Cognitive Neuropsychiatric Models of Persecutory Delusions

Cognitive neuropsychiatric models of persecutory delusions.

OBJECTIVE The major cognitive theories of persecutory delusion formation and maintenance are critically examined in this article. METHOD The authors present a comprehensive review of the literature, citing results of relevant functional neuroimaging and neural network studies. RESULTS People with persecutory delusions selectively attend to threatening information, jump to conclusions on the...

A cognitive model of persecutory delusions.

A multifactorial model of the formation and maintenance of persecutory delusions is presented. Persecutory delusions are conceptualized as threat beliefs. The beliefs are hypothesized to arise from a search for meaning for internal or external experiences that are unusual, anomalous, or emotionally significant for the individual. The persecutory explanations formed reflect an interaction betwee...

Cognitive and Emotional Processes in Persecutory Delusions

Suspicious minds: the psychology of persecutory delusions.

At least 10-15% of the general population regularly experience paranoid thoughts and persecutory delusions are a frequent symptom of psychosis. Persecutory ideation is a key topic for study. In this article the empirical literature on psychological processes associated with persecutory thinking in clinical and non-clinical populations is comprehensively reviewed. There is a large direct affecti...

Running Head : Interpersonal beliefs in persecutory delusions

3 The purpose of the current study was to examine the way individuals with persecutory 4 delusions construe the self, others and their main persecutor with reference to the constructs 5 of malevolence and omnipotence, and examine the extent to which these interpersonal beliefs 6 link to distress, self-esteem and delusion conviction. Repertory grid methodology was used 7 to explore interpersonal...