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| Visions, voices, delusions and schizophrenia |
Visions, voices, delusions and schizophrenia
Experiences of things that are not ‘really there’, and beliefs about
things that cannot really be ‘true’ – these can be risky to talk about.
There are certainly grounds for being afraid that one might be
thought mad. As we have seen, voices, visions and delusions can all
qualify as positive symptoms of schizophrenia. Famously, in Rosenhan’s
(1973) study, volunteers got themselves admitted to psychiatric
institutions solely by claiming that they had been hearing voices.
Fellow-patients saw that these volunteers were fakes, but the psychiatrists
did not, showing that visions and voices can indeed be
taken as signs of madness. But we do know that many religious systems
encourage unusual beliefs, and experiences of an alternative
or higher reality. Could these affect sanity? Or could people with
precarious mental health be attracted to religious movements which
encourage bizarre beliefs and unusual experiences?
This section will explore the nature of visions, voices and delusions,
and their roles in religion and in schizophrenia.
A delusion is a belief that appears – to others – to have no basis in
truth. It may seem bizarre.
Ivan went to the front door, leaned out, and peered furtively up and down
the street. ‘They’re there,’ he said, sounding terrified. ‘You can’t see them.
They’re waiting round the corner.’ ‘Who?’ I asked. ‘The Russians. They have
Experiences of things that are not ‘really there’, and beliefs about
things that cannot really be ‘true’ – these can be risky to talk about.
There are certainly grounds for being afraid that one might be
thought mad. As we have seen, voices, visions and delusions can all
qualify as positive symptoms of schizophrenia. Famously, in Rosenhan’s
(1973) study, volunteers got themselves admitted to psychiatric
institutions solely by claiming that they had been hearing voices.
Fellow-patients saw that these volunteers were fakes, but the psychiatrists
did not, showing that visions and voices can indeed be
taken as signs of madness. But we do know that many religious systems
encourage unusual beliefs, and experiences of an alternative
or higher reality. Could these affect sanity? Or could people with
precarious mental health be attracted to religious movements which
encourage bizarre beliefs and unusual experiences?
This section will explore the nature of visions, voices and delusions,
and their roles in religion and in schizophrenia.
A delusion is a belief that appears – to others – to have no basis in
truth. It may seem bizarre.
Ivan went to the front door, leaned out, and peered furtively up and down
the street. ‘They’re there,’ he said, sounding terrified. ‘You can’t see them.
They’re waiting round the corner.’ ‘Who?’ I asked. ‘The Russians. They have
ray guns. They’re waiting for me. You must know about it. It’s on TV; they
are trying to get me. This cough I have, it’s from their germ weapons. I’m
very careful, but I can’t always see them.’ (based on an interview conducted
by the author)
A schizophrenic delusion may involve feelings of grandeur, a belief
that one is an important figure such as Jesus, Napoleon or the
Messiah. Or that one is being persecuted – by germs or invisible rays,
for example, or by faceless bureaucracy. Or that trivial events and
signs refer to oneself and have special significance. Delusions may
be collective – Festinger, Riecken & Schachter (1956) described a
religious sect, the Seekers, who believed that the world would be
flooded and destroyed, and that only the Seekers would be rescued,
by spaceships from another planet. As we shall see, mystical
and other religious experiences have some features in common with
psychotic experiences – delusions, hallucinations, feelings of depersonalisation
– and it is a continual source of puzzlement how and
whether we can always tell whether a particular experience is religious
or psychotic (Dein & Loewenthal, 1999; Kemp, 2000; Leff,
2001; Bartocci, 2004)
Visions and voices are experiences ‘as if’ what is seen or heard
is there, although usually the person is aware that the experience is
hallucinatory. Bereaved people commonly see and/or hear the loved
one, for example, sitting in a customary chair, or offering advice or
comment. People experiencing hallucinations are commonly concerned
that they may be taken as insane. There are support networks
of people who hear voices or see visions.
May is in her seventies. She had a long and contented marriage to Owen, but
he died from a heart attack six months ago. May has been feeling very low, but
she is slowly taking more interest in her church activities, in her grandchildren,
some of whom live near by, and in her gardening. About two weeks after Owen
died, she saw him standing in the hallway, as she was making her way upstairs
to bed. ‘Goodnight love,’ he said. May was startled, and when she looked
again, he had gone. Since then she has seen and heard him several times,
always fleeting, and always affectionate. The experiences seem to be getting
less frequent. She did mention this to her minister, who said it was certainly
nothing to worry about, and was something that often happened. She feels
that wherever Owen is he is still her husband and loves her. She finds the
experiences comforting, though she would not mention them to her friends
and family. (based on an interview conducted by the author)
are trying to get me. This cough I have, it’s from their germ weapons. I’m
very careful, but I can’t always see them.’ (based on an interview conducted
by the author)
A schizophrenic delusion may involve feelings of grandeur, a belief
that one is an important figure such as Jesus, Napoleon or the
Messiah. Or that one is being persecuted – by germs or invisible rays,
for example, or by faceless bureaucracy. Or that trivial events and
signs refer to oneself and have special significance. Delusions may
be collective – Festinger, Riecken & Schachter (1956) described a
religious sect, the Seekers, who believed that the world would be
flooded and destroyed, and that only the Seekers would be rescued,
by spaceships from another planet. As we shall see, mystical
and other religious experiences have some features in common with
psychotic experiences – delusions, hallucinations, feelings of depersonalisation
– and it is a continual source of puzzlement how and
whether we can always tell whether a particular experience is religious
or psychotic (Dein & Loewenthal, 1999; Kemp, 2000; Leff,
2001; Bartocci, 2004)
Visions and voices are experiences ‘as if’ what is seen or heard
is there, although usually the person is aware that the experience is
hallucinatory. Bereaved people commonly see and/or hear the loved
one, for example, sitting in a customary chair, or offering advice or
comment. People experiencing hallucinations are commonly concerned
that they may be taken as insane. There are support networks
of people who hear voices or see visions.
May is in her seventies. She had a long and contented marriage to Owen, but
he died from a heart attack six months ago. May has been feeling very low, but
she is slowly taking more interest in her church activities, in her grandchildren,
some of whom live near by, and in her gardening. About two weeks after Owen
died, she saw him standing in the hallway, as she was making her way upstairs
to bed. ‘Goodnight love,’ he said. May was startled, and when she looked
again, he had gone. Since then she has seen and heard him several times,
always fleeting, and always affectionate. The experiences seem to be getting
less frequent. She did mention this to her minister, who said it was certainly
nothing to worry about, and was something that often happened. She feels
that wherever Owen is he is still her husband and loves her. She finds the
experiences comforting, though she would not mention them to her friends
and family. (based on an interview conducted by the author)
