Auditory Verbal Hallucinations in Persons With and Without a Need for Care

Abstract

Auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) are complex experiences that occur in the context of various clinical disorders. AVH also occur in individuals from the general population who have no identifiable psychiatric or neurological diagnoses. This article reviews research on AVH in nonclinical individuals and provides a cross-disciplinary view of the clinical relevance of these experiences in defining the risk of mental illness and need for care. Prevalence rates of AVH vary according to measurement tool and indicate a continuum of experience in the general population. Cross-sectional comparisons of individuals with AVH with and without need for care reveal similarities in phenomenology and some underlying mechanisms but also highlight key differences in emotional valence of AVH, appraisals, and behavioral response. Longitudinal studies suggest that AVH are an antecedent of clinical disorders when combined with negative emotional states, specific cognitive difficulties and poor coping, plus family history of psychosis, and environmental exposures such as childhood adversity. However, their predictive value for specific psychiatric disorders is not entirely clear. The theoretical and clinical implications of the reviewed findings are discussed, together with directions for future research.

Varieties of Voice-Hearing: Psychics and the Psychosis Continuum

“…Like their voice-hearing counterparts in the general population, our group of psychics exhibited broadly similar phenomenological features to treatment-seeking voice-hearers. 8,22,39 Frequency of voice-hearing was slightly lower than those seeking treatment, again consistent with prior reports. 22 Psychics identified their voices as benevolent, also consistent with prior work.…”

“…First, the sample is very small compared to studies that used population-based approaches to nonclinical voice-hearing, 58,59 although we replicated many of the findings typical of voice-hearing in those studies. Nevertheless, other differences may arise in a larger sample and interesting subgroups may be identified.…”

“…Indeed, many of those interviewed report an increased perceived ability to control the occurrence of their voices and-crucially-report that they had not always possessed such an ability, instead developing it over time. Rather than reflecting enhanced executive function and cognitive control, as some have suggested, 8,43,44 this may instead be the result of intentional practice. This, in turn, may result from the lower distress exhibited by the psychics, leading to an increased willingness to engage with and ultimately control them.…”

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] They may not be pathognomonic of serious mental illness, but rather, there could be a continuum from milder attenuated forms to more severe. 8 Such observations suggest a destigmatization of anomalous perceptions and beliefs. 1 The impact of these observations on research practice has been extensive.…”

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

“…Few research studies have focused explicitly on how voice hearers deal with auditory hallucinations under shifting circumstances and in different phases of their everyday lives (Farhall, Greenwood & Jackson, 2007;and Johns, Kompus, & Connell, 2014). Up to the researchers' knowledge, there are scattered researches in Egypt that focused on the meaning and the effect of auditory hallucinations among mentally ill patients.…”