A qualitative exploration of causal beliefs in psychosis
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A qualitative exploration into the development and maintainance of causal beliefs in people experiencing psychosis.
IRAS ID
163615
Contact name
Lucy Carter
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
The University of Manchester
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
This study is being conducted as part of a PhD project looking at the beliefs people have about the causes of their psychosis. There are many different factors that have been considered to be important in the development of experiences such as hearing voices or having very strong beliefs that other people may not agree with. These include genetically-driven theories as well as those based on environmental factors.
Causal beliefs have been associated with treatment outcome as well as experience of stigma in people experiencing psychosis and therefore more information about how they are developed and maintained from a service-user perspective could help gain a deeper understanding of this area. The aim of this project is to explore, using qualitative interviews, the nature of causal models in people who are experiencing psychosis. About 20 participants will be recruited from NHS services and the aim will be to gather information from participants who have a wide range of experiences. Therefore anyone over the age of 16 who has experience of psychosis will be eligible to take part. Each participant will be invited to take part in an interview lasting one to two hours at a location convenient for them. Interviews will be audio recorded, analysed and transcribed using thematic analysis.
REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/NE/1237
Date of REC Opinion
24 Dec 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion