S Pfeifer1. 1. Psychiatric Clinic Sonnenhalde, Basel, Switzerland. samuelpfeifer@compuserve.com
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: Belief in demonic influence has repeatedly been described as a delusion in schizophrenic patients. The goal of this explorative study was to examine the frequency, as well as the psychodynamic and social functions of such beliefs in a sample of nondelusional patients. METHOD: The sample consisted of 343 psychiatric outpatients who described themselves as religious. In semistructured interviews they were asked to give their view of demonic causality of their illness. RESULTS: A high prevalence of such beliefs was not only found in schizophrenic patients (56%) but also in the following groups of nondelusional patients: affective disorders (29%), anxiety disorders (48%), personality disorders (37%) and adjustment disorders (23%). Belief in demonic oppression tended to be associated with lower educational level and rural origin, and was significantly influenced by church affiliation. CONCLUSIONS: Beliefs in possession or demonic influence are not confined to delusional disorders and should not be qualified as a mere delusion. Rather they have to be interpreted against the cultural and religious background which is shaping causal models of mental distress in the individual.
OBJECTIVE: Belief in demonic influence has repeatedly been described as a delusion in schizophrenicpatients. The goal of this explorative study was to examine the frequency, as well as the psychodynamic and social functions of such beliefs in a sample of nondelusional patients. METHOD: The sample consisted of 343 psychiatric outpatients who described themselves as religious. In semistructured interviews they were asked to give their view of demonic causality of their illness. RESULTS: A high prevalence of such beliefs was not only found in schizophrenicpatients (56%) but also in the following groups of nondelusional patients: affective disorders (29%), anxiety disorders (48%), personality disorders (37%) and adjustment disorders (23%). Belief in demonic oppression tended to be associated with lower educational level and rural origin, and was significantly influenced by church affiliation. CONCLUSIONS: Beliefs in possession or demonic influence are not confined to delusional disorders and should not be qualified as a mere delusion. Rather they have to be interpreted against the cultural and religious background which is shaping causal models of mental distress in the individual.
Authors: Kazuhiro Tajima-Pozo; Diana Zambrano-Enriquez; Laura de Anta; María Dolores Moron; Jose Luis Carrasco; Juan José Lopez-Ibor; Marina Diaz-Marsá Journal: BMJ Case Rep Date: 2011-02-15