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5.
THE EXPERIENCE OF VOICE HEARING AND
THE ROLE OF SELF-HELP GROUP: AN INTERPRETATIVE
PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS (STUDY 4)
5.1. INTRODUCTION
Auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) have historically played an important
role in diagnosing psychiatric disorders. In the last few decades, however, there
has been an increase in research on the phenomenology of hearing voices in
multiple contexts (Woods, 2013). Ihis change in perspective is due to three
factors: (1) epidemiological data suggest several occurrences in the general
population (Johns et al., 2014; Linscott & Os, 2010; Nuevo et al., 2012) and
hearing voices can be a symptom of other psychiatric diagnoses (Johns et al.,
2014; Laroi et al., 2012; McCarthy-Jones et al., 2014); (2) the new models of
cognitive and social relationships (Chadwick, 2003, 2006; Falloon et al., 2006)
and hearing voices have led to therapeutic changes and (3) the recovery model,
the recovery movement of voice hearing persons and user-centred experiences
(Holt & Tickle, 2014; Jackson et al., 2011) play a crucial role in integrating
personal experiences and understanding into therapy. Patsy Hague and Eleanor
Longden (whose story was not made public until the 2000s), the first self¬
identified voice hearer, considered the experience to be meaningful rather than
the symptoms (M. A. Romme & Escher, 2000; M. A. Romme et al., 1992). Their
identities were built around voice hearing and they distinguished themselves
from the more common psychiatric portrayal of schizophrenic patients. They
defined themselves as experts by experience (as opposed to experts by profes¬
sion), and created a symmetric peer-to-peer relationship with other hearers,
which led to the development of the Hearing Voices Movement (HVM) (Cor¬
stens et al., 2014; Woods, 2013). The role of Marius Romme, the first hearing
voices therapist, is also essential as he was able to help legitimise voice hearing
as a non-psychiatric symptom (M. A. Romme & Escher, 2000).
Focus in the field has gradually shifted away from the external aspects
and the meanings of the voices to a distinct and personalised understanding
of voice hearing according to the cognitive (Chadwick, 2003, 2006) and in¬
terpersonal (Hayward et al., 2013) models. Although the cognitive model
emphasises the concept that a voice hearer has about the voices, the person¬
alisation model emphasises the relationship the voice hearer has with the
voices (Hayward, 2003).