Work

Auditory verbal hallucinations as atypical inner speech monitoring, and the potential of neurostimulation as a treatment option

Year: 2013

Type: review

Abstract: Auditory verbal hallucinations (AVHs) are the experience of hearing voices in the absence of any speaker, often associated with a schizophrenia diagnosis. Prominent cognitive models of AVHs suggest they may be the result of inner speech being misattributed to an external or non-self source, due to atypical self- or reality monitoring. These arguments are supported by studies showing that people experiencing AVHs often show an externalising bias during monitoring tasks, and neuroimaging evidence which implicates superior temporal brain regions, both during AVHs and during tasks that measure verbal self-monitoring performance. Recently, efficacy of noninvasive neurostimulation techniques as a treatment option for AVHs has been tested. Meta-analyses show a moderate effect size in reduction of AVH frequency, but there has been little attempt to explain the therapeutic effect of neurostimulation in relation to existing cognitive models. This article reviews inner speech models of AVHs, and argues that a possible explanation for reduction in frequency following treatment may be modulation of activity in the brain regions involving the monitoring of inner speech.

Source: Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews

DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.10.001

Authors: Peter Moseley, Charles Fernyhough, Amanda Ellison

Institution: Durham University

Language: English

Topic: Hallucinations in medical conditions

Subfield: Cognitive Neuroscience

Field: Neuroscience

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,860