The phenomenology of inner speech: comparison of schizophrenia patients with auditory verbal hallucinations and healthy controls
Open accessAbstract
BACKGROUND: Despite the popularity of inner-speech theories of auditory verbal hallucinations (AVHs), little is known about the phenomenological qualities of inner speech in patients with schizophrenia who experience AVHs (Sz-AVHs), or how this compares to inner speech in the non-voice-hearing general population. METHOD: We asked Sz-AVHs (n=29) and a non-voice-hearing general population sample (n=42) a series of questions about their experiences of hearing voices, if present, and their inner speech. RESULTS: The inner speech reported by patients and controls was found to be almost identical in all respects. Furthermore, phenomenological qualities of AVHs (e.g. second- or third-person voices) did not relate to corresponding qualities in inner speech. CONCLUSIONS: No discernable differences were found between the inner speech reported by Sz-AVHs and healthy controls. Implications for inner-speech theories of AVHs are discussed.
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One study reported no phenomenological difference between the inner speech of hallucinating patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and a control group who did not hear voices.
“One study reported no phenomenological difference between the inner speech of hallucinating patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and a control group of participants who did not hear voices (Langdon et al., 2009)”
From Auditory verbal hallucinations as atypical inner speech monitoring, and the potential of neurostimulation as a treatment option (2013) · cites this paper as Langdon et al., 2009
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- Authors
- Langdon, R., Jones, S. R., Connaughton, E., & Fernyhough, C.
- Affiliations
- Sydney South West Area Health Service (AU)
- Durham University (GB)
- Macquarie University (AU)
- Corresponding author
- Jones, S. R.
- Venue
- Psychological Medicine
- Publisher
- Cambridge University Press (CUP)
- Published
- 2008-07-30
- Volume
- 39
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 655-663
- ISSN
- 0033-2917 (ISSN-L)
- 1469-8978
- OpenAlex
- W2131957247
- Cited by
- 78
- References
- 18
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 2 · 2020: 2 · 2019: 2 · 2018: 15 · 2017: 5 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 2.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Psychological Medicine (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Durham Research Online (Durham University) (acceptedVersion)
- Durham Research Online (Durham University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
- Funders
- Medical Research Council
- Economic and Social Research Council
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Hallucinations in medical conditions
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Schizophrenia research and treatment
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Mental Health and Psychiatry
- Keywords
- inner speech, auditory verbal hallucinations, schizophrenia, voice hearing, phenomenology of hallucinations, healthy controls
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Awareness, Female, Hallucinations, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Schizophrenia, Schizophrenic Language, Schizophrenic Psychology, Semantics, Speech, Speech Perception, Thinking
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