The language of paranoia

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.