Perceived Relationships with Parents and Paranoid Delusions: Comparisons of Currently Ill, Remitted and Normal Participants

Abstract

Background: Paranoid delusions are associated with abnormal attributions and abnormal beliefs about the self. Some researchers have also reported an association between paranoid beliefs and abnormal attachment representations. Sampling and Methods: Perceptions of relationships with the family of origin were measured in 14 currently ill paranoid patients, 9 remitted paranoid patients and 15 healthy controls, using two methods: the Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI), and the Relationship with Family of Origin Scale (REFAMOS), an interview-based assessment. Results and Conclusions: On the PBI, both currently ill and remitted patients reported low parental care and overprotectiveness during childhood. Similar negative accounts of relationships with parents during the 16–20 years age period, and also at the time of assessment, were elicited from both the ill and remitted patients on the REFAMOS. These findings might reflect the influence of illness on patients’ perceptions of their parents. However, the fact that the remitted patients did not differ from the currently ill patients raises the possibility that dysfunctional relationships are a common feature of the history of paranoid patients, perhaps contributing to the development of paranoid thinking.

On the Association Between Greater Family Identification and Lower Paranoid Ideation Among Non-Clinical Individuals: Evidence From Cypriot and Spanish Students

“…It is unsurprising, then, that the nature of our family relationships can color our thoughts about and attitudes towards people more generally: while family identification is likely to promote feelings of trust in others (e.g., Kramer et al, 2014), lack of family identification is likely to promote loneliness and isolation (Sani, 2012): conditions which may foster paranoid thoughts. Indeed, there is a range of evidence to suggest that problematic interactions with family members (which are often associated with low family identification) can lead to paranoia (e.g., Bentall et al, 2012;Myhrman et al, 1996;Rankin et al, 2005). Our findings lend weight to these studies, but extend them by explicitly exploring the relationship between family identification and paranoia, rather than inferring it from observing the relationship between problematic family interactions and paranoia.…”

“…Indeed, there is evidence to suggest that these negative interpersonal experiences with family members could actually foster greater feelings of paranoia towards other people in general. For instance, Rankin, Bentall, Hill, and Kinderman (2005) found that paranoid patients have negative beliefs about their families which persist even after recovery, while Myhrman, Rantakallio, Isohanni, Jones, and Partanen (1996) showed that being unwanted by one's parent/s at birth increases the risk of psychosis. Additionally, Bentall, Wicknall, Shevlin, and Varese (2012) explored the 2007 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey, and found a positive relationship between being brought up in institutional care and paranoia.…”

Mental Symptoms in Different Health Professionals During the SARS Attack: A Follow-up Study

“…Self-rated bonding behavior to parents has often been used as representative of parental attachment relationships [14][15][16].The PBI was developed by Parker et al in 1979 [17]. Its Chinese version was written and revised in 1999 [18].…”

A developmental approach to violence, hostile attributions, and paranoid thinking in adolescence

“…In a recent study of perceived relationships with parents and paranoid delusions, in comparisons of currently ill, remitted and normal participants, Rankin, Bentall, Hill, and Kinderman (2005) concluded that dysfunctional relationships are a common feature of paranoid patients, perhaps contributing to paranoid thinking, supporting the association previously shown between paranoid beliefs and abnormal attachment representations echoed in the findings of Clare et al (2000).…”