The sense of coherence in healthy individuals with psychotic-like experiences

Psychotic-like experiences (PLEs) are subclinical symptoms of psychosis that can be observed in general population. They share many characteristics with psychosis and may, but do not have to, precede the development of psychotic disorders. Sense of coherence (SOC) is a global orientation which helps a person successfully cope with the demands of life, and stay healthy. A SOC level expresses how much a person believes that the world is predictable and coherent, and has been shown to be related to psychological functioning. It consists of the three components: comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness. The aim of the study was to test the relationship between SOC and PLEs, which has not been tested before.

The research comprised the pilot and the main study. The study samples consisted of 82 and 215 adults respectively. Psychiatric disorders or the use of psychoactive substances 3 months prior to the study were the exclusion criteria. SOC and PLEs were measured with self-report questionnaires. Correlation and regression analyses were performed to examine the relationship between the study variables.

SOC was found to be strongly and negatively correlated with PLEs. Also, SOC was determined to be a non-redundant, negative predictor of psychotic-like experiences. When SOC components (comprehensibility, manageability, and meaningfulness) were tested separately as predictors, meaningfulness was found to be a negative predictor of negative PLEs and a positive predictor of positive PLEs.

The results suggest that SOC is an important factor negatively related to PLEs. Further studies are required to verify whether high-level SOC may be a factor preventing the development of PLEs.