By Keith Sellick
I know I have posted on hearing voices before but BBC Radio's Thinking Allowed recently featured a sociological study about the subject.
The ever-entertaining Laurie Taylor took a break from the topic of conservations in cars to examine hearing voices.
Interviewing an academic about her study, Taylor found that hearing voices was far more prevalent than people believed and that most people cope well. Also it was found to often be sparked or triggered by socialisation.
Where a psychological explanation may point to isolation/exclusion as triggering voice hearing, the sociological explanation as evidenced by the study found that increased social contact led to more voices being heard as the person with the voices imitated (not quite the right word) those around them.
The good or bad nature of the voices were found to be determined by the social context ie whether it was benign or stressful; not by the lack of social interaction.
You can find it here