Voice-Hearing in Young People: Distress Factors and Social Relating, 2022

The data collection method used was face-to-face research assessments using questionnaires and semi structured interview tools.

Participant eligibility criteria
All participants for this project were recruited from Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and Early Intervention in Psychosis services (EIP) within a NHS Foundation Trust and they were between 14-18 years of age. Two groups of young people were recruited; one with current voice-hearing experiences and one without. To belong to the voice-hearing group, participants should have been experiencing voice-hearing that is not attributed to an organic illness, acute intoxication, solely to drug use or solely after waking up/before falling asleep (hypnagogic/ hypnopompic). The comparison clinical group consisted of young people receiving care from the same services, CAMHS and EIP and were not experiencing voice-hearing. There was no restriction in diagnostic criteria for either of the groups.

Recruitment strategy
Recruitment took place via referrals from clinical teams or via parental or self-referrals. Strategies for recruitment included advertising the study to from Children and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) and Early Intervention in Psychosis services (EIP) within a NHS Foundation Trust with emails, posters, leaflets. For clinician referrals, mental health professionals in CAMHS and EIP services (e.g., care coordinators) were asked to inform service users about the study and refer them following the young person’s verbal consent. For those under 16 years of age, parental verbal consent was also needed and communication with a person with parental responsibility was necessary, as they needed to provide their informed written consent for the young person to take part.

All referred young people were given a Participant Information Sheet and a Parental Responsibility Information sheet. Following a minimum of 24 hours to process the information, the principal investigator contacted the participants and/or the person with parental responsibility to answer any questions and arrange the first research meeting, after ensuring eligibility to take part.

The research assessment took an average of approximately 5 hours and 40 minutes. To ensure young people felt comfortable, the research assessment was spread over two or more sessions depending on participant’s preference and needs. Participants were also offered the option to bring a trusted friend or a family member during the research assessment. Breaks were incorporated into the assessment sessions and participants were reminded they can stop or pause whenever they wish. During the session, snacks and refreshments were offered to the participants. To remove practical barriers relating to travelling, a few options were offered regarding the assessment location. The researcher could meet the young person at their place of residence, at their college, at their closest NHS service, at their GP surgery or at the University that sponsored the project. Although most of the research assessments took part during normal working hours (9am - 5pm), when this was not possible due to the young person’s schedule, evenings and weekends were offered for research appointments.

The Data Collection is available for download to users registered with the UK Data Service.