Neuroscience
Can you honestly say that alone on a dimly lit street you've never wondered if those footsteps behind are the sound of someone following you?
Increasingly, psychologists are recognising that many of the thoughts and experiences, such as paranoia, that we associate with schizophrenia are widespread among the general population.
Now Michelle Campbell and Anthony Morrison have used interviews to compare the experience of paranoia among six 'healthy' Manchester University staff and students with the paranoia experienced by six patients diagnosed with psychosis.
Many aspects of paranoia were similar across the two groups – for example, all the participants reported finding their paranoid thoughts anxiety-provoking, and they all linked their paranoia with earlier negative life experiences.
But there were also some clear differences. The staff and students had a sense of control (e.g. “I think sometimes that other people might think that I am being a bit funny but I have got to protect myself”), whereas the patients did not feel in control (e.g. “Well it is a feeling that you are not really in control of your life when people are sort of plotting against you...”). Also, the staff and students' paranoid beliefs tended to be more mundane whereas the patients' were more outlandish, for example believing that their quiz answers were being passed to an intelligence agency.
Campbell and Morrison said their findings could have clinical implications: “Negative metacognitive beliefs concerning paranoia should be challenged, particularly those relating to the uncontrollable nature of paranoia, to reduce emotional distress.”
_________________________________
Campbell, M.L.C. & Morrison, A.P. (2007). The subjective experience of paranoia: Comparing the experiences of patients with psychosis and individuals with psychiatric history. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, 14, 63-77.
Post written by Christian Jarrett (@psych_writer) for the BPS Research Digest.
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Neuroscience
Who doesn't suffer from paranoia?
Can you honestly say that alone on a dimly lit street you've never wondered if those footsteps behind are the sound of someone following you?Increasingly, psychologists are recognising that many of the thoughts and experiences, such as paranoia, that we associate with schizophrenia are widespread among the general population.
Now Michelle Campbell and Anthony Morrison have used interviews to compare the experience of paranoia among six 'healthy' Manchester University staff and students with the paranoia experienced by six patients diagnosed with psychosis.
Many aspects of paranoia were similar across the two groups – for example, all the participants reported finding their paranoid thoughts anxiety-provoking, and they all linked their paranoia with earlier negative life experiences.
But there were also some clear differences. The staff and students had a sense of control (e.g. “I think sometimes that other people might think that I am being a bit funny but I have got to protect myself”), whereas the patients did not feel in control (e.g. “Well it is a feeling that you are not really in control of your life when people are sort of plotting against you...”). Also, the staff and students' paranoid beliefs tended to be more mundane whereas the patients' were more outlandish, for example believing that their quiz answers were being passed to an intelligence agency.
Campbell and Morrison said their findings could have clinical implications: “Negative metacognitive beliefs concerning paranoia should be challenged, particularly those relating to the uncontrollable nature of paranoia, to reduce emotional distress.”
_________________________________
Campbell, M.L.C. & Morrison, A.P. (2007). The subjective experience of paranoia: Comparing the experiences of patients with psychosis and individuals with psychiatric history. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, 14, 63-77.
Post written by Christian Jarrett (@psych_writer) for the BPS Research Digest.
- People With Schizophrenia-like Traits Can Tickle Themselves (whereas Most People Can't)
Go ahead, try tickling yourself on your inner forearm or neck. If you're like most people, you'll find it doesn't work. The sensation would make you shiver or giggle with ticklishness if someone else did it, but when you do it yourself, it...
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By guest blogger Peter Kinderman “I’ve been rich and I’ve been poor. Believe me, rich is better” (Mae West). Critiques of the rather discredited "disease-model" of mental illness are commonplace, but we also need to articulate the alternative....
- Hiring Private Detectives To Investigate Paranoid Delusions
Vaughan Bell: "In 1684, the famous writer, Nathaniel Lee, was becoming increasingly disturbed and was promptly admitted to Bethlem Hospital. While protesting his sanity, he described the situation as one where 'they called me mad, and I called them...
- Shadow Illusion Casts Light On Psychotic Experience
A 22-year-old epilepsy sufferer with no known psychiatric problems has described the eerie feeling that a shadow-like person is mimicking her actions, when really no-one is there. She had the experience when, prior to surgery, Swiss researchers applied...
- Childhood Trauma And Schizophrenia
A series of articles in the November issue of Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica explores the link between trauma and schizophrenia. "Earlier trauma plays a causal role in schizophrenia, it’s argued, because it can leave people prone to finding...psychotic...