In order to assess which of three current models is most useful in
understanding paranoia, the authors applied computer speech content
analysis to 55 patients--24 of whom were in four groups expressing paranoid
delusions and 31 of whom were in four groups not expressing such delusions.
The results delineated a semantic or verbal profile of paranoid
self-presentation. This self-presentation is more identifiable than the
effects of any other patient characteristic, even if the delusion is not
discussed by the patient. The strength of the statistical evidence supports
the model of paranoid delusions as a separate disease rather than as a
subtype of schizophrenia or as a trait that exists on a spectrum from
normality to pathology.Abstract Teaser