Psychosocial predictors of the persistence of paranoia in adolescents
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The persistence of paranoia in adolescents attending mental health services: A longitudinal study of predictive factors.
IRAS ID
173531
Contact name
Jessica Bird
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 3 months, 1 days
Research summary
In everyday life we all have to make decisions about whether to trust other people, and sometimes we decide to be less trusting in certain situations. However, we know that sometimes people can become overly mistrustful even when other people are not being threatening. Excessive mistrustfulness, or paranoia, can cause people to feel distressed, anxious or depressed, and when persistent can later develop into psychiatric disorders such as psychosis. Although these types of worries about other people often emerge in adolescence, there has been limited research on paranoia in young people and the evidence base for treatment is limited. This study aims to find out what factors are involved in the persistence of these fears in young people. Thirty five adolescents aged 11-16 years old who are being seen in mental health services and have high levels of paranoid thinking will take part. Each young person will be asked to complete a paranoia questionnaire and then 12 questionnaires that measure a range of psychological and social factors relevant to paranoia in adults and to normal adolescence experience. Paranoia will then be measured again after 12 weeks to assess what is contributing to paranoia persisting over time. These findings will be able to inform the development of more effective treatment to help young people with similar worries in the future.
REC name
East Midlands - Nottingham 2 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
15/EM/0272
Date of REC Opinion
21 Jul 2015
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion