Measuring Psychotic-Like Experiences in the General Population.
Julie Nordgaard, Marlene Buch Pedersen, Lene Halling Hastrup, Ulrik Helt Haahr, Erik Simonsen
Psychopathology 2019 DOI: 10.1159/000502048 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study with clinical assessment of a screened subsample Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 40 |
| Population | Individuals from the general population who screened positive for psychotic-like experiences on a self-rating questionnaire |
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Clinician Psychopathology Psychosis-continuum Self-rated |
| Key findings | Among 40 people who screened positive for psychotic-like experiences, 7 (17.5%) were found on clinical assessment to have had a psychotic experience, and 4 of those were already in psychiatric treatment. The authors argue that self-reported psychotic-like phenomena are more common in the general population than psychotic disorders, and that the reported experiences generally did not correspond to psychotic phenomena on clinical assessment, so they conclude the findings do not support the full psychosis continuum model. |
Abstract
The notion of a full psychosis continuum in which psychosis is seen on a continuum with normal experience rests heavily on studies showing that psychotic symptoms are common in the general population. However, the methods of assessment in the studies have been criticized. (1) to investigate how many from the general population who answered positively on a psychotic-like symptoms questionnaire and (2) to clinically assess a subset of those with psychotic-like experiences (PLE). A self-rating questionnaire concerning PLEs was given to individuals from the general population. A subsample of those, who scored positively for PLEs, was clinically assessed for psychosis. Totally, 5.7% of the participants rated positive for PLEs according to the self-rating questionnaire. Forty of these were clinically assessed and 7 (17.5%) of them were found to have had a psychotic experience, 4 of them were already in psychiatric treatment. The self-reported psychotic-like phenomena were more common in the general population than psychotic disorders. However, when assessed clinically, the experienced phenomena did correspond to psychotic phenomena except in a few patients, who were found to suffer from a psychotic disorder. Overall, we did not find support for the full psychosis continuum model.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on philosophy of mind, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| The phenomenology of near-death experiences Subjects who reported near-death experiences | 1980 | Retrospective study | n = 78 |
| Visual Phenomenology of the LSD Flashback Persons with a history of LSD use | 1983 | Observational cohort | n = 123 |
| The neurophenomenology of neutral hypnosis. Individuals of high, medium, and low hypnotizability | 2013 | Observational cohort | n = 37 |
| The Phenomenology of Acute Organic Psychosis Patients with acute organic psychosis and acute schizophrenics | 1987 | Observational cohort | n = 148 |
| EEG oscillatory states as neuro-phenomenology of consciousness as revealed from patients in vegetative and minimally conscious states. Brain-damaged patients with disorders of consciousness and healthy-conscious subjects | 2012 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cited by 5
- Integrating dynamical systems theory and phenomenology to enhance early identification and treatment of psychotic disorders. The Lancet Psychiatry March 1, 2026
- Can Self-Disorders Be Self-Rated? Theoretical and Empirical Validity of the Inventory of Psychotic-Like Anomalous Self-Experiences. Psychopathology April 27, 2026
- Forced-choice experiment on Anomalous Information Reception and correlations with states of consciousness using the Multivariable Multiaxial Suggestibility Inventory-2 (MMSI-2). Explore 2022
- The Multivariable Multiaxial Suggestibility Inventory-2 (MMSI-2): A Psychometric Alternative to Measure and Explain Supernatural Experiences Frontiers in Psychology July 16, 2021
- Psychotic-Like Experiences: A Challenge in Definition and Assessment. Frontiers in Psychiatry March 29, 2021
Cites 3
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