title: Safety-seeking behaviours and verbal auditory hallucinations in schizophrenia.
abstract: Verbal auditory hallucinations can have a strong impact on the social and professional functioning of individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia. The safety-seeking behaviours used to reduce the threat associated with voices play a significant role in explaining the functional consequences of auditory hallucinations. Nevertheless, these safety-seeking behaviours have been little studied. Twenty-eight patients with schizophrenia and verbal auditory hallucinations were recruited for this study. Hallucinations were evaluated using the Psychotic Symptom Rating Scale and the Belief About Voice Questionnaire and safety behaviours using a modified version of the Safety Behaviour Questionnaire. Our results show that the vast majority of patients relies on safety behaviours to reduce the threat associated with voices. This reliance on safety behaviours is mostly explained by beliefs about origin of voices the omnipotence attributed to hallucinations and the behavioural and emotional reactions to the voices. Safety-seeking behaviours play an important role in maintaining dysfunctional beliefs with respect to voices. They should be better targeted within the cognitive and behavioural therapies for auditory hallucinations.
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Joséphine
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chaix
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Edgar
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Maria Assumpta
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Ortiz Collado
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland; Community Psychiatry Service, Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Centre of Lausanne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Shyhrete
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rexhaj
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing Sciences, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, Lausanne, Switzerland; Community Psychiatry Service, Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Centre of Lausanne, Switzerland. Electronic address: j.favrod@ecolelasource.ch.
authors.forename: Jérôme
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Favrod
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006212:Hallucinations / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000150:complications*; D012565:Schizophrenic Psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014831:Voice
keywords: Cognitive behavioural therapy; Safety-seeking behaviours; Schizophrenia; Verbal auditory hallucination