Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-gtxcr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-19T22:30:54.970Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The Illusory Beliefs Inventory: A New Measure of Magical Thinking and its Relationship with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2011

Bianca L. Kingdon ,
Sarah J. Egan  and
Clare S. Rees
Bianca L. Kingdon
Affiliation:
Curtin University, Perth, Australia
Sarah J. Egan*
Affiliation:
Curtin University, Perth, Australia
Clare S. Rees
Affiliation:
Curtin University, Perth, Australia
*
Reprint requests to Sarah Egan, School of Psychology and Speech Pathology and Curtin Health Research Institute, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, WA, 6845, Australia. E-mail: s.egan@curtin.edu.au
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

Background: Magical thinking has been proposed to have an aetiological role in obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). Aims: To address the limitations of existing measures of magical thinking we developed and validated a new 24-item measure of magical thinking, the Illusory Beliefs Inventory (IBI). Method: The validation sample comprised a total of 1194 individuals across two samples recruited via an Internet based survey. Results: Factor analysis identified three subscales representing domains relevant to the construct of magical thinking: Magical Beliefs, Spirituality, and Internal State and Thought Action Fusion. The scale had excellent internal consistency and evidence of convergent and discriminant validity. Evidence of criterion-related concurrent validity confirmed that magical thinking is a cognitive domain associated with OCD and is largely relevant to neutralizing, obsessing and hoarding symptoms. Conclusions: It is important for future studies to extend the evidence of the psychometric properties of the IBI in new populations and to conduct longitudinal studies to examine the aetiological role of magical thinking.

Keywords

Obsessive compulsive disordermagicalthinking
Type
Research Article
Information
Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy , Volume 40 , Issue 1 , January 2012 , pp. 39 - 53
Copyright
Copyright © British Association for Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Amir, N., Freshman, M., Ramsey, B., Neary, E. and Brigidi, B. (2001). Thought-action fusion in individuals with OCD symptoms. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 39, 765–776.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Berle, D. and Starcevic, V. (2005). Thought-action fusion: review of the literature and future directions. Clinical Psychology Review, 25, 263–284.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bocci, L. and Gordon, P. K. (2007). Does magical thinking produce neutralising behaviour? An experimental investigation. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 43, 1823–1833.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bolton, D., Dearsley, P., Madronal-Luque, R. and Baron-Cohen, S. (2002). Magical thinking in childhood and adolescence: development and relation to obsessive compulsion. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 20, 479–494.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chapman, L. J., Chapman, J. P. and Miller, E. N. (1982). Reliabilities and intercorrelations of eight measures of proneness to psychosis. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 50, 187–195.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Comrey, A. L. (1988). Factor-analytic methods of scale development in personality and clinical psychology. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 56, 754–761.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
de Silva, P. and Rachman, S. (1992). Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder: the facts. Oxford: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
de Vaus, D. A. (2002) Surveys in Social Research (5th edn). Sydney, NSW: Allen and Unwin.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Eckblad, M. and Chapman, L. J. (1983). Magical ideation as an indicator of schizotypy. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 51, 215–225.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Einstein, D. A. and Menzies, R. G. (2004a). Role of magical thinking in obsessive-compulsive symptoms in an undergraduate sample. Depression and Anxiety, 19, 174–179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Einstein, D. A. and Menzies, R. G. (2004b). The presence of magical thinking in obsessive compulsive disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 42, 539–549.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Einstein, D. A. and Menzies, R. G. (2006). Magical thinking in obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder and the general community. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 34, 351–357.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Evans, D. W., Milanak, M. E., Medeiros, B. and Ross, J. L. (2002). Magical beliefs and rituals in young children. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 33, 43–58.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Foa, E. B., Huppert, J. D., Leiberg, S., Langer, R., Kichic, R., Hajcak, G., et al. (2002). The obsessive-compulsive inventory: development and validation of a short version. Psychological Assessment, 14, 485–496.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Frost, R. O. and Hartl, T. L. (1996). A cognitive-behavioural model of compulsive hoarding. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 34, 341–350.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Frost, R. O., Krause, M. S., McMahon, M. J., Peppe, J., Evans, M., McPhee, E., et al. (1993). Compulsivity and superstitiousness. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 31, 423–425.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Freeston, M. H., Rhéaume, J. and Ladouceur, R. (1996). Correcting faulty appraisals of obsessional thoughts. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 34, 433–446.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Garety, P. A. and Hemsley, D. R. (1994). Delusions: investigations into the psychology of delusional reasoning. New York: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Gwilliam, P., Wells, A. and Cartwright-Hatton, S. (2004). Does meta-cognition or responsibility predict obsessive-compulsive symptoms: a test of the metacognitive model. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy, 11, 137–144.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hajcak, G., Huppert, J. D., Simons, R. F. and Foa, E. B. (2004). Psychometric properties of the OCI-R in a college sample. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 42, 115–123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hodgson, R. J. and Rachman, S. (1977). Obsessional-compulsive complaints. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 15, 389–395.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Irwin, H. J. (1993). Belief in the paranormal: a review of the empirical literature. The Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research, 87, 1–39.Google Scholar
Keinan, G. (2002). The effects of stress and desire for control on superstitious behaviour. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28, 102–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kelly, M. P. and Coursey, R. D. (1992). Factor structure of schizotypy scales. Journal of Personality and Individual Differences, 13, 723–731.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
King, L. A., Burton, C. M., Hicks, J. A. and Drigotas, S. M. (2007). Ghosts, UFOs, and magic: positive affect and the experiential system. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 905–919.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kline, P. (1998). The New Psychometrics: science, psychology and measurement. London: Routledge.Google Scholar
Krant, R., Olson, J., Banaji, M., Bruckman, A., Cohen, J. and Couper, M. (2004). Psychological research online: report of board scientific affairs’ advisory group on the conduct of research on the internet. American Psychologist, 59, 105–117.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lawrence, T. R. (1995a). How many factors of the paranormal belief are there? A critique of the Paranormal Belief Scale. The Journal of Parapsychology, 59, 3–25.Google Scholar
Lawrence, T. R. (1995b). Moving on from the PBS: a final reply to Tobacyk. The Journal of Parapsychology, 59, 131–140.Google Scholar
Lawrence, T. R. and De Cicco, P. (1997). The factor structure of the paranormal belief scale: more evidence in support of the oblique five. The Journal of Parapsychology, 61, 243–248.Google Scholar
Lawrence, T. R., Roe, C. R. and Williams, C. (1997). Confirming the factor structure of the paranormal beliefs scale: big orthogonal seven or oblique five? The Journal of Parapsychology, 61, 13–31.Google Scholar
Marks, A. D. G., Hine, D. W., Blore, R. L. and Phillips, W. J. (2008). Assessing individual differences in adolescents’ preference for rational and experiential cognition. Personality and Individual Differences, 44, 42–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Obsessive Compulsive Cognitions Working Group (1997). Cognitive assessment of obsessive-compulsive disorder. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 35, 667–681.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Obsessive Compulsive Cognitions Working Group (2001). Development and initial validation of the obsessive beliefs questionnaire and the interpretation of intrusions inventory. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 39, 987–1006.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Obsessive Compulsive Cognitions Working Group (2003). Psychometric validation of the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire and the Interpretation of Intrusions Inventory. Part 1. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 41, 863–878.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Obsessive Compulsive Cognitions Working Group (2005). Psychometric validation of the Obsessive Beliefs Questionnaire and the Interpretation of Intrusions Inventory. Part 2: factor analyses and testing of a brief version. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 43, 1527–1542.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pacini, R. and Epstein, S. (1999). The relation of rational and experiential information processing styles to personality, basic beliefs, and the ratio-bias phenomenon. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 76, 972–987.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pallant, J. (2001). SPSS Survival Guide: a step by step guide to data analysis using SPSS. Sydney, NSW: Allen and Unwin.Google Scholar
Rachman, S. (1997). A cognitive theory of obsessions. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 35, 793–802.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rachman, S. and de Silva, P. (1978). Abnormal and normal obsessions. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 16, 223–238.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rassin, E., Merckelbach, H., Muris, P. and Schmidt, H. (2001). The thought-action fusion scale: further evidence for its reliability and validity. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 39, 537–544.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sanavio, E. (1988). Obsessions and compulsions: the Padua inventory. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 26, 169–177.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shafran, R., Teachman, B. A., Kerry, S. and Rachman, S. (1999). A cognitive distortion associated with eating disorders: thought-shape fusion. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 38, 167–179.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Shafran, R., Thordarson, D. S. and Rachman, S. (1996). Thought-action fusion in obsessive compulsive disorder. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 10, 379–391.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sica, C., Novara, C. and Sanavio, E. (2002). Religiousness and obsessive-compulsive cognitions and symptoms in an Italian population. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 40, 813–823.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Steketee, G., Quay, S. and White, K. (1991). Religion and guilt in OCD patients. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 5, 359–367.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Storch, E. A., Lack, C. W., Merlo, L. J., Geffken, G. R., Jacob, M. L., Murphy, T. K., et al. (2007). Clinical features of children and adolescents with obsessive-compulsive disorder and hoarding symptoms. Comprehensive Psychology, 48, 313–318.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tabachnick, B. S. and Fidell, L. S. (2007). Using Multivariate Statistics (5th edn). Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.Google Scholar
Tobacyk, J. (1995a). Final thoughts on issues in the measurement of paranormal beliefs. The Journal of Parapsychology, 59, 141–145.Google Scholar
Tobacyk, J. (1995b). What is the correct dimensionality of the paranormal beliefs? A reply to Lawrence's critique of the paranormal belief scale. The Journal of Parapsychology, 59, 27–46.Google Scholar
Tobacyk, J. (2004). A revised paranormal belief scale. The International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 23, 94–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Tobacyk, J. and Milford, G. (1983). Belief in paranormal phenomenon: assessment instrument development and implications for personality functioning. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 44, 1029–1037.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Zebb, B. J. and Moore, M. C. (2003). Superstitiousness and perceived anxiety control as predictors of psychological distress. Anxiety Disorders, 17, 115–130.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zucker, B. G., Craske, M. G., Barrios, V. and Holguin, M. (2002). Thought action fusion: can it be corrected? Behaviour Research and Therapy, 40, 653–664.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Zusne, L. and Jones, W. H. (1989). Anomalistic Psychology: a study of magical thinking (2nd edn). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Submit a response

Comments

No Comments have been published for this article.