Talk:Paranoia

This article was the subject of a Wiki Education Foundation-supported course assignment, between 29 October 2019 and 19 December 2019. Further details are available on the course page. Student editor(s): Alabrino.

Above undated message substituted from Template:Dashboard.wikiedu.org assignment by PrimeBOT (talk) 06:07, 17 January 2022 (UTC)

I'm by no means authoritative on the subject of what constitutes a relevant link, but I don't think the inclusion of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni in 'See also' is altogether useful. To be honest, as good a film as it may be, The Conversation may also fall foul of pop-culture incongruity. Perhaps we need a 'List of films (or indeed visual novels) that explore paranoia' that can replace any such references. Does anyone with greater experience of the structure of Wikipedia have an opinion? --Macabre Deified (talk) 23:21, 16 October 2008 (UTC)

OK, in the name of proactivity I'm going to go ahead and remove both links. Should that be unpopular, well, the solution is only an undo away.--Macabre Deified (talk) 23:31, 16 October 2008 (UTC)

Lol, they added a phrase from catch-22... WTF!? That's awesome. However since I do believe it's true to the point it should not be removed.. Maybe not enter it in a way where it's quoting a movie? lol. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.144.25.234 (talk) 18:37, 28 May 2012 (UTC)

I'm not completely sure, but it seems like this wikipedia entry has undergone vandalism. Can someone confirm this? I'm new to wikipedia, I don't want to attempt to go in and fix it, nor do I know how to put up a message about vandalism. 71.213.74.184 09:37, 15 November 2007 (UTC)

You're just being paranoid. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 201.87.57.192 (talk) 17:04, 25 April 2011 (UTC)

I am much too highly opinionated to touch the text, but I have some comments that a sober person might address ... first of all the distinguishing characteristic of "paranoia" is "denial and projection", in other words a person denies that he himself feels and acts in a certain way (fearful, aggressive, angry, frustrated, or even in certain classic cases, amorous) ... the process of accusal or projection is done in such a manner that sooner or later the object actually shows the behavior he has been accused of and this then results in the subject's vindictive "revenge" wherein he may hope to carry out his original feeling but without guilt or condemnation because it is viewed as an appropriate response. I find it highly fascinating and amusing that the new DSM-V has completely dropped any references to "paranoia". Since most US politicians and all US police demonstrate such symptoms, it would be somewhat unseemly to classify them as mentally ill .. -- John Tucker 1/9/2014 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2601:A:3280:290:C431:207:B42C:5066 (talk) 23:19, 9 January 2014 (UTC)

This article deals with paranoia on the individual level. Should it also include a section on mass

I personally know many well educated Brits who (over/mis-)use the word paranoid, often to convey a feeling of general unfounded worry about something mundane, for example having left the oven on. Perhaps an explanation and/or a few examples of what paranoia is NOT would be helpful. The word has somewhat lost its precise meaning in everyday parlance. --Markhadman 22:16, 27 Apr 2004 (UTC)

Is the Black Sabbath reference really necessary? Chadloder 07:35 Jan 24, 2003 (UTC)

yeah, imo the disambiguation is worth it (clem 19:43, 4 May 2005 (UTC))

Removed the paragraph below from the page. It's really well written but is rather unsubstantiated and not particularly from a NPOV.

These symptoms are often regarded as a way for the person to explain the perceived reality. As a paranoid person percieves a discrepancy between the world and themselves (or within themselves), they "explain" it by referring to several external conspiracies.

This seems to be a broad discription of a theory of delusion formation by Harvard Psychologist, Brendan Maher. Essentially that delusions are rationale reactions to sensory distortion or anomalous perceptions. However, it is not considered an adequate theory of delusion formation (for example, psychologist Philipa Garety has found several inferential reasoning biases in delusional patients). The reference to 'conspiracies' is redundant. As the article explains, paranoia does not necessarily require a delusional conspiracy.

When doing this, subtle non-detectable things and novel technology often takes the blame, so when the radio appeared, all paranoids started to refer to the radio as an object that exerted control over them as an explanation to their misalignment with the world.

This seems to be a description of one of the manifestations of paranoia, but is the exception rather than the rule, so is not really a good example to give in isolation, particulary it makes far too strong a general case. It is not the case that "when the radio appeared, all paranoids started to refer to the radio as an object that exerted control over them as an explanation to their misalignment with the world."

"Might it be that with enough enemies, it is impossible not to be clinically paranoid?" - rhetoric question in an encyclopedic article? (clem 19:42, 4 May 2005 (UTC))

At Talk:Nerve agent you can find an interesting article written by someone who is arguably displaying symptoms of paranoia. Nixdorf 21:10, 21 September 2005 (UTC)

Paranoia appears in Culture Bound Syndromes (CBS's). There is confusion as to what should be a CBS but if you limit your view to mental events that are described as sudden dissociative or psychotic mental breaks then paranoia appears regularly.

The page linked below suggests a cause of paranoia in all mental illness.

http://visionandpsychosis.net/Psychotic_Mental_Illness_Cause.htm

and

http://visionandpsychosis.net/Culture_Bound_Syndromes.htm

L K Tucker 18:08, 14 October 2005 (UTC) — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.223.108.126 (talk) 18:08, 14 October 2005 (UTC)

Unattributed fear is observed in cases where victims left suicide notes, Mark Barton Day Trader Shooter, Atlanta 1999.

The difference in fear and paranoia is how the individual mind understands then applies its understanding of visual Subliminal Distraction.

This happens at a level in the mind below thought, reason, and consciousness.

This is too long for this talk section. It is developing theory.

L K Tucker 04:17, 17 November 2005 (UTC)

Start by performing the psychology demonstration at:

http://VisionAndPsychosis.Net — Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.223.111.242 (talk) 04:17, 17 November 2005 (UTC)

From the article:

The maxim: Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that they aren't out to get you.

(I have also heard it expressed as: Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean that they're not after you.)

Shouldn't it be "Just because you aren't paranoid doesn't mean that they aren't out to get you"? Or do I misunderstand the phrase?

I believe it to mean that Even if you are paranoid, people can still be out to get you. Because normally when you're paranoid people would be like "Oh, your being silly. People are not out to get you." but it may be possible that people are actually after you.

Does anyone know the origin of this maxim/expression? Is there a specific source that is known to have stated it first?

I first heard the phrase "Just because you're paranoid, Don't mean they're not after you." in a nirvana song, not sure if its the actual origin tho. Playyacardzright

I fully understand the phrase as is. It's saying, just because you're paranoid (assuming you know you are), doesn't mean you don't have reason to be. TheJudge310 23:29, 7 September 2007 (UTC)

Indeed, it came from the Nirvana song "territorial pissings"

“Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you.” is attributed to Joseph Heller (author of Catch-22) Jfkinyon (talk) 01:08, 12 March 2013 (UTC)

Regarding the quote "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you," being from the 1961 book Catch-22 by author Joseph Heller, I looked through an e-book version of that book and did not find that sentence. However, I did find that it is a line said by Alan Arkin, playing Capt. John Yossarian in the 1970 film, Catch-22, which may mean that the film screenwriter, Buck Henry, authored the line. Juanaquena 7 June 2013 —Preceding undated comment added 00:26, 8 June 2013 (UTC)

Google Books seems to suggest that the phrase was popular on posters by 1971.

My wife has this poster hanging on the refrigerator — it's a great poster — a little green man cowering in the corner and the caption is, "Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get you." (1971)

There's a poster on a rack in Union Station which says, 'Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they're not after you!'" (1976)

It doesn't appear any earlier than 1971 (at least not in Google's archives), so that would give weight to the idea that it comes from the film version of Catch-22 (if it's in there; I haven't seen it myself). Kraŭs (talk) 19:20, 22 September 2013 (UTC)

How? You can't show it by a picture. Remove tag. Skinnyweed 22:56, 16 May 2006 (UTC)

Yes you can, a tin hat, a picture of a guy...squinting. -Uagehry456|Talk_{JordanhillVote} 07:13, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

Question the validity of this statement.

Other common paranoid delusions include the belief that the person has an imaginary disease or parasitic infection (delusional parasitosis); that the person is on a special quest or has been chosen by God; that the person has had thoughts inserted or removed from conscious thought; or that the person's actions are being controlled by an external force.

My research, suggests that infections, including parasitic ones can result in symptoms of paranoia. The bodies reaction to a real threat of attack on the micro level.

Look up organic infections of paranoia.

Then there is the case of prescription drugs that cause this symptom...

Levaquin side effects

--Son of Maryann Rosso and Arthur Natale Squitti 03:52, 3 September 2006 (UTC)

This is one of the worst articles in wikipedia. Please copy someones copyrighted article if you have to.

The article referenced by this wikipedia section is about how a parasite may turn OFF an innate fear in rats. It does NOT suggest that parasites may contribute to paranoia, as claimed by the wikipedia article.

Also, the statement mentioned at the top of this section was actually correct, but just badly worded. The bit about parasites was merely describing the fact that some people can have paranoid delusional beliefs that they are infested with parasites! aka Delusional Parasitosis or [Ekbom's Syndrome]. Buckethed (talk) 03:37, 6 March 2011 (UTC)

No I think the definition here of paranoia is completely wrong. Paranoia is a systematic set of beliefs characterized by delusions of persecution or grandeur. What is coming up here is the drug culture definition of 'paranoia' or the street definition. I think it should be completely redone. The key word is delusion not anxiety.

raspor 23:59, 30 November 2006 (UTC)

Agreed. Fear or anxiety is not a necessary component of paranoia. A person in a state of mania may have delusions of grandeur (believing himself or herself to be a living incarnation of a god); this would rightly be termed paranoia.--NeantHumain 02:54, 6 May 2007 (UTC)

Hi there, What you describe is the Kraeplinian psychiatric definition of paranoia, and is only one part of how this term is used both clinically and non-clinically. If you have a look at some of the references (particularly the Freeman and Garety book, which has a good review of the literature) you'll notice that even in psychiatry, paranoia can refer to non-psychotic, non-delusional states and that anxiety is thought to be a key component even of clinical paranoia. - Vaughan 08:08, 6 May 2007 (UTC)

Yes the definition is wrong. They are defining the slang word 'paranoid'. Another reason not to take wiki too seriously. Tickclock 22:04, 29 September 2007 (UTC)

I agree. Paranoia isn't even defined. All that's given are some examples of what a paranoid person may believe. A better definition would define it as something, not give examples only. A friend of mine described it as thinking everything is about oneself, eg., everyone is looking at me, watching what I do. There does not need to be persecution or grandeur attached to it, just a self-centeredness. *a cis woman growing a philosopher's beard MichelleGDyason 23:37, 21 December 2025 (UTC)

Shouldn't there be a discussion of the drugs which are used to treat the illness? Aaron Bowen 18:05, 9 March 2007 (UTC)

Paranoia is a symptom rather than a psychiatric disorder per se. Treatment would be specific to schizophrenia, psychotic features of a mood disorder, paranoia associated with brain damage or intoxication, etc.--NeantHumain 02:55, 6 May 2007 (UTC)

First it says paranoia involves anxiety then it says it does not. Xavier cougat 17:09, 30 May 2007 (UTC)

You're being paranoid. Shtove (talk) 02:29, 7 August 2020 (UTC)