Unusual perceptual experiences like voice-hearing occur across a wide range of individuals, communities, and cultures. While sometimes associated with psychotic illness, these experiences often occur in the general population, in individuals who may never develop the need to seek psychiatric care. Non-clinical voice-hearers have very similar experiences compared to many voice-hearers who do seek psychiatric care, with the greatest difference being that they functional well despite having these experiences. One aspect that consistently differentiates clinical from non-clinical voice-hearers is the endorsed ability to exert voluntary control over their experiences. However, our own work has demonstrated that individuals’ experience of control is multifaceted, drawing upon neurological, psychological, and social factors that perhaps represent partially independent and differentiable processes. We have developed and validated a new self-report scale meant to capture these dimensions. These efforts have been made possible through the work of a large sample of voice-hearers from various stakeholder groups who have historically endorsed varying degrees of control over their experiences: voice-hearers with a diagnosis of a psychotic-spectrum disorder; clairaudient mediums and other spiritually-oriented voice-hearers; and members of
the Hearing Voices Movement and others in the recovery movement. We have created a consortium of individuals consisting of advocacy groups, people with lived experiences, spiritually oriented communities, and psychiatrists and neuroscientists engaged in a mutually-respectful effort to create a clinical understanding of unusual experiences that is maximally informed by lived experience. Our project, the Yale COPE Project, is an entirely online platform where experts in lived experience across the globe can share their stories and provide valuable data in the form of scales and tasks.
Learning Objectives:
At the conclusion of this activity, participants should be able to:
SESSION BONUS .....
#RecoveryKickback: A Celebration of Young Adults Living in Recovery
Celebrate young adults living in recovery and showcasing their talents. These young people have a lot to share and are using their voices to highlight what life in recovery actually looks like. There will be rapping, art, music, spoken word, and more. So kick back, relax, and enjoy the show!