Melissa Connell

Background Persistent psychotic experiences (PEs) may increase risk for mental disorders, non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), and suicide attempts, relative to PEs that are more transient and remitting in nature. Most investigations of PE persistence have incorporated only two waves of data, and have not investigated the persistence of different PE su...

Psychotic experiences (PEs) are robustly associated with subsequent non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) and suicide attempts, but questions remain as to the temporal relation and underlying cause of this association. Most investigations have incorporated only two waves of data, and no study has comprehensively investigated mediating pathways. This stud...

Objective: Psychotic experiences, including auditory hallucinatory experiences (HEs), are strongly associated with both suicidal thoughts and behaviour. This study examined their role in the ideation-to-attempt transition in adolescents, including their direct and indirect effect via potential mediators. Method: Participants were from an Australia...

Purpose The association between psychotic experiences (PEs) and non-accidental self-injury (NASI; including self-harm and suicide attempts) is well established, although variables influencing this relationship have not been comprehensively examined. This study aimed to investigate (1) the cross-sectional PE–NASI association before and after adjustm...

Few studies have compared the content and appraisal of hallucinatory experiences (HE) by people with psychosis and those without. This study compared the characteristics of HE, and their appraisals, in individuals with psychotic disorder, non-psychotic mental disorder and no disorder in the general population. Participants (n = 253) aged between 30...

Objective: Despite growing literature on psychotic experiences, no nationally representative study has reported on the prevalence of both hallucinatory experiences and delusional experiences in Australian adolescents. Also, while many studies have examined the association between psychotic experiences and certain demographic and clinical correlate...

Background Although suicidal ideation is a well-documented risk factor for suicidal behaviour, the majority of those with suicidal thoughts do not go on to make an attempt. Therefore, it is important to improve prediction of which individuals are more likely to act on their suicidal thoughts, as highlighted in Klonsky and May’s (2015) ideation-to-a...

Purpose The Nineteen and Up study (19Up) assessed a range of mental health and behavioural problems and associated risk factors in a genetically informative Australian cohort of young adult twins and their non-twin siblings. As such, 19Up enables detailed investigation of genetic and environmental pathways to mental illness and substance misuse wit...

Objective: Social Cognition and Interaction Training (SCIT) has demonstrated effectiveness in improving social cognition and functioning of people with schizophrenia. This pilot study examines the acceptability, feasibility, and effectiveness of SCIT with individuals who have schizophrenia-spectrum disorders and are receiving care through a public...

Psychotic experiences (PEs), including hallucination- and delusion-like experiences, are robustly associated with self-injurious thoughts and behaviours (SITB) in the general population. However, it remains unclear as to why there is an association. The purpose of this systematic review was to elucidate the role of other factors that influence the...

Background: Hallucinations are common in adolescents. Given the high prevalence of hallucinations, it is important to determine if they are associated with adverse mental health and psychosocial outcomes in adulthood. This study compared the mental health outcomes of participants (aged 30–33) in the Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy...

Background: Hallucinations, once equated with serious mental disorders, are common in adolescents. Given the high prevalence of hallucinations, it is important to determine if they are associated with adverse mental health outcomes in adulthood. This study compared the mental health outcomes of participants (aged 30-33years) in the Mater-Universit...

Compared to the substantial body of research examining links between cannabis use and psychosis, there has been relatively little attention to the role of tobacco as a potential risk factor for psychosis. This study explored the association between age at first tobacco use and psychosis-related outcomes in a birth cohort. This study is based on a l...

This study aims to understand the process of change in self and its relationship to recovery in the first three months following first episode psychosis (FEP). As psychosis is understood as a disorder of self, we need theories of self to consider how sense of self is affected and restored. We used semi-structured interviews to explore the experienc...

To describe the prevalence and demographic, clinical and functional correlates of childhood trauma in patients attending early psychosis clinics. Participants were recruited from outpatients attending four early psychosis services. Exposure to childhood trauma was assessed using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Psychopathology was measured...

Unlabelled: Abstract Background: Strategies proposed to promote recruitment of representative samples to trials and mental health research have focused on researchers external to clinical services. How clinicians approach recruitment as researchers and particularities of recruiting people with first episode of psychosis warrant investigation. Aim...

Auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) are complex experiences that occur in the context of various clinical disorders. AVH also occur in individuals from the general population who have no identifiable psychiatric or neurological diagnoses. This article reviews research on AVH in nonclinical individuals and provides a cross-disciplinary view of the...

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the subjective factors associated with the experience of first-episode psychosis (FEP) and the very first stages of recovery to develop our understanding of this process and improve treatment outcomes. Method: Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to explore the experiences of 20 young...

Objective: The objective of this study was to explore the subjective factors associated with the experience of first-episode psychosis (FEP) and the very first stages of recovery to develop our understanding of this process and improve treatment outcomes. Method: Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis was used to explore the experiences of 20 youn...

This study explored the relationship between employment and recovery in individuals with psychiatric disabilities and proposed that participants who were employed would have higher levels of recovery than participants who were not employed. Data were analysed from a pre-existing data-set produced in a large scale NHMRC project conducted as part of...