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The relationship between coping and subclinical psychotic experiences in adolescents from the general population – a longitudinal study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 April 2011

A. Lin*
Affiliation:
Orygen Youth Health Research Centre and Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham, UK
J. T. W. Wigman
Affiliation:
Department of Interdisciplinary Social Science, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
B. Nelson
Affiliation:
Orygen Youth Health Research Centre and Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
W. A. M. Vollebergh
Affiliation:
Department of Interdisciplinary Social Science, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
J. van Os
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, School of Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht, The Netherlands King's College London, King's Health Partners, Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK
G. Baksheev
Affiliation:
Orygen Youth Health Research Centre and Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
J. Ryan
Affiliation:
Orygen Youth Health Research Centre and Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Q. A. W. Raaijmakers
Affiliation:
Research Center Adolescent Development, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
A. Thompson
Affiliation:
Orygen Youth Health Research Centre and Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
A. R. Yung
Affiliation:
Orygen Youth Health Research Centre and Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
*
*Address for correspondence: Ms. A. Lin, Orygen Youth Health Research Centre and Centre for Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, 35 Poplar Road, Melbourne 3052, Australia. (Email: [email protected])

Abstract

Background

Subclinical psychotic experiences during adolescence may represent liability for developing psychotic disorder. Both coping style and the degree of persistence of psychotic experiences may play a role in the progression to clinical psychotic disorder, but little is known about the causal relationship between the two.

Method

Path modelling was used to examine longitudinal relationships between subclinical positive psychotic experiences and three styles of coping (task-, emotion- and avoidance-oriented) in an adolescent general population sample (n=813) assessed three times in 3 years. Distinct developmental trajectories of psychotic experiences, identified with growth mixture modelling, were compared on the use of these coping styles.

Results

Over time, emotion-oriented coping in general was bi-directionally related to psychotic experiences. No meaningful results were found for task- or avoidance-oriented coping. Females reported using a wider range of coping styles than males, but the paths between coping and psychotic experiences did not differ by gender. Persistence of psychotic experiences was associated with a greater use of emotion-oriented coping, whereas a decrease in experiences over time was associated with an increased use of task-orientated coping.

Conclusions

Emotion-oriented coping is the most important coping style in relation to psychotic experiences, as it may contribute to a ‘vicious cycle’ and is associated with persistence of experiences. In addition, more task-oriented coping may result in a decrease in psychotic experiences. Results suggest that opportunities for intervention may already be present at the level of subclinical psychosis.

Type
Original Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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