title: Interpersonal complementarity in responses to auditory hallucinations in psychosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Models of interpersonal relating have proposed that people are drawn to respond to others according to a principle of complementarity, whereby perceived hostility elicits reciprocal hostility and perceived dominance elicits submission. This study examined interpersonal appraisals and responses to auditory hallucinations, to determine whether this principle predicts how patients respond to hallucinated voices.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty-five participants with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder rated their internal 'relationship' with their auditory verbal hallucinations using the Structural Analysis of Social Behaviour, in addition to completing measures of voice-related distress and depression.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Participants were able to ascribe almost the full range of interpersonal relating behaviours to their voices reliably, with some notable exceptions for voices' 'responses' to being directly addressed. Appraisals of voice hostility very strongly predicted reciprocal hostile responses, but perceptions of voice control were only weakly associated with submission to voices. Perceived voice hostility was also associated with voice-related distress and perceived voice control was associated with depression.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Individual differences in responses to auditory hallucinations appear to reflect normal interpersonal responses to appraisals of voice hostility and affiliation. However, voice hearers do not readily submit to voice control and other factors may be of importance in determining this response.
authors.affiliation: Monash University, Melbourne, Australia. neil.thomas@med.monash.edu.au
authors.forename: Neil
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Thomas
authors.forename: Hamish J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: McLeod
authors.forename: Chris R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Brewin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006212:Hallucinations / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D006791:Hostility; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000150:complications; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology; D006113:United Kingdom; D055815:Young Adult