The Lived Experience of Auditory Hallucinations among Egyptian Mentally Ill Patients: A Phenomenological Study

Abdelsalam, Zeinab Ahmed

doi:10.9790/1959-060202122127

Cited by 1 publication

(4 citation statements)

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“…Patients considered voices as harmful and very powerful. [26] This is broadly in consonance to the findings in the present study. Another study suggested mixed content (negative, positive, and neutral or ambiguous) across patients who experienced hallucinations.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…In available literature on understanding beliefs about AVH, there are only a few studies; some of them are qualitative and some have included varied set of diagnosis having AVH as a symptom, limiting a direct comparison with many of them. [1215162627] However, it might still be worthwhile to review what is known about AVH experiences and beliefs in international as well as Indian context, to contextualize the above findings.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[1516] However, the present study sample (from North India) did not find the voices to be particularly benevolent and consequently did not replicate the results of that previous study. Another qualitative study[26] described the experience of 13 patients with psychosis (of which eight had schizophrenia), where the predominant theme which emerged had a negative or persecutory connotation for voices. Patients considered voices as harmful and very powerful.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…[30] More malevolent beliefs (but not benevolent) predicted attentional impairments in patients. [31] On the other hand, available studies also indicate that patients with AVH (including those with malevolent voices) are generally open and keen to discuss about their experiences of hearing voices,[26] a fact that can be utilized in the behavioral intervention sessions for persistent voices in chronic psychotic patients.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Beliefs about voices and their relation to severity of psychosis in chronic schizophrenia patients

Chawla

Pattanayak

Khandelwal

et al. 2019

Indian J Psychiatry

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Background:Auditory hallucinations may persist in a subset of chronic psychotic patients in spite of treatment. It is important to understand the personal meaning and significance of voices in these patients. In spite of its relevance, only a limited literature is available.Aim:This exploratory study aimed to assess the beliefs regarding voices in treatment-seeking patients with chronic schizophrenia having persistent auditory verbal hallucinations (AVHs) and assess their relation to the severity of psychosis.Materials and Methods:We recruited thirty adult patients with chronic schizophrenia as per the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition with both lifetime and current significant AVHs (≥50% days/month). Co-occurring psychiatric disorders were ruled out using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview-7.0.0. Patients were assessed using a semi-structured proforma, Beliefs about Voices Questionnaire-Revised (BAVQ-R), Psychotic Symptom Rating Scale (PSYRATS), Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS), Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS), and Clinical Global Impression-Schizophrenia (CGI-SCH)-severity.Results:The median age of the patients was 32 years (interquartile range [IQR]: 23.8–40.5). The median duration of illness and treatment was 7 years (IQR: 3.4–15.0) and 3 years (IQR: 1.9–10.5), respectively. Higher BAVQ-R scores were found on “malevolence,” “omnipotence,” and “emotional and behavioral resistance.” These beliefs had a significant positive correlation with PSYRATS hallucination subscale, but not with the severity of psychosis (SAPS, SANS, and CGI-SCH). The sample had lower scores for “benevolence” and “engagement” subscales of BAV-Q.Conclusion:Overall, the study sample believed AVH to be more malicious and omnipotent rather than benevolent, and resisted the voices, engaging only minimally with them. These beliefs were not related to the severity of psychosis, but were related to the severity of hallucinations. Assessing the beliefs regarding AVH in larger, diverse samples may help to plan behavioral interventions.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%