No abstract

JTC is a phenomenon common in many people in first-episode services. In this large cohort sample, no clear associations with symptoms or other psychological processes were evident. Hence, the reason people JTC is still unclear.

Formal thought disorder (FTD) is clinically manifested as disorganized speech, but there have been only few investigations of its linguistic properties. We examined how disturbance of thought may relate to the referential function of language as expressed in the use of noun phrases (NPs) and the complexity of sentence structures. We used a comic strip description task to elicit language samples from 30 participants with schizophrenia (SZ), 15 with moderate or severe FTD (SZ + FTD), and 15 minimal or no FTD (SZ−FTD), as well as 15 first-degree relatives of people with SZ (FDRs) and 15 neurotypical controls (NC). We predicted that anomalies in the normal referential use of NPs, sub-divided into definite and indefinite NPs, would identify FTD; and also that FTD would also be linked to reduced linguistic complexity as specifically measured by the number of embedded clauses and of grammatical dependents. Participants with SZ + FTD produced more referential anomalies than NC and produced the fewest definite NPs, while FDRs produced the most and thus also differed from NC. When referential anomalies were classed according to the NP type in which they occurred, the SZ + FTD group produced more anomalies in definite NPs than NC. Syntactic errors did not distinguish groups, but the SZ + FTD group exhibited significantly less syntactic complexity than non-SZ groups. Exploratory regression analyses suggested that production of definite NPs distinguished the two SZ groups. These results demonstrate that FTD can be identified in specific grammatical patterns which provide new targets for detection, intervention, and neurobiological studies.

This study provides preliminary evidence that CT is an acceptable and effective treatment for people with psychosis who choose not to take antipsychotic medication. An adequately powered randomized controlled trial is warranted.

Background: Families of children with developmental delays (DD) prior to the COVID-19 pandemic experienced inequalities in accessing health and social care services. Measures put in place to combat the spread of the coronavirus have potentially exacerbated existing inequalities and have led to additional pressures for these families. Methods: We carried out a cross-sectional online survey of parents of young children with moderate to severe DD and challenging behaviors living in England, UK. We asked about the impact the pandemic has had on their family well-being, receipt of support, and post COVID-19 concerns. Results: Eighty-eight parents who are participants in an ongoing clinical trial (EPICC-ID) reported a broad range of challenges they faced during the pandemic: lack of information specific to children with DD; difficulties following social distancing and isolation rules; disruption or pause of health and social care services; deterioration in parental mental health and regression of the child's skills. Future access to services, negative long-term impact of school closures, parental unemployment were the parents' main post-COVID-19 concerns. Conclusions: Families of children with significant developmental delays fear lasting impact of the pandemic on their own psychological and material wellbeing and on their child's health. These families require urgent help to meet major health and social care needs and should be prioritized within an overall children's mental health strategy.The article includes a commentary from parents with lived experience.

This work supports the notion that there is a critical time in the first few years of psychosis during which symptoms and reasoning can change. However, where reasoning style does not change, this may be associated with greater difficulties associated with delusional beliefs.

No abstract

Background: Visual hallucinations (VH) are a common experience and can be distressing and disabling, particularly for people suffering from psychotic illness. However, not everyone with visual hallucinations reports the experience to be distressing. Models of VH propose that appraisals of VH as a threat to wellbeing and the use of safety seeking behaviours help maintain the distress. Aims: This study investigated whether people with distressing VH report threat appraisals and use safety behaviours. Method: The study utilized a single group descriptive design, in which 15 participants with psychosis and VH were asked questions in order to assess the content, distress, appraisals, and behaviours associated with visual hallucinations. Results: People who found visual hallucinations distressing (n = 13) held negative appraisals about those hallucinations and specifically saw them as a threat to their physical or psychological wellbeing. They also engaged in safety seeking behaviours that were logically related to the appraisal and served to maintain the distress. Conclusions: People with distressing VH regard them as a threat to their wellbeing and use safety seeking behaviours as a result of this perceived threat. These key processes are potential targets for treatments that will alleviate the distress associated with VH.Keywords: Psychosis, safety seeking behaviours, visual hallucinations. IntroductionVisual hallucinations (VH) are common in people with psychosis where they are associated with particular distress and disability (Mueser, Bellack and Brady, 1990). To date there has been scant research into VH. The work so far indicates that the appraisal of the VH is important in understanding distress. Gauntlett-Gilbert and Kuipers (2005) found that an individual's appraisal did not simply follow on from the content, frequency or duration of the VH and that if the individual's appraisal of this experience was negative then this directly predicted distress.Collerton and Dudley (2004) argued that the appraisal of the visual experience was central to understanding the distress associated with VH. Specifically, it was proposed that people would appraise the visual experience as a threat to their physical or psychological wellbeing, and that they would use Safety Seeking Behaviours (SSBs) to help manage this distress much like people with other emotional and psychotic symptoms do.The current research is intended to inform two key elements of the Collerton and Dudley (2004) model and by doing so provide a greater understanding of the psychological processes involved in the experience of distressing VH. First, the research was designed to study the specific appraisals of VH. Previous research into VH has indicated that appraisal is important but has not specified whether it is perceived as a threat to wellbeing. The second aim was to investigate the use of SSBs by people with VH. If people appraised their experiences as a threat to wellbeing then it would be expected that they would take steps to prevent the feared outcom...