Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in Schizophrenia
Background: Auditory hallucinations (AH), a core positive symptom of schizophrenia, cause significant distress which may be influenced by the patient’s beliefs about voices. Aims: We aimed to explore beliefs about AH, correlation between beliefs and functioning, and illness severity in patients with...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry |
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| Online Access: | https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/ijsp.ijsp_389_24 |
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| author | Dishaben Patel Vaibhav Patil Arnab Datta Merlin Mathew Pratap Sharan Mamta Sood |
| author_facet | Dishaben Patel Vaibhav Patil Arnab Datta Merlin Mathew Pratap Sharan Mamta Sood |
| author_sort | Dishaben Patel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background:
Auditory hallucinations (AH), a core positive symptom of schizophrenia, cause significant distress which may be influenced by the patient’s beliefs about voices.
Aims:
We aimed to explore beliefs about AH, correlation between beliefs and functioning, and illness severity in patients with schizophrenia.
Materials and Methods:
One hundred participants (aged 18–60) diagnosed with schizophrenia (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition) and experiencing significant AH (≥50% days/month) were assessed on a semistructured pro forma, Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms, Scale for Assessment of Negative Symptoms, Clinical Global Impression-Schizophrenia severity scale, Global Assessment of Functioning, and Social and Occupational Functioning Assessment Scale. Beliefs About Voices Questionnaire-Revised was used, to assess three primary beliefs – malevolence, benevolence, and omnipotence and two response styles – resistance and engagement.
Results:
The median age of onset and duration of illness were 23.5 years and 7 years. High scores were noted for omnipotence (median 12.0) and malevolence (median 8.0); benevolence scores were low. Malevolence and omnipotence correlated positively (P < 0.001) with emotional and behavioral resistance (ρ: 0.58, 0.57), higher symptom severity (ρ: 0.43, 0.57), and illness severity (ρ: 0.33, 0.41), and negatively with functioning (ρ: 0.29, −0.32). Benevolence showed no significant correlation with clinical measures. Emotional resistance was negatively correlated with functioning and positively correlated with illness severity and positive symptoms.
Conclusion:
Beliefs about omnipotence and malevolence in AH are correlated with resistance style, higher symptom and disease severity, and poor functioning. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-dfc90af3e2b94a758bf1f8b4292f9491 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 0971-9962 2454-8316 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj-art-dfc90af3e2b94a758bf1f8b4292f94912025-08-20T02:16:39ZengWolters Kluwer Medknow PublicationsIndian Journal of Social Psychiatry0971-99622454-83162025-01-01411182310.4103/ijsp.ijsp_389_24Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in SchizophreniaDishaben PatelVaibhav PatilArnab DattaMerlin MathewPratap SharanMamta SoodBackground: Auditory hallucinations (AH), a core positive symptom of schizophrenia, cause significant distress which may be influenced by the patient’s beliefs about voices. Aims: We aimed to explore beliefs about AH, correlation between beliefs and functioning, and illness severity in patients with schizophrenia. Materials and Methods: One hundred participants (aged 18–60) diagnosed with schizophrenia (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition) and experiencing significant AH (≥50% days/month) were assessed on a semistructured pro forma, Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms, Scale for Assessment of Negative Symptoms, Clinical Global Impression-Schizophrenia severity scale, Global Assessment of Functioning, and Social and Occupational Functioning Assessment Scale. Beliefs About Voices Questionnaire-Revised was used, to assess three primary beliefs – malevolence, benevolence, and omnipotence and two response styles – resistance and engagement. Results: The median age of onset and duration of illness were 23.5 years and 7 years. High scores were noted for omnipotence (median 12.0) and malevolence (median 8.0); benevolence scores were low. Malevolence and omnipotence correlated positively (P < 0.001) with emotional and behavioral resistance (ρ: 0.58, 0.57), higher symptom severity (ρ: 0.43, 0.57), and illness severity (ρ: 0.33, 0.41), and negatively with functioning (ρ: 0.29, −0.32). Benevolence showed no significant correlation with clinical measures. Emotional resistance was negatively correlated with functioning and positively correlated with illness severity and positive symptoms. Conclusion: Beliefs about omnipotence and malevolence in AH are correlated with resistance style, higher symptom and disease severity, and poor functioning.https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/ijsp.ijsp_389_24auditory hallucinationsbeliefsfunctioningschizophrenia |
| spellingShingle | Dishaben Patel Vaibhav Patil Arnab Datta Merlin Mathew Pratap Sharan Mamta Sood Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in Schizophrenia Indian Journal of Social Psychiatry auditory hallucinations beliefs functioning schizophrenia |
| title | Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in Schizophrenia |
| title_full | Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in Schizophrenia |
| title_fullStr | Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in Schizophrenia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in Schizophrenia |
| title_short | Beliefs about Auditory Hallucinations and their Correlation with Symptom Severity and Functioning in Schizophrenia |
| title_sort | beliefs about auditory hallucinations and their correlation with symptom severity and functioning in schizophrenia |
| topic | auditory hallucinations beliefs functioning schizophrenia |
| url | https://journals.lww.com/10.4103/ijsp.ijsp_389_24 |
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