The Cognitive Antecedents of Psychosis-Like (Anomalous) Experiences: Variance Within a Stratified Quota Sample of the General Population
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THE COGNITIVE ANTECEDENTS OF PSYCHOSIS-LIKE (ANOMALOUS) EXPERIENCES: VARIANCE WITHIN A STRATIFIED QUOTA SAMPLE OF THE GENERAL POPULATION BY DAVID A. BRADBURY (B.SC., M.PHIL.) DIRECTOR OF STUDIES: MR. JOHN CAVILL STUDY SUPERVISOR: DR. ANDREW PARKER THESIS SUBMITTED IN PART FULFILLMENT OF THE DEGREE FOR PHILOSOPHY DOCTORATE THE MANCHESTER METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY, DEPARTMENT OF PSYCHOLOGY & SPEECH PATHOLOGY, ELIZABETH GASKELL CAMPUS, HATHERSAGE ROAD, MANCHESTER, M13, 0JA, UNITED KINGDOM AUGUST 2013 “The terror began unobtrusively. Noises in Regan’s room, an odd smell, misplaced furniture, an icy chill. Small annoyances for which Chris MacNeil, Regan’s actress mother, easily found explanations. The changes in eleven-year-old Regan were so gradual, too, that Chris did not recognize for some time how much her daughter’s behavior had altered. Even when she did, the medical tests which followed shed no light on Regan’s symptoms, which grew more severe and frightening. It was almost as if a different personality had invaded the child. Desperate, Chris turned to Father Damien Karras, a Jesuit priest who was trained as a psychiatrist and had a deep knowledge of such phenomena as satanism and possession. If psychiatry could not help, might exorcism be the answer?” (The Exorcist; Blatty, 1971, jacket) i Mission statement The above quote, albeit over forty years old, highlights a variety of inexplicable (and frightening) phenomena that have captured the imagination for time immemorial (e.g., Irwin & Watt, 2007; Kermode, 2003; Nickell, 2001; Oesterreich, 1966; Roll, 1979, 2004). More specifically, the belief in paranormal and supernatural phenomena, such as poltergeists and demons, as being entities with which we can communicate—consciously, or not—strikes at the very heart of what it is to be human (Joseph, 2003). That is, to possess a self-defined consciousness, independence of thought, and a distinct personality: attributes for which discarnate entities (allegedly) pay scant credence. But how can such a large proportion of the populace entertain such ideology based on its apparent incredulity? This research is borne from a lifelong inquisitiveness into the pervasive and perseverative nature of unusual beliefs and experiences in the face of mounting rational evidence to the contrary. Fuelling this inquiry are encounters with individuals engaging in paranormal (including occult) practices (e.g., Tarot, astrology, Wicca), those experiencing or who had previously experienced anomalous (psychosis-like) phenomena—both from a clinical perspective (e.g., encounters with non-hospitalised schizophrenic and bipolar disordered patients), plus personal experiences gained whilst under the influence of drugs (both recreational and medicinal). Personal experiences gained whilst under the influence of recreational drugs were due to the respiratory and oral imbibing of cannabis from mid-teens through early-twenties; these anomalous experiences consisted mainly of time distortions (lapses, recurrences, plus slowing and acceleration), suspiciousness, grandiose imaginings (e.g., fantastical plans to harmonise humanity), and magical thinking (e.g., belief in ESP and PK). Notwithstanding, the fantastical content of those “recreational” drug-related experiences were at times extremely frightening, possibly due to the lack of conscious control. Conversely, those experiences gained whilst under the influence of medicinal drugs (i.e., oral as opposed to intravenous corticosteroids) although at times frightening (e.g., being “hunted” by demonically-glyphed orbs) were far less pertinent; that is, they had a lesser impact upon my psyche as the content and context within which they occurred allowed for rational, conscious evaluation. From such experiences a mental springboard was forged from which academic pursuit could launch. Although not my initial line of postgraduate inquiry—that being the neurocognitive depletives associated with MS—this line of research, with its emphasis on the unusual and bizarre beliefs and experiences inherent to us all, and myriad combinations thereof, provides plentiful scope for investigation. ii Dedications & acknowledgements This research is dedicated to my family and friends, especially my parents; for without their unconditional love and unselfish support, I would not have been in the privileged position to investigate those things that fascinate me. To them I offer my heartfelt gratitude and the hope that this thesis goes some way to convincing them that their patience, kindness, and generosity was not misplaced. I would also like to gratefully thank my supervisory team for their help and support, especially my original director of studies, Dr. John Stirling, for keeping me focused and grounded—reining me in during my preponderances to stray into the realms of fantasy. His knowledge regarding the scientific process, with regard to all aspects of my thesis, was invaluable. As were the contributions of my present director of studies, Mr. John Cavill—what that man does not know about Excel is not worth knowing—but, more seriously, his continued help in aiding me overcome numerous statistical obstacles was I’m sure, at times, provided through gritted teeth; and Dr. Andrew Parker, who’s expertise regarding scientific methodology was pertinent and always welcome. Collectively, they kept reminding me, quite correctly, that reinventing the wheel was beyond my remit. Grateful thanks are also forwarded to Mr. Gareth Preston, who provided the technical expertise allowing for the generation of the computerised cognitive test battery. I would also like to thank all participants (friends, family, and otherwise) for their willing involvement. Many had allocated specific time from their day-to-day duties, I could not have hoped for such unselfish engagement. Further debts of gratitude are forwarded to the MS Society of Great Britain & Northern Ireland, the team of MS Specialist Nurses (Julie O’Sullivan, Fran Jackson, Gill Carter, and Alison Bradford) who have, respectively, monitored my condition since diagnosis in 1998, my Neurology Consultant (Dr. Paul Talbot), and my local GP (Dr. Peter Cahne) for their ongoing interest, moral, and of course, medical support. Without such an extensive support network this thesis would not have been possible. Finally, many thanks to William Peter Blatty, author of The Exorcist, for corrupting the innocence of youth—my fault for picking up the darned book! Ah, the inquisitiveness of an eleven-year-old. To all, a heartfelt: THANK YOU. iii Abbreviations General abbreviations: α: Co-efficient alpha AES: Apathy evaluation scale ANCOVA: Analysis of covariance ANOVA: Analysis of variance APA: American psychiatric association AUIE: Age-universal “intrinsic/extrinsic” (scale) BA: Brodmann’s area BIMP: British inventory of mental pathology CCS: Cybernetic coping scale cf.: compare with CFA: Confirmatory factor analysis CNS: Central nervous system CP: Cognitive-perceptual (positive dimension of the SPQ-B) CPT: Continuous performance test CPT-IP: CPT-independent pairs d’: d-prime DES: Dissociative experiences scale DRM: Deese-Roediger-McDermott DSM: Diagnostic and statistical manual DT: Disorganised thought (disorganised dimension of the SPQ-B) DV: Dependent variable e.g.: for example EPI: Eysenck personality inventory EPQ: Eysenck personality questionnaire iv FFM: 5-factor model (of “normal” personality) ICD: International classification of diseases ID: Interpersonal dysfunction (negative dimension of the SPQ-B) i.e.: that is to say IQ: Intelligence quotient IV: Independent variable JTC: Jumping-to-conclusions LSHS-R: Launay-Slade hallucinations scale-revised LTA: Linear trend analysis MI: Magical ideation scale NART: National adult reading test (verbal IQ) OCD: Obsessive-compulsive disorder O-LIFE: Oxford-Liverpool inventory of feelings and experiences PAS: Perceptual aberration scale PCA: Principal components analysis PDI: Peters et al. delusions inventory PEN: Eysenck’s ‘psychoticism/extraversion/neuroticism’ model of personality PLEs: Psychosis-like experiences PTSD: Posttraumatic stress disorder RPBS: Revised paranormal belief scale RTS: Revised transliminality scale s.c.: in this particular instance/specifically SD: Standard deviation SDT: Signal detection theory SLESQ: Stressful life events screening questionnaire SOC: Sense of coherence SPD: Schizotypal personality disorder SPQ: Schizotypal personality questionnaire v SPQ-B: Schizotypal personality questionnaire-Brief STA: Schizotypal traits questionnaire, form A UnEx: Unusual experiences (positive dimension of the O-LIFE) VVIQ: Vividness of visual imagery questionnaire WASI: Wechsler abbreviated scales of intelligence WHO: World health organisation Manuscript-specific abbreviations: ANCOG: Anomalous cognitions BT: Beads test CCTB: Computerised cognitive test battery CDA: Canonical discriminant analysis Conf50:50: Confidence when uncertain CSA: Childhood sexual abuse DTC: Draws-to-conclusion DUS: Drug use scale ESNS: Emotional support network scale EV: Eigenvalue GCA: General cognitive ability (proxy IQ) GE: Graded estimates HOV: Homogeneity of variance InR: Random errors LVS: Lifeview system MR: Matrix reasoning (fluid/visuoconstructive IQ) NCRs: Number of correct responses OR: Object recognition PC: Perceptual closure vi PE: Prediction error PEC: Proportion of errors corrected PIN: Participant identification number RM: Reality monitoring SAS: Social adaptation skills SM: Self-monitoring SOA: Sense of agency SRM: Self-report measure TRB: Traditional religious