He korowai o nga tipuna: Voice hearing and communication from ancestors.

OBJECTIVE: This article describes the voice hearing experiences of a young Maori man, and the joint Maori healing and psychiatry assessment he received, in which the Maori healer (WN) concluded that some of the young man's experiences could be accounted for by ancestral kaitiaki (spiritual guardians). CONCLUSIONS: Kaitiaki are commonly accepted in Te Ao Maori (the Maori world) as an explanation for some types of voice hearing experiences. Collaboration between a Maori healer and a psychiatrist can offer Maori whanau (individuals and families) more appropriate mental health assessment and intervention than conventional psychiatric assessment alone when Maori spiritual experiences are suspected.

Do they see dead people? Cultural factors and sensitivity in screening for schizophrenia spectrum disorders.

OBJECTIVE: Schizophrenia spectrum disorders (SSDs), are diagnosed more frequently among African-Americans (AAs) than Caucasians. It has been suggested that cultural differences in symptom presentation and endorsement (including reporting spiritual/religious experiences) may influence this disparity. The current study investigated the relationship between endorsement of spiritual auditory and visual hallucinations and subsequent diagnosis of SSD among AA patients. DESIGN: Participants (N = 471 AAs) completed the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview-Plus (MINI-Plus) Screening Interview as part of their intake to a HIV outpatient clinic. Endorsement of auditory or visual (A/V) hallucinations was explored with the MINI-Plus Psychotic Disorder Module and questions regarding the content of the unusual experience. RESULTS: Logistic regression indicated that endorsement of A/V hallucinations significantly predicted a SSD (OR = 41.6, 95% CI 13.7-126.0, p < .001). However, when hallucinations were spiritual in nature, odds of an SSD fell dramatically (OR = 0.22, 95% CI 0.07-0.64, p < .001). CONCLUSIONS: The current study indicates that not all visual and auditory hallucinations are symptomatic of a psychotic disorder in AA patients. Many of these experiences may be related to spirituality. Clinicians assessing AA patients need to query content of, meaning attributed to, and distress associated with A/V unusual experiences.

Prevalence of psychotic symptoms among older adults in an Asian population.

BACKGROUND: Psychotic symptoms are common among older adults and are seen in a wide range of conditions. Most studies examining the prevalence and correlates of psychotic symptoms among older adults have been conducted in Western populations. To address this gap the current study was undertaken to establish the prevalence and correlates of psychotic symptoms and paranoid ideation within a community sample of older adults without dementia in an Asian population. METHODS: The Well-being of the Singapore Elderly (WiSE) study was a comprehensive single phase, cross-sectional survey. All respondents were assessed using the Geriatric Mental State examination (GMS). Specific questions of the GMS were then used to establish the prevalence of hallucinations and persecutory delusions. RESULTS: A total of 2,565 respondents completed the study giving a response rate of 65.6%. The prevalence of any psychotic symptoms in this population of older adults was 5.2%. The odds of hallucinations and any psychotic symptoms were significantly higher among those of Malay ethnicity, and those who had no formal education. Older adults aged 75-84 years were significantly associated with lower odds of having hallucinations (vs. older adult aged 60-74 years), while homemaker status was significantly associated with lower odds of having any psychotic symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of psychotic symptoms among older Asian adults without dementia was higher than that reported from Western countries. Psychotic symptoms were associated with Malay ethnicity, poor cognitive performance and fewer years of schooling, visual and hearing impairment as well as depression and irritability.

Symptoms of psychosis in schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, and bipolar disorder: A comparison of African Americans and Caucasians in the Genomic Psychiatry Cohort.

Several studies have reported differences between African Americans and Caucasians in relative proportion of psychotic symptoms and disorders, but whether this reflects racial bias in the assessment of psychosis is unclear. The purpose of this study was to examine the distribution of psychotic symptoms and potential bias in symptoms assessed via semi-structured interview using a cohort of 3,389 African American and 5,692 Caucasian participants who were diagnosed with schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, or bipolar disorder. In this cohort, the diagnosis of schizophrenia was relatively more common, and the diagnosis of bipolar disorder and schizoaffective disorder-bipolar type was less relatively common, among African Americans than Caucasians. With regard to symptoms, relatively more African Americans than Caucasians endorsed hallucinations and delusions symptoms, and this pattern was striking among cases diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizoaffective-bipolar disorder. In contrast, the relative endorsement of psychotic symptoms was more similar among cases diagnosed with schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder-depressed type. Differential item function analysis revealed that African Americans with mild psychosis over-endorsed "hallucinations in any modality" and under-endorsed "widespread delusions" relative to Caucasians. Other symptoms did not show evidence of racial bias. Thus, racial bias in assessment of psychotic symptoms does not appear to explain differences in the proportion of symptoms between Caucasians and African Americans. Rather, this may reflect ascertainment bias, perhaps indicative of a disparity in access to services, or differential exposure to risk factors for psychosis by race. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Differences in voice-hearing experiences of people with psychosis in the U.S.A., India and Ghana: interview-based study.

BACKGROUND: We still know little about whether and how the auditory hallucinations associated with serious psychotic disorder shift across cultural boundaries. AIMS: To compare auditory hallucinations across three different cultures, by means of an interview-based study. METHOD: An anthropologist and several psychiatrists interviewed participants from the USA, India and Ghana, each sample comprising 20 persons who heard voices and met the inclusion criteria of schizophrenia, about their experience of voices. RESULTS: Participants in the U.S.A. were more likely to use diagnostic labels and to report violent commands than those in India and Ghana, who were more likely than the Americans to report rich relationships with their voices and less likely to describe the voices as the sign of a violated mind. CONCLUSIONS: These observations suggest that the voice-hearing experiences of people with serious psychotic disorder are shaped by local culture. These differences may have clinical implications.

Mild psychotic experiences among ethnic minority and majority adolescents and the role of ethnic density.

PURPOSE: Despite evidence of the increased risk of psychotic disorders among ethnic minority adults, little is known about the effect of ethnic minority status to mild psychotic experiences among adolescents. This study investigated mild psychotic experiences in ethnic minority and majority adolescents in a Dutch representative general population sample, and tested the ethnic density effect in the classroom. METHODS: The CAPE was used to assess mild psychotic experiences among Dutch (n = 3,606) and non-Western ethnic minority pupils (n = 769). RESULTS: Ethnic minority adolescents showed higher levels of grandiosity and delusions than their ethnic majority peers, whereas no differences were found for hallucinations, paranormal beliefs and paranoia between both groups of adolescents. The ethnic density effect was partly confirmed for the ethnic majority: a decrease of ethnic majority pupils in class increased their feelings of paranoia. CONCLUSIONS: Because only some dimensions of mild psychotic experiences were affected by ethnic minority status or the interaction between ethnic minority status and ethnic class composition, our findings emphasize that mild psychotic experiences are multifactorial in origin, with different underlying processes.

DSM-IV "criterion A" schizophrenia symptoms across ethnically different populations: evidence for differing psychotic symptom content or structural organization?

There is significant variation in the expression of schizophrenia across ethnically different populations, and the optimal structural and diagnostic representation of schizophrenia are contested. We contrasted both lifetime frequencies of DSM-IV criterion A (the core symptom criterion of the internationally recognized DSM classification system) symptoms and types/content of delusions and hallucinations in transethnic schizophrenia populations from Australia (n = 776), India (n = 504) and Sarawak, Malaysia (n = 259), to elucidate clinical heterogeneity. Differences in both criterion A symptom composition and symptom content were apparent. Indian individuals with schizophrenia reported negative symptoms more frequently than other sites, whereas individuals from Sarawak reported disorganized symptoms more frequently. Delusions of control and thought broadcast, insertion, or withdrawal were less frequent in Sarawak than Australia. Curiously, a subgroup of 20 Indian individuals with schizophrenia reported no lifetime delusions or hallucinations. These findings potentially challenge the long-held view in psychiatry that schizophrenia is fundamentally similar across cultural groups, with differences in only the content of psychotic symptoms, but equivalence in structural form.

The phenomena of auditory hallucination as described by Indonesian people living with schizophrenia.

This study was a phenomenological inquiry of the experience of auditory hallucinations as described by 13 Indonesian people diagnosed with schizophrenia. The interviewees included 6 men and 7 women and they were aged between 19 and 56 years. Four themes emerged from this study: feeling more like a robot than a human being; voices of contradiction--a point of confusion; tattered relationships and family disarray; and normalizing the presence of voices as part of everyday life. The findings of this study have the potential to contribute to new understandings of how people live with and manage auditory hallucinations and so enhance client-centered nursing care.

Characteristics of Recurrent Visions of the Nonphysical World Among Cognitively Unimpaired Elders of the Ojibwe Tribal Nation.

Importance: Visual hallucinations are a core feature of dementia with Lewy bodies and primary psychiatric disease, yet identification of a hallucination vs normal spiritual experience depends on cultural context. Almost no information exists in the medical literature regarding normal spiritual experiences in American Indian participants in the context of a neurocognitive evaluation. Objective: To assess the characteristics of a normal spiritual experience in an Ojibwe Tribal Nation. Design, Setting, and Participants: This prospective, cross-sectional study was conducted between August 1, 2021, and August 31, 2022, among an Ojibwe Tribal Nation in northern Minnesota. Participants were evaluated at their tribal nation clinic. Cognitively unimpaired tribal Elders who were enrolled members of the tribal nation and aged 55 years or older were invited to participate via fliers, radio advertisements, and health fair presentations. Thirty-seven tribal Elders volunteered. Main Outcomes and Measures: Each participant was asked whether they experienced hallucinations or visions of people, animals, or objects that are not part of the physical world. This was an a priori formulated question and part of a comprehensive neurocognitive evaluation consisting of history and physical examination (including cognitive screening with a subspecialty-trained behavioral neurologist); blood tests for metabolic, nutritional, and thyroid conditions; and noncontrast magnetic resonance imaging brain scan. Four patients were excluded from the present analysis due to having mild cognitive impairment or dementia. Results: Thirty-three cognitively unimpaired tribal Elders (mean [SD] age, 66.0 [7.5] years; 22 women [67%]) were included. Sixteen (48%) answered affirmatively, reporting recurrent visions of the nonphysical world. Generally, these visions were well formed, benevolent in nature, and transient; started in preadolescence; involved spirits or ancestors; and were congruent with cultural and spiritual beliefs of the Ojibwe people. No patients had accompanying dream enactment behavior, dysautonomia, parkinsonism, sleep transition-related hallucinations, or moderate to severe depression to suggest a prodrome of an α-synucleinopathy, hypnopompic or hypnagogic hallucinations, or psychosis. Conclusions and Relevance: Although based on only 1 Ojibwe Tribal Nation, this study suggests that formed visions of the nonphysical world are common among cognitively healthy Ojibwe individuals and can represent normal spiritual experiences. Clinicians would benefit from careful consideration of cultural or spiritual context to avoid misdiagnosis of neuropsychiatric disease.

A survey of psychosis risk symptoms in Kenya.

Defining the prepsychotic state in an effort to prevent illness progression and the development of disorders such as schizophrenia is a rapidly growing area of psychiatry. The presentation of psychotic symptoms can be influenced by culture; however, there has not been any previous assessment of psychosis risk symptoms in the continent of Africa. Our study aimed to measure the prevalence of psychosis risk in a community sample in Nairobi, Kenya, and to evaluate the effects of key demographic variables. A culturally modified version of the 12-item PRIME-Screen (mPRIME) was self-administered by 2758 youth (aged 14-29 years) recruited through house-to-house visits in Nairobi, Kenya. The prevalence and severity of psychosis risk items from the mPRIME and the effects of sex and age on symptoms were evaluated. k-Means cluster analysis was used to identify symptom groups. Depending on the mPRIME item, 1.8% to 19.5% of participants reported certainty of having had a psychosis risk symptom. Overall, 45.5% reported having had any psychosis risk symptom. Females had a significantly higher mean severity score on items evaluating persecutory ideation and auditory hallucinations. Symptom severity on 5 items showed a modest (R = 0.09-0.13) but significant correlation with age. Cluster analysis identified 4 groups of participants: normative (55%), high symptom (11%), intermediate symptom (19%), and grandiose symptom (15%). Psychosis risk symptoms appear to be highly prevalent in Kenyan youth. Longitudinal studies are needed to determine the correlation of identified symptoms with transition to psychotic illness, as well as the associated functionality and distress, to develop appropriate intervention strategies.

Recovering from hallucinations: a qualitative study of coping with voices hearing of people with schizophrenia in Hong Kong.

Auditory hallucination is a positive symptom of schizophrenia and has significant impacts on the lives of individuals. People with auditory hallucination require considerable assistance from mental health professionals. Apart from medications, they may apply different lay methods to cope with their voice hearing. Results from qualitative interviews showed that people with schizophrenia in the Chinese sociocultural context of Hong Kong were coping with auditory hallucination in different ways, including (a) changing social contacts, (b) manipulating the voices, and (c) changing perception and meaning towards the voices. Implications for recovery from psychiatric illness of individuals with auditory hallucinations are discussed.

Voice hearing and pseudoseizures in a Maori teenager: an example of mate Maori and Maori traditional healing.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this paper is to describe a Maori traditional healing approach to assessment and treatment of distressing psychiatric symptoms in a young man. METHOD: We describe the case of a 17 year old Maori male with voice hearing and pseudoseizures and the assessment and intervention by one of the authors (WN). We report on the young man's and his family's experience of this treatment. We outline concepts from a Maori world view that illuminate an indigenous rationale for this approach. RESULTS: A single session traditional Maori healing intervention was associated with immediate resolution of this young man's psychiatric symptoms and restoration of his sense of wellbeing, despite cessation of antipsychotic treatment. He and his family felt satisfied with the cultural explanation about the origin of his distress, which was congruent with their world view. He remained well at follow-up one year later. CONCLUSIONS: Collaboration between psychiatrists and traditional Maori healing practitioners can enhance the mental health care of Maori whaiora (service users) and their families. Indigenous research is required to further evaluate the acceptability and effectiveness of such joint approaches.

Culture and the prevalence of hallucinations in schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVE: Besides demographic, clinical, familial, and biographical factors, culture and ethnicity may plausibly influence the manifestation of hallucinations. The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of culture on the frequency of different kinds of hallucinations in schizophrenia. METHOD: Patients with a clinical diagnosis of schizophrenia were diagnosed by means of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition criteria. Seven independent samples were consecutively recruited in Austria, Lithuania, Poland, Georgia, Ghana, Nigeria, and Pakistan using identical inclusion/exclusion criteria and assessment procedures (N = 1080 patients total). The association of key demographic factors (sex and age), clinical factors (age at onset and duration of illness), and country of origin with hallucinations of different kinds was examined. RESULTS: The prevalence of various kinds of hallucinations was substantially different in the samples; however, the rank order of their occurrence was similar. Auditory hallucinations were relatively infrequent in Austria and Georgia and more prevalent in patients with an early age at onset of disease. Visual hallucinations were more frequently reported by the West African patients compared with subjects from the other 5 countries. Cenesthetic hallucinations were most prevalent in Ghana and in patients with a long duration of illness. CONCLUSION: We hypothesize that the prevalence of the different kinds of hallucinations in schizophrenia is the result of the interaction of a variety of factors like cultural patterns as well as clinical parameters. According to our study, culture seems to play a decisive role and should be taken into account to a greater extent in considerations concerning the pathogenesis of psychotic symptoms.

Association of trauma-related disorders and dissociation with four idioms of distress among Latino psychiatric outpatients.

Past research on idioms of distress among U.S. Latinos has revealed that ataque de nervios and altered perceptions, such as hearing and seeing things when alone, are independent markers of higher morbidity and mental health utilization despite having no one-to-one relationships with any single psychiatric diagnosis. It has been proposed that the idioms exert this effect because they are signs of distressing dissociative capacity associated with traumatic exposure. This study examines the relationships in an ethnically diverse Latino psychiatric outpatient sample (N = 230) among interpersonal trauma, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), major depressive disorder, dissociative capacity and four cultural idioms of distress associated with the popular overall category of nervios. We particularly explore how these relationships change with varied measures of traumatic exposure, including trauma severity and timing or persistence of trauma. A series of adjusted bivariate regressions assessed the matrix of associations between the idioms and the clinical variables. In this highly traumatized population, we identified a strong 'nexus' of associations between dissociation and three of the idioms: currently being ill with nerves, ataque de nervios and altered perceptions. These idioms were largely independent from PTSD and depression and were associated with trauma persistence and severity. A fourth idiom, being nervous since childhood, was not associated with any other variable and may represent a personality trait rather than a diagnosable condition. Our results validate the clinical utility of the construct of nervios as a set of specific idioms associated with dissociation that are useful markers of mental health need among Latinos independently of their association with clinical diagnoses.

[Cultural aspects in depression masked by psychotic symptoms in Maghreb countries: three case reports]. / Aspects culturels dans la dépression masquée par des symptômes psychotiques.

CASE REPORTS: In this study, we will describe three observations of depression "masked" by persecution delirium and/or hallucinations, to illustrate the role that the cultural factor could play in the expression and care of depression. In the first two observations, the persecutor was a group that was apparently difficult to circumscribe: the persecution appeared more important than the persecutor. In these two cases, persecution also had a depreciating role for the patient. In the third observation, the hallucinatory manifestations cast a slur on self-esteem and caused narcissistic injury. DISCUSSION: Analysis of the cultural context allows us to understand the depressive significance of such psychotic symptoms. In the traditional societies, depression is strongly related to the cultural context, it is often expressed by the fear of being punished or denied by the group, and a feeling of treason towards the community. The punishment can be direct or indirect, carried out by imaginary beings, "the djinn", or by any disease. According to Freud, the guilt is expressed by the fear of the vengeance of a dead man's spirit, which is then going to persecute the culprit. This persecution, which has a value of punishment, is based on the mechanism of the projection. In the same sense, Freud explained that the death, as a sequel of the disease, is the vengeance of the dead man's spirit in the living. In all religions, the impulses, the thoughts disapproved by the community, are attributed to Satan who etymologically means "the enemy" or "the opponent". This latter plays an important role in relieving fears, the sense of guilt and the disapproved thoughts. There is also involvement of the projection mechanism. So, guilt could be expressed by delirious ideas such as the conviction of being the victim of a demonic possession, to be under a spell or to be persecuted. CONCLUSION: Thus, taking the cultural context into account would allow us to fundamentally understand the depressive meaning of the delirious symptomatology of persecution, which is taken from a popular theory of misfortune shared and validated by the familial and the social circle of acquaintances. Plantine postulates that the psychotic conflict takes the subject away from the standards of his own culture. In the case of our three patients, we should try to establish a form of communication, to prevent them from falling into alienation. Thus, we must think about our attitude facing a patient who is diagnosed as depressed or even psychotic, while the patient believes he/she is possessed by a "Djinn". The therapeutic attitude should be adapted to the cultural dimension of the case. Thus, in situations similar to the studied cases, the therapy should be essentially based on the development of a psychotherapeutic relationship, rather than a pharmacotherapy, one should be careful not to compromise the cultural means of restoring psychic disorders such as the traditional therapy.

Understanding the mental health burden of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom.

This article outlines the mental health burden of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom population, and presents preliminary evidence of less common psychiatric issues, such as paranoia and hallucinations, to which vulnerable groups in the U.K. population may be more vulnerable. It is argued that cognitive-behavioral therapy, with components of mindfulness, should be part of the therapeutic response. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Ethnicity, social disadvantage and psychotic-like experiences in a healthy population based sample.

OBJECTIVE: We sought to investigate the prevalence and social correlates of psychotic-like experiences in a general population sample of Black and White British subjects. METHOD: Data were collected from randomly selected community control subjects, recruited as part of the AESOP study, a three-centre population based study of first-episode psychosis. RESULTS: The proportion of subjects reporting one or more psychotic-like experience was 19% (n = 72/372). These were more common in Black Caribbean (OR 2.08) and Black African subjects (OR 4.59), compared with White British. In addition, a number of indicators of childhood and adult disadvantage were associated with psychotic-like experiences. When these variables were simultaneously entered into a regression model, Black African ethnicity, concentrated adult disadvantage, and separation from parents retained a significant effect. CONCLUSION: The higher prevalence of psychotic-like experiences in the Black Caribbean, but not Black African, group was explained by high levels of social disadvantage over the life course.

Risk factors for deliberate self-harm and completed suicide in young Chinese people with schizophrenia.

OBJECTIVES: Suicide is best conceptualized as a risk rather than all-or-none behaviour. In the literature the majority of suicide studies have adopted a cross-sectional case-control design. Longitudinal design should be used in order to account for the time dimension of variables. The aim of the present study was therefore to identify risk factors and calculate hazard ratios for suicidal behaviour in young Chinese people suffering from schizophrenia. METHODS: Using a retrospective cohort design, 234 subjects with schizophrenia in the Early Assessment Service for Young People with Psychosis service were recruited and data retrieved from case notes and discharge summaries. Cox proportional hazard modelling was used to analyse potential risk factors. RESULTS: Traditional risk factors were confirmed to be applicable to the present subjects. Continuing medication was a protective factor while hallucination was a risk factor for suicide. CONCLUSION: The limitations of the present study were due to its retrospective design, reliance on past records, and the large Type II error. A prospective cohort study design is recommended for future research in this area.

Psychometric properties of a Persian translation of the Launay-Slade Hallucination Scale in an Iranian population.

For the Launay-Slade Hallucination Scale, a 12-item measure of predisposition toward auditory and visual hallucinations, internal consistency and concurrent validity of a Persian version were assessed. The Persian version was administered to 182 men (M age = 29.8 yr., SD = 12.4) and 118 women (M age = 28.4 yr., SD = 10.2) from a community population in Iran. Participants were selected at random at the main Shiraz bus terminal for long distance intercity routes. The factor structure, internal consistency, and concurrent validity of the translation were examined. Principal component analysis identified two factors characterized as clinical and subclinical. The current factor structure supported the two-factor model proposed by Serper, Dill, Chang, Kot, and Elliot, but the strength and importance of factors appear to differ between countries and cultures. All scales had good to acceptable estimates of reliability. Data also showed desirable concurrent validity for the Persian version. These findings suggest that the Persian version is, for an Iranian sample, best represented by a two-factor solution.