Interpretation of experiences in recovery from psychosis or anxiety v1
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Catastrophic interpretation of possible symptoms in people in recovery from psychosis or anxiety disorders; association with fear of relapse and mental health anxiety
IRAS ID
241705
Contact name
Rebecca Sired
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Bath
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 1 months, 11 days
Research summary
Experiencing mental health problems can be very distressing. People who have previously experienced psychosis are understandably often afraid of experiencing it again (frequently referred to as a relapse). A recent study found that people in recovery from psychosis were more afraid of having a relapse than people in recovery from anxiety or depression. Importantly people in recovery from anxiety or depression also had high levels of fear of relapse. Research has found that people in recovery from psychosis who are more afraid of relapsing can be more likely to actually have a relapse. However we do not currently know why this is.
Some psychological theories (cognitive models) suggest that it is the meaning people make of their experiences which leads to distress, rather than the experience itself. This study aims to explore whether people in recovery from psychosis would think the worst (catastrophise) when asked to imagine having experiences which could be symptoms of psychosis, and would take them to mean they are going to have a relapse. It will also investigate if people in recovery from anxiety disorders have a similar tendency to think the worst about possible anxiety symptoms. We will also explore if there are any associations between being worried about your mental health, being afraid of having a relapse and catastrophising about possible symptoms. This will be done using an online questionnaire study asking people in recovery what they would think if they had certain experiences associated with psychosis, anxiety and unrelated situations where it is not clear what is happening (control items). People who are in recovery from psychosis, people who are in recovery from anxiety disorders and people with no history of mental health problems will be asked to take part in the study.
Relapse rates in psychosis remain high. By understanding more about how relapse might happen this study hopes to help inform ways to reduce people's likelihood of relapse, and inform further research in this area.
REC name
South Central - Hampshire B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/SC/0522
Date of REC Opinion
16 Nov 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion