Highlights
- •Most of patients with schizophrenia have AVH with moderate to severe levels especially emotional characteristics.
- •Patients with schizophrenia respond with low acceptance and autonomous actions toward AVH.
- •A strong negative correlation was found between acceptance and autonomous action responses and phenomenological characteristics of AVH.
- •Acceptance and autonomous action responses must be improved by applying ACT among patients with schizophrenia.
Abstract
Background
Living with the experience of hearing voices without trying to ignore or suppress
them is referred to as accepting auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH). It varies depending
on the phenomenology of AVH itself; some clients may find it challenging to acquire
new coping mechanisms with the voices.
Aim
Examine the association between the phenomenology of AVH and acceptance or autonomous
action among clients with schizophrenia.
Design
A descriptive correlational study was conducted on 200 clients with schizophrenia
using the following instruments; Sociodemographic and clinical data tools, Psychotic
Symptom Rating Scales (PSYRATS-AH), and Voices Acceptance and Action Scale (VAAS).
Results
Most patients have moderate to severe levels of AVH (95.5 %), with a mean score of
25.34. The emotional characteristics reflected the high mean score (11.24). A highly
statistically negative correlation was found between the total Voices Acceptance and
Action Scale and severity of AVH (P = −0.448, sig = 0.000). A predictable significant
effect of user acceptance and autonomous actions response coping with decreasing the
severity of AVH was found (adjusted r square = 0.196, sig = 0.000) and model equation = Severity
of Verbal auditory hallucinations = 31.990–0.257 X Total of Voice Acceptance and Autonomous
Action Scale (VAAS).
Conclusion
The severity of all phenomenological characteristics of AVH can be successfully reduced
by using voice acceptance and autonomous action responses rather than resistance or
engagement responses. Subsequently, it must be improved and learned by psychiatric
nurses the patients with schizophrenia in the hospitals by applying Acceptance and
Commitment Therapy as a crucial intervention.
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: May 05, 2023
Accepted:
April 30,
2023
Received in revised form:
April 11,
2023
Received:
October 8,
2022
Identification
Copyright
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