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Occurrence and phenomenology of hallucinations in the general population: A large online survey.

ABSTRACT: Although epidemiological studies report that hallucinations occur in 6-15% of the general population, little is known about their phenomenology. To overcome this paucity, this study investigates the phenomenological characteristics of hallucinations in the general population, by using a nationally promoted online survey to assess hallucination phenomenology in four sensory modalities, through a self-report version of the Questionnaire for Psychotic Experiences (QPE), in 10,448 participants (aged 14-88 years). The phenomenology of hallucinations was assessed if hallucinations reportedly occurred in the past month. In the past month, auditory hallucinations were reported most frequently (29.5%), followed by visual (21.5%), tactile (19.9%), and olfactory hallucinations (17.3%); hallucinations in two or more modalities were reported by 47.6%. Substantial numbers of participants rated their hallucinations as severe, due to negative content (16.0-31.6%), previous bothersome experiences (14.8-20.2%), ensuing distress (10.5-16.8%), and/or ensuing disfunctioning (12.7-17.3%). Decreased insight was found in 10.2-11.4%. Hypnagogia was reported by 9.0-10.6%, and bereavement hallucinations by 2.8%. Despite a low prevalence of delusions (7.0%), these phenomena were significantly associated with recent hallucinations, observed in up to 13.4% of the participants with hallucinations during the past week (p < 0.001). Our results indicate a wide variety of the phenomenology of hallucinations in the general population and support the existence of a phenomenological continuum.

SUBMITTER: Linszen MMJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9261095 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Project description:BACKGROUND:Spain has been one of the countries most impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the first confirmed case was reported on January 31, 2020, there have been over 405,000 cases and 28,000 deaths in Spain. The economic and social impact is without precedent. Thus, it is important to quickly assess the situation and perception of the population. Large-scale online surveys have been shown to be an effective tool for this purpose. OBJECTIVE:We aim to assess the situation and perception of the Spanish population in four key areas related to the COVID-19 pandemic: social contact behavior during confinement, personal economic impact, labor situation, and health status. METHODS:We obtained a large sample using an online survey with 24 questions related to COVID-19 in the week of March 28-April 2, 2020, during the peak of the first wave of COVID-19 in Spain. The self-selection online survey method of nonprobability sampling was used to recruit 156,614 participants via social media posts that targeted the general adult population (age >18 years). Given such a large sample, the 95% CI was ±0.843 for all reported proportions. RESULTS:Regarding social behavior during confinement, participants mainly left their homes to satisfy basic needs. We found several statistically significant differences in social behavior across genders and age groups. The population's willingness to comply with the confinement measures is evident. From the survey answers, we identified a significant adverse economic impact of the pandemic on those working in small businesses and a negative correlation between economic damage and willingness to stay in confinement. The survey revealed that close contacts play an important role in the transmission of the disease, and 28% of the participants lacked the necessary resources to properly isolate themselves. We also identified a significant lack of testing, with only 1% of the population tested and 6% of respondents unable to be tested despite their doctor's recommendation. We developed a generalized linear model to identify the variables that were correlated with a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result. Using this model, we estimated an average of 5% for SARS-CoV-2 prevalence in the Spanish population during the time of the study. A seroprevalence study carried out later by the Spanish Ministry of Health reported a similar level of disease prevalence (5%). CONCLUSIONS:Large-scale online population surveys, distributed via social media and online messaging platforms, can be an effective, cheap, and fast tool to assess the impact and prevalence of an infectious disease in the context of a pandemic, particularly when there is a scarcity of official data and limited testing capacity.

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Occurrence and phenomenology of hallucinations in the general population: A large online survey.

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