TY - JOUR
T1 - Internal versus external auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia
T2 - Symptom and course correlates
AU - Docherty, Nancy M.
AU - Dinzeo, Thomas J.
AU - McCleery, Amanda
AU - Bell, Emily K.
AU - Shakeel, Mohammed K.
AU - Moe, Aubrey
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2014 © 2014 Taylor & Francis.
PY - 2015/5/4
Y1 - 2015/5/4
N2 - Introduction. The auditory hallucinations associated with schizophrenia are phenomenologically diverse. "External" hallucinations classically have been considered to reflect more severe psychopathology than "internal" hallucinations, but empirical support has been equivocal. Methods. We examined associations of "internal" versus "external" hallucinations with (1) other characteristics of the hallucinations, (2) severity of other symptoms and (3) course of illness variables, in a sample of 97 stable outpatients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder who experienced auditory hallucinations. Results. Patients with internal hallucinations did not differ from those with external hallucinations on severity of other symptoms. However, they reported their hallucinations to be more emotionally negative, distressing and long-lasting, less controllable and less likely to remit over time. They also were more likely to experience voices commenting, conversing or commanding. However, they also were more likely to have insight into the self-generated nature of their voices. Patients with internal hallucinations were not older, but had a later age of illness onset. Conclusions. Differences in characteristics of auditory hallucinations are associated with differences in other characteristics of the disorder, and hence may be relevant to identifying subgroups of patients that are more homogeneous with respect to their underlying disease processes.
AB - Introduction. The auditory hallucinations associated with schizophrenia are phenomenologically diverse. "External" hallucinations classically have been considered to reflect more severe psychopathology than "internal" hallucinations, but empirical support has been equivocal. Methods. We examined associations of "internal" versus "external" hallucinations with (1) other characteristics of the hallucinations, (2) severity of other symptoms and (3) course of illness variables, in a sample of 97 stable outpatients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder who experienced auditory hallucinations. Results. Patients with internal hallucinations did not differ from those with external hallucinations on severity of other symptoms. However, they reported their hallucinations to be more emotionally negative, distressing and long-lasting, less controllable and less likely to remit over time. They also were more likely to experience voices commenting, conversing or commanding. However, they also were more likely to have insight into the self-generated nature of their voices. Patients with internal hallucinations were not older, but had a later age of illness onset. Conclusions. Differences in characteristics of auditory hallucinations are associated with differences in other characteristics of the disorder, and hence may be relevant to identifying subgroups of patients that are more homogeneous with respect to their underlying disease processes.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84928823560&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=84928823560&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/13546805.2014.991387
DO - 10.1080/13546805.2014.991387
M3 - Article
C2 - 25530157
AN - SCOPUS:84928823560
SN - 1354-6805
VL - 20
SP - 187
EP - 197
JO - Cognitive Neuropsychiatry
JF - Cognitive Neuropsychiatry
IS - 3
ER -