Atherton, S;
Antley, A;
Evans, N;
Cernis, E;
Lister, R;
Dunn, G;
Slater, M;
(2016)
Self-Confidence and Paranoia: An Experimental Study Using an Immersive Virtual Reality Social Situation.
Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy
, 44
(1)
pp. 56-64.
10.1017/S1352465814000496.
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Abstract
Background: Paranoia may build directly upon negative thoughts about the self. There have been few direct experimental tests of this hypothesis. Aims: The aim of the study was to test the immediate effects of manipulating self-esteem in individuals vulnerable to paranoia. Method: A two condition cross-over experimental test was conducted. The participants were 26 males reporting paranoid ideation in the past month. Each participant experienced a neutral immersive virtual reality (VR) social environment twice. Before VR participants received a low self-confidence manipulation or a high self-confidence manipulation. The order of manipulation type was randomized. Paranoia about the VR avatars was assessed. Results: The low self-confidence manipulation, relative to the high self-confidence manipulation, led to significantly more negative social comparison in virtual reality and higher levels of paranoia. Conclusions: Level of self-confidence affects the occurrence of paranoia in vulnerable individuals. The clinical implication is that interventions designed to improve self-confidence may reduce persecutory ideation.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Self-Confidence and Paranoia: An Experimental Study Using an Immersive Virtual Reality Social Situation |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1017/S1352465814000496 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1017/S1352465814000496 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| Keywords: | Delusions, persecutory delusions, self-esteem |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Computer Science |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10073432 |
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