A preliminary investigation into the existence of a hypervigilance subtype of auditory hallucination in people with psychosis.
Lucy Garwood, Guy Dodgson, Vicki Bruce, Simon McCarthy-Jones
Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy January 2015 DOI: 10.1017/s1352465813000714 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Exploratory qualitative study using semi-structured interviews and cluster analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 15 |
| Population | Patients with psychosis reporting auditory hallucinations |
| Keywords | Auditory verbal hallucination Categorization Hearing voices. Psychosis |
| Key findings | Cluster analysis of 32 individual auditory hallucination experiences from 15 patients with psychosis offered tentative support for a distinct 'hypervigilance hallucination' subtype, characterized by hearing threatening, externally located voices when attention was externally focused. Other clusters shared contrasting properties of occurring in quiet contexts when attention was internally focused. The authors argue this justifies future research in larger samples. |
Abstract
The phenomenological heterogeneity of auditory hallucinations (AHs) means individual models struggle to account for all aspects of the experience. One alternative is that distinct subtypes of AHs exist, with each requiring their own unique explanatory model and tailored cognitive behavioural intervention strategies. This exploratory study tested for the presence of one specific potential AH-subtype, hypervigilance hallucinations (HV-AHs). Four specific aspects of the phenomenology of AHs (chosen on the basis of the predicted phenomenology of HV-AHs) were assessed using a semi-structured interview in 32 individual AHs taken from reports from 15 patients with psychosis. Cluster analysis (at the level of the individual AH-experience) offered support for the existence of a distinct HV-AH subtype, characterized by hearing threatening, externally-located voices when attention was externally-focused. Other clusters identified all shared the contrasting properties of occurring in quiet contexts when patients' attention was internally focused. The results offered tentative support for the existence of an HV-AH subcategorization and justifies future research in larger samples. Potential implications for models of AHs are also considered.
Citations in the library
Cited by 6
- Hearing voices and other altered perceptual experiences across psychotic, mood, and anxiety disorders: from phenomenology and mechanisms to future directions. Schizophrenia September 29, 2025
- Understanding auditory verbal hallucinations: a systematic review of current evidence. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica May 2016
- Auditory verbal hallucinations in schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder: common phenomenology, common cause, common interventions? Frontiers in Psychology 2015
- Accounting for the phenomenology and varieties of auditory verbal hallucination within a predictive processing framework Consciousness and Cognition October 3, 2014
- Interdisciplinary approaches to the phenomenology of auditory verbal hallucinations. Schizophrenia Bulletin July 2014
and 1 more in the library
Cites 3
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- A new phenomenological survey of auditory hallucinations: evidence for subtypes and implications for theory and practice. Schizophrenia Bulletin January 2014
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