important details. The researchers concluded that "given difficulties some individuals have with recalling information conveyed during the consent process, key study information should be highlighted and repeated to them."
As this study was limited to stable outpatients with mild to moderate psychiatric symptoms, the results cannot be extrapolated to inpatient or acutely ill populations.
Source-Eurekalert