ORCID Profile
0000-0002-6051-3604
Current Organisation
University of Southampton
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Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-02-2022
DOI: 10.1038/S41598-022-05915-3
Abstract: Understanding factors driving vaccine hesitancy is crucial to vaccination success. We surveyed adults (N = 2510) from February to March 2021 across five sites (Australia = 502, Germany = 516, Hong Kong = 445, UK = 512, USA = 535) using a cross-sectional design and stratified quota s ling for age, sex, and education. We assessed willingness to take a vaccine and a comprehensive set of putative predictors. Predictive power was analysed with a machine learning algorithm. Only 57.4% of the participants indicated that they would definitely or probably get vaccinated. A parsimonious machine learning model could identify vaccine hesitancy with high accuracy (i.e. 82% sensitivity and 79–82% specificity) using 12 variables only. The most relevant predictors were vaccination conspiracy beliefs, various paranoid concerns related to the pandemic, a general conspiracy mentality, COVID anxiety, high perceived risk of infection, low perceived social rank, lower age, lower income, and higher population density. C aigns seeking to increase vaccine uptake need to take mistrust as the main driver of vaccine hesitancy into account.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 06-09-2022
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291722002975
Abstract: The term ‘pandemic paranoia’ has been coined to refer to heightened levels of mistrust and suspicion towards other people specifically due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this study, we examine the international prevalence of pandemic paranoia in the general population and its associated sociodemographic profile. A representative international s le of general population adults ( N = 2510) from five sites (USA N = 535, Germany N = 516, UK N = 512, Australia N = 502 and Hong Kong N = 445) were recruited using stratified quota s ling (for age, sex, educational attainment) and completed the Pandemic Paranoia Scale (PPS). The overall prevalence rate of pandemic paranoia was 19%, and was highest in Australia and lowest in Germany. On the subscales of the PPS, prevalence was 11% for persecutory threat, 29% for paranoid conspiracy and 37% for interpersonal mistrust. Site and general paranoia significantly predicted pandemic paranoia. Sociodemographic variables (lower age, higher population size and income, being male, employed and no migrant status) explained additional variance and significantly improved prediction of pandemic paranoia. Pandemic paranoia was relatively common in a representative s le of the general population across five international sites. Sociodemographic variables explained a small but significant amount of the variance in pandemic paranoia.
Publisher: Oxford University Press (OUP)
Date: 21-03-2023
Abstract: Paranoia is higher in minority group in iduals, especially those reporting intersecting aspects of difference. High negative and low positive self and other beliefs, and low social rank, are predictive of paranoia overtime however, data are typically from majority group participants. This study examined whether social defeat or healthy cultural mistrust best characterizes paranoia in minority groups. Using cross-sectional, survey design, with a large (n = 2510) international s le, moderation analyses (PROCESS) examined whether self and other beliefs, and perceived social rank, operate similarly or differently in minority vs majority group participants. Specifically, we tested whether beliefs moderated the influence of minority group, and intersecting aspects of difference, on paranoia. Paranoia was consistently higher in participants from minority vs majority groups and level of paranoid thinking was significantly higher at each level of the intersectionality index. Negative self/other beliefs were associated with elevated paranoia in all participants. However, in support of the notion of healthy cultural mistrust, low social rank, and low positive self/other beliefs were significantly associated with paranoia in majority group participants but unrelated to paranoia in respective minority group members. Although mixed, our findings signal the need to consider healthy cultural mistrust when examining paranoia in minority groups and bring into question whether “paranoia” accurately describes the experiences of marginalized in iduals, at least at low levels of severity. Further research on paranoia in minority groups is crucial to developing culturally appropriate ways of understanding people’s experiences in the context of victimization, discrimination, and difference.
Publisher: Cambridge University Press (CUP)
Date: 09-12-2021
DOI: 10.1017/S0033291721004633
Abstract: Globally, the corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created an interpersonally threatening context within which other people have become a source of possible threat. This study reports on the development and validation of a self-report measure of pandemic paranoia that is, heightened levels of suspicion and mistrust towards others due to the COVID-19 pandemic. An international consortium developed an initial set of 28 items for the Pandemic Paranoia Scale (PPS), which were completed by participants from the UK ( n = 512), USA ( n = 535), Germany ( n = 516), Hong Kong ( n = 454) and Australia ( n = 502) using stratified quota s ling (for age, sex and educational attainment) through Qualtrics and translated for Germany and Hong Kong. Exploratory factor analysis in the UK s le suggested a 25-item, three-factor solution (persecutory threat paranoid conspiracy and interpersonal mistrust). Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) on the remaining combined s le showed sufficient model fit in this independent set of data. Measurement invariance analyses suggested configural and metric invariance, but no scalar invariance across cultures/languages. A second-order factor CFA on the whole s le indicated that the three factors showed large loadings on a common second-order pandemic paranoia factor. Analyses also supported the test–retest reliability and internal and convergent validity. The PPS offers an internationally validated and reliable method for assessing paranoia in the context of a pandemic. The PPS has the potential to enhance our understanding of the impact of the pandemic, the nature of paranoia and to assist in identifying and supporting people affected by pandemic-specific paranoia.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2016
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.SCHRES.2014.12.021
Abstract: In iduals with an "Attenuated Psychosis Syndrome" (APS) have a 20-40% chance of developing a psychotic disorder within two years however it is difficult to predict which of them will become ill on the basis of their clinical symptoms alone. We examined whether P50 gating deficits could help to discriminate in iduals with APS and also those who are particularly likely to make a transition to psychosis. 36 cases meeting PACE (Personal Assessment and Crisis Evaluation) criteria for the APS, all free of antipsychotics, and 60 controls performed an auditory conditioning-testing experiment while their electroencephalogram was recorded. The P50 ratio and its C-T difference were compared between groups. Subjects received follow-up for up to 2 years to determine their clinical outcome. The P50 ratio was significantly higher and C-T difference lower in the APS group compared to controls. Of the in iduals with APS who completed the follow-up (n=36), nine (25%) developed psychosis. P50 ratio and the C-T difference did not significantly differ between those in iduals who developed psychosis and those who did not within the APS group. P50 deficits appear to be associated with the pre-clinical phase of psychosis. However, due to the limitations of the study and its s le size, replication in an independent cohort is necessary, to clarify the role of P50 deficits in illness progression and whether this inexpensive and non-invasive EEG marker could be of clinical value in the prediction of psychosis outcomes amongst populations at risk.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2023
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 10-2011
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 03-2020
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 13-08-2014
DOI: 10.1111/EIP.12172
Abstract: To highlight the importance of friendships to young people with psychosis, and the need for clinical interventions to help maintain peer relationships during illness. To structure a research agenda for developing evidence-based interventions with friends. An argument is developed through a narrative review of (i) the proven efficacy of family interventions, and (by comparison) a relative absence of friend-based interventions (ii) the particular primacy of friendships and dating for young people, and typical effects of exclusion and (iii) reduced friendship networks and dating experiences in psychosis, in pre-, during and post-psychosis phases, also links between exclusion and psychosis. We put forward a model of how poor friendships can potentially be a causal and/or maintenance factor for psychotic symptoms. Given this model, our thesis is that interventions aiming to maintain social networks can be hugely beneficial clinically for young people with psychosis. We give a case study to show how such an intervention can work. We call for 'friends interventions' for young people with psychosis to be developed, where professionals directly work with a young person's authentic social group to support key friendships and maintain social continuity. An agenda for future research is presented that will develop and test theoretically driven interventions.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2022
DOI: 10.1016/J.SCHRES.2022.01.045
Abstract: During the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase in paranoid thinking has been reported internationally. The development of the Pandemic Paranoia Scale (PPS) has provided a reliable assessment of various facets of pandemic paranoia. This study aimed to (i) identify classes of in iduals with varying levels of general paranoia and pandemic paranoia, and (ii) examine associations between classification and worry, core beliefs, and pro-health behaviours. An international s le of adults (N = 2510) across five sites completed the Revised-Green Paranoid Thoughts Scale and the PPS. Latent class analysis (LCA) was conducted using these two paranoia variables. Classes were compared on trait worry (Penn State Worry Questionnaire), beliefs about self/others (Brief Core Schema Scales), and pro-health behaviour. Three latent classes emerged: Class 1 with low R-GPTS and PPS scores, Class 2 with a high R-GPTS score and a moderate PPS score, and Class 3 with high R-GPTS and PPS scores. Compared to Class 1, Classes 2-3 were associated with more worry and negative self- and other-beliefs. Class 3 was further characterised by greater positive-self beliefs and less engagement in pro-health behaviours. Engagement in pro-health behaviours was positively correlated with interpersonal mistrust and negatively correlated with paranoid conspiracy and persecutory threat. In iduals with a general paranoia tendency were more likely to respond to the global health threats in a suspicious and distrusting way. Our findings suggested that worry and negative self/other beliefs may contribute to not just general paranoia but also pandemic paranoia. The preliminary finding of a link between pro-health behaviours and interpersonal mistrust warrants further examination.
Location: United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
No related grants have been discovered for Lyn Ellett.