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Delusions: Problems in definition and measurement
Author(s) -
Garety Philippa
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
british journal of medical psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.102
H-Index - 62
eISSN - 2044-8341
pISSN - 0007-1129
DOI - 10.1111/j.2044-8341.1985.tb02611.x
Subject(s) - psychology , psychoanalysis
A review is made of definitions of ‘delusion’. Problems with these are considered in terms of clarity and consistency with the evidence. Questions concerning the issues of fixity and intensity of delusions are raised and a proposal is made for attempting to operationalize these concepts using a ‘personal questionnaire’ method. The measurement in a pilot study of the fixity and intensity of the beliefs of two patients using this method is described and the results reported.