The role of childhood interpersonal trauma, disorganised attachment and negative schema about the self and others in paranoia

Abstract

The current thesis titled 'The role of childhood interpersonal trauma, disorganised attachment and negative schema about the self and others in paranoia' has been prepared by Charlotte Humphrey in the year 2020. The thesis has been submitted to The University of Manchester for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology in the Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health (School of Health Sciences). The thesis has been prepared in paper based format and comprises three papers. The overall theme of the thesis is the investigation of childhood interpersonal trauma, disorganised attachment and negative schema about the self and others in relation to experiences of paranoia. Paper one provides a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies investigating the association between paranoia and negative schema about the self and others. The review critically synthesises the research that has been published to date. Meta-analytic methods are used to examine the magnitude and consistency of the relationship between paranoia and negative self and other schema across clinical and non-clinical studies. There was evidence of a medium to large relationship between paranoia and both negative self-schema and negative other schema in people with and without psychosis. Associations between negative self-schema and paranoia were not always statistically significant when controlling for confounding variables, particularly depression. The results are considered in relation to methodological limitations, clinical implications and recommendations for future research. Paper two presents research investigating whether the relationship between childhood interpersonal trauma and paranoia is mediated by disorganised attachment, and the impact of disorganised attachment of negative self and negative other schema. An online sample of 242 people with self reported psychosis completed a battery of measures. Path-analysis indicated that childhood interpersonal trauma was associated with disorganised attachment, which in turn was associated with negative self-schema, negative other schema, and paranoia. Negative schema about others, but not self, was associated with paranoia. Disorganised attachment and negative other schema fully mediated the relationship between trauma and paranoia. Negative other schema partially mediated the association between disorganised attachment and paranoia. Depression, hallucinations and age were controlled for in the model. The results are discussed in relation to limitations, clinical implications and recommendations for future research Paper three presents a critical evaluation and reflection of the methodology, decision making processes, clinical implications and future research in papers one and two. Personal reflections of the overall research process are also made.

Date of Award	31 Dec 2020
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	The University of Manchester
Supervisor	Katherine Berry (Supervisor), Richard Brown (Supervisor) & Sandra Bucci (Supervisor)