Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-26T11:07:30.969Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Religion and psychosis: the effects of the Welsh religious revival in 1904–1905

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 November 2009

S. C. Linden ,
M. Harris ,
C. Whitaker  and
D. Healy
S. C. Linden
Affiliation:
School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, Wales, UK North Wales Department of Psychological Medicine, Hergest Unit, Bangor, Wales, UK
M. Harris
Affiliation:
North Wales Department of Psychological Medicine, Hergest Unit, Bangor, Wales, UK
C. Whitaker
Affiliation:
School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, Wales, UK
D. Healy*
Affiliation:
North Wales Department of Psychological Medicine, Hergest Unit, Bangor, Wales, UK
*
*Address for correspondence: Dr D. Healy, North Wales Department of Psychological Medicine, Hergest Unit, Bangor LL57 2PW, UK. (Email: [email protected])
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background

Psychotic symptoms have been linked to religious experience, but empirical evidence is scarce. We have investigated the impact of the Welsh religious revival (RR) of 1904–1905 on the number of admissions to the regional psychiatric hospital, their diagnostic features and lifelong course.

Method

All case-notes of patients admitted to the North Wales Hospital between 1902 and 1907 were included.

Results

There was a significant increase in admissions for brief polymorphic psychoses (BPP; ICD-10: F23.0 and F23.1) in the revival years, but the number of first admissions for other mental disorders did not change. The vast majority of BPP admissions were linked to a revival meeting and did not result in further admissions.

Conclusions

Intensive religious experience can lead to transient psychotic episodes. Our data also support the view that BPP triggered by life events rarely lead to chronic mental illness, distinguishing them from other psychoses and supporting the validity of the concept of reactive psychosis.

Keywords

Reactive psychosisrecoveryreligion and mental illnessschizophrenia
Type
Original Articles
Information
Psychological Medicine , Volume 40 , Issue 8 , August 2010 , pp. 1317 - 1323
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Bar-El, Y, Durst, R, Katz, G, Zislin, J, Strauss, Z, Knobler, HY (2000). Jerusalem syndrome. British Journal of Psychiatry 176, 86–90.Google Scholar
Bentall, RP, Fernyhough, C (2008). Social predictors of psychotic experiences: specificity and psychological mechanisms. Schizophrenia Bulletin 34, 1012–1020.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Castagnini, A, Bertelsen, A, Berrios, GE (2008). Incidence and diagnostic stability of ICD-10 acute and transient psychotic disorders. Comprehensive Psychiatry 49, 255–261.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cohen, J (1960). A coefficient of agreement for nominal scales. Education and Psychological Measurement 20, 37–46.Google Scholar
Healy, D, Savage, M, Michael, P, Harris, M, Hirst, D, Carter, M, Cattell, D, McMonagle, T, Sohler, N, Susser, E (2001). Psychiatric bed utilization: 1896 and 1996 compared. Psychological Medicine 31, 779–790.Google Scholar
Janssen, I, Hanssen, M, Bak, M, Bijl, RV, de Graaf, R, Vollebergh, W, McKenzie, K, van Os, J (2003). Discrimination and delusional ideation. British Journal of Psychiatry 182, 71–76.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jaspers, K (1973). General Psychopathology [in German], 9th edn, pp. 323–324 [passage translated by S.C.L]. Springer-Verlag: Berlin.Google Scholar
Jones, RM (1982). The North Wales Quarrymen 1874–1922. University of Wales Press: Cardiff.Google Scholar
Jørgensen, P, Bennedsen, B, Chirstensen, J, Hyllested, A (1996). Acute and transient psychotic disorder: comorbidity with personality disorder. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 94, 460–464.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Jørgensen, P, Bennedsen, B, Christensen, J, Hyllested, A (1997). Acute and transient psychotic disorder: a 1-year follow-up study. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 96, 150–154.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kuijpers, HJH, van der Heijden, FMMA, Tuinier, S, Verhoeven, WMA (2007). Meditation-induced psychosis. Psychopathology 40, 461–464.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Leonhard, K (1999). Classification of Endogenous Psychoses and their Differentiated Etiology (trans. C. H. Cahn). Springer Books: New York.Google Scholar
Marneros, A, Pillmann, F (2004). Acute and Transient Psychoses, p. 202. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Michael, P (2003). Care and Treatment of the Mentally Ill in North Wales: 1800–2000. University of Wales Press: Cardiff.Google Scholar
Mitsuda, H (1965). The concept of atypical psychosis from the aspect of clinical genetics. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 41, 372–377.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pichot, P (1979). Acute and transient psychoses, and chronic psychoses. Two French nosological concepts [in French]. Annales Medico-Psychologiques 137, 52–58.Google Scholar
Pillmann, F, Haring, A, Balzuweit, S, Blöink, R, Marneros, A (2002). The concordance of ICD-10 acute and transient psychosis and DSM-IV brief psychotic disorder. Psychological Medicine 32, 525–533.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sajith, SG, Chandransekaran, R, Sadanandabn Unni, KE, Sahai, A (2002). Acute polymorphic psychotic disorder: diagnostic stability over 3 years. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 105, 104–109.Google Scholar
Selten, J-P, Cantor-Graae, E (2005). Social defeat: risk factor for schizophrenia? British Journal of Psychiatry 187, 101–102.Google Scholar
Sharot, S (1980). Jewish millenarianism: a comparison of medieval communities. Comparative Studies in Society and History 22, 394–415.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Southall, HR, Aucott, P, Dorling, D, Ell, P (2004). Great Britain Historical Database: Census Data: Age and Sex Statistics, 1851–1971. SN 4551. UK Data Archive: Colchester, Essex.Google Scholar
Stroemgren, E (1987). The development of the concept of reactive psychoses. Psychopathology 20, 62–67.Google Scholar
Tschinkel, S, Harris, M, Le Noury, J, Healy, D (2007). Postpartum psychosis: two cohorts compared, 1875–1924 and 1994–2005. Psychological Medicine 37, 529–536.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Walsh, R, Roche, L (1979). Precipitation of acute psychotic episodes by intensive meditation in individuals with a history of schizophrenia. American Journal of Psychiatry 136, 1085–1086.Google Scholar