Giguère Sabrina, Beaudoin Mélissa, Dellazizzo Laura, Phraxayavong Kingsada, Potvin Stéphane, Dumais Alexandre
Department of Psychiatry and Addictology, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada.
Research Center, Institute in Mental Health of Montreal, Montreal, QC H1N 3V2, Canada.
Reports (MDPI). 2025 Jul 18;8(3):113. doi: 10.3390/reports8030113.
Avatar Therapy (AT) for individuals with treatment-resistant auditory verbal hallucinations (AVHs) in schizophrenia aims to address emotional responses, beliefs about voices, self-perception, and coping strategies. This study focuses on three participants who, during AT, shifted their belief about the origin of their most distressing voice from an external source to a self-generated one. The objective of this study was to explore the evolution of the reattribution of the participants' most distressing voice to oneself during AT and the patients' perception of this reattribution. Immersive sessions and semi-structured interviews were transcribed and qualitatively described to provide a session-by-session account of the evolution of each participant's AVH reattribution to themselves during the course of AT, along with their perceptions of this reattribution. This process led to the recognition that initially perceived as external voices were internally generated thoughts, reflecting how participants viewed themselves. Two participants reported a reduction in AVH severity. All three described positive changes in how they related to their voices and self-perception. Additional improvements were observed in emotional regulation, social functioning, and engagement in personal projects. This reassignment of the voice from an external source to an internal one suggests that AT can modify how individuals relate to their voices and may empower them to regain control over their hallucinations. However, given the exploratory nature of this study, the results should be interpreted as examples.
针对精神分裂症中对治疗有抵抗性的幻听（AVH）个体的阿凡达疗法（AT）旨在解决情绪反应、对声音的信念、自我认知和应对策略。本研究聚焦于三名参与者，他们在阿凡达疗法期间，将其最困扰的声音的来源信念从外部转变为自我产生。本研究的目的是探索在阿凡达疗法期间参与者将其最困扰的声音重新归因于自身的演变过程以及患者对这种重新归因的认知。沉浸式治疗环节和半结构化访谈被转录并进行定性描述，以逐环节呈现每个参与者在阿凡达疗法过程中对自身幻听重新归因的演变情况，以及他们对这种重新归因的认知。这一过程使得人们认识到，最初被视为外部声音的实际上是内部产生的想法，反映了参与者如何看待自己。两名参与者报告幻听严重程度有所降低。所有三名参与者都描述了他们与声音及自我认知关系方面的积极变化。在情绪调节、社交功能以及参与个人项目方面也观察到了额外的改善。这种将声音从外部来源重新分配到内部来源的情况表明，阿凡达疗法可以改变个体与他们声音的关系，并可能使他们有能力重新掌控自己的幻觉。然而，鉴于本研究的探索性质，结果应作为示例来解读。
