The archipelago of meaning: Methodological contributions to the study of Vanuatu sand drawing

Vanuatu sand drawing has been listed by UNESCO since 2006 and has both fascinated and puzzled researchers from various disciplines for over a century. The inherent multi-dimensionality of the practice makes analysis complex, and until very recently developing a systematic methodology to study this intangible art form was difficult. This paper aims to contribute to filling this gap with the analysis of a corpus of sand drawings documented on the island of Paama in 2019. A detailed methodological toolkit is proposed to better understand the complex morphology of the drawings and their multi-layered meaning and function. This paper offers the first few steps along a journey toward designing integrated comparative methods of analysis that can not only potentiate unprecedented insights into the cultural practice of Vanuatu sand drawing, but also more broadly help us understand how worldviews, beliefs and societal structures spread across time and space

The archipelago of meaning: Methodological contributions to the study of Vanuatu sand drawing

Vanuatu sand drawing has been listed by UNESCO since 2006 and has both fascinated and puzzled researchers from various disciplines for over a century. The inherent multi-dimensionality of the practice makes analysis complex, and until very recently developing a systematic methodology to study this intangible art form was difficult. This paper aims to contribute to filling this gap with the analysis of a corpus of sand drawings documented on the island of Paama in 2019. A detailed methodological toolkit is proposed to better understand the complex morphology of the drawings and their multi-layered meaning and function. This paper offers the first few steps along a journey toward designing integrated comparative methods of analysis that can not only potentiate unprecedented insights into the cultural practice of Vanuatu sand drawing, but also more broadly help us understand how worldviews, beliefs and societal structures spread across time and space

Clinical Significance of Psychotic Experiences in the General Population

Epidemiological studies have demonstrated that the prevalence of psychotic disorders is exceeded by that of sub-threshold psychotic experiences, which are phenomenologically similar to threshold psychosis but of less intensity or associated impairment. Recent research has highlighted the potential clinical significance of psychotic experiences with regards to psychological distress, service utilization, psychiatric comorbidities, and suicide risk. The aims of this three paper dissertation are to: 1) determine risk for suicidal behavior among respondents with psychotic experiences; 2) examine the prevalence of psychotic experiences among respondents with common mental disorders, and describe the clinical significance of these symptoms when occurring in the context of common mental disorders; and 3) evaluate factors associated with the persistence or remission of psychotic experiences in the general population. For all three papers, data were drawn from the Collaborative Psychiatric Epidemiology Surveys (n=20,013), composed of the National Comorbidity Survey-Replication, National Latino and Asian American Study, and National Survey of American Life. Psychotic experiences and other clinical variables were assessed using the World Health Organization Composite International Diagnostic Interview, version 3.0. Analyses consisted primarily of logistic regression models, with effect sizes calculated as adjusted odds ratios. Psychotic experiences were found to be associated with elevated risk for suicidal ideation and suicide attempts, and with multiple co-morbidities with common mental health conditions. The persistence of psychotic experiences over time was primarily associated with the type of symptom experienced (i.e. hearing voices) and with marital status. Co-morbid mental health conditions, although extensive, did not predict the persistence of psychotic experiences, although persistent psychotic experiences were associated with ongoing suicide risk. Together, these data support the clinical significance of sub-threshold psychotic experiences among a large general population sample of adults in the United States. The most clinically notable features of psychotic experiences are that they indicate drastically elevated risk for suicide attempts (particularly severe attempts with intent to die) and the presence of multiple co-morbid mental health conditions. These findings will have clinical utility in highlighting unique needs of individuals with sub-threshold psychotic symptoms, and will have public health value in identifying a significant risk factor for severe suicidal behavior that may be easily screened in the general population as well as in clinical settings

Carving the body at its joints: Does the way we speak about the body shape the way we think about it?

Looking at the way different linguistic communities speak about a universally shared domain of experience raises questions that are central to the language sciences. How can we compare meaning across languages? What is the interaction between language, thought, and perception? Does linguistic diversity entail linguistic relativism? The literature on the naming systems of the body across languages have addressed these questions with little consensus. In the present study, we contribute to this debate with a comparison of body part terms in French, Indonesian, and Japanese. Using an updated version of the body coloring task, we observed both diversity and cross-linguistically shared patterns. Importantly, we also observed that speakers of languages which violate the wrist/ankle joint boundary rule do not collapse the distinction in thought. This key finding goes against the conflation of language and thought and leads us to conclude that linguistic diversity does not entail linguistic relativism. Methodologically, we advocate for the use of a culturally neutral etic space as a necessary tool in semantic typology. Theoretically, we propose that language is a multilevel phenomenon, which results from the interaction of non-linguistic and cross-culturally shared embodied motivations, context-specific situated language use, and culturally-specific sedimented linguistic conventions

Analyzing polysemiosis: Language, gesture, and depiction in two cultural practices with sand drawing

Human communication is by default polysemiotic: it involves the spontaneous combination of two or more semiotic systems, the most important ones being language, gesture, and depiction. We formulate an original cognitive-semiotic framework for the analysis of polysemiosis, contrasting this with more familiar systems based on the ambiguous term “multimodality.” To be fully explicit, we developed a coding system for the analysis of polysemiotic utterances containing speech, gesture, and drawing, and implemented this in the ELAN video annotation software. We used this to analyze 23 video-recordings of sand drawing performances on Paama, Vanuatu and 20 sand stories of the Pitjantjatjara culture in Central Australia. Methodologically we used the conceptual-empirical loop of cognitive semiotics: our theoretical framework guided general considerations, such as distinguishing between the “tiers” of gesture and depiction, and the three kinds of semiotic grounds (iconic, indexical, symbolic), but the precise decisions on how to operationalize these were made only after extensive work with the material. We describe the coding system in detail and provide illustrative examples from the Paamese and Pitjantjatjara data, remarking on both similarities and differences in the polysemiosis of the two cultural practices. We conclude by summarizing the contributions of the study and point to some directions for future research

Epidemiology of depression with psychotic experiences and its association with chronic physical conditions in 47 low- and middle-income countries

BackgroundThe co-existence of depression and psychotic experiences (PEs) is associated with more pronounced adverse health outcomes compared to depression alone. However, data on its prevalence and correlates are lacking in the general adult population, and there is no published data on its association with chronic physical conditions.MethodCross-sectional, community-based data from 201 337 adults aged ⩾18 years from 47 low- and middle-income countries from the World Health Survey were analyzed. The presence of past 12-month PE and DSM-IV depression was assessed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI). Information on six chronic medical conditions (chronic back pain, edentulism, arthritis, angina, asthma, diabetes) were obtained by self-report. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed.ResultsThe crude overall prevalence of co-morbid depression/PEs was 2.5% [95% confidence interval (CI) 2.3–2.7%], with the age- and sex-adjusted prevalence ranging from 0.1% (Sri Lanka, Vietnam) to 9.03% (Brazil). Younger age, urban setting, current smoking, alcohol consumption, and anxiety were significant correlates of co-existing depression/PEs. Co-occurring depression/PEs was associated with significantly higher odds for arthritis, angina, and diabetes beyond that of depression alone after adjusting for sociodemographics, anxiety, and country, with odds ratios (depression/PEs v. depression only) being: arthritis 1.30 (95% CI 1.07–1.59, p = 0.0086); angina 1.40 (95% CI 1.18–1.67, p = 0.0002); diabetes 1.65 (95% CI 1.21–2.26, p = 0.0017).ConclusionsThe prevalence of co-existing depression/PEs was non-negligible in most countries. Our study suggests that when depression/PE or a chronic condition (e.g. arthritis, angina, diabetes) is detected, screening for the other may be important to improve clinical outcomes.</jats:sec

Epidemiology of depression with psychotic experiences and its association with chronic physical conditions in 47 low- and middle-income countries

BACKGROUND: The co-existence of depression and psychotic experiences (PEs) is associated with more pronounced adverse health outcomes compared to depression alone. However, data on its prevalence and correlates are lacking in the general adult population, and there is no published data on its association with chronic physical conditions. METHOD: Cross-sectional, community-based data from 201 337 adults aged ⩾18 years from 47 low- and middle-income countries from the World Health Survey were analyzed. The presence of past 12-month PE and DSM-IV depression was assessed with the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI). Information on six chronic medical conditions (chronic back pain, edentulism, arthritis, angina, asthma, diabetes) were obtained by self-report. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was performed. RESULTS: The crude overall prevalence of co-morbid depression/PEs was 2.5% [95% confidence interval (CI) 2.3-2.7%], with the age- and sex-adjusted prevalence ranging from 0.1% (Sri Lanka, Vietnam) to 9.03% (Brazil). Younger age, urban setting, current smoking, alcohol consumption, and anxiety were significant correlates of co-existing depression/PEs. Co-occurring depression/PEs was associated with significantly higher odds for arthritis, angina, and diabetes beyond that of depression alone after adjusting for sociodemographics, anxiety, and country, with odds ratios (depression/PEs v. depression only) being: arthritis 1.30 (95% CI 1.07-1.59, p = 0.0086); angina 1.40 (95% CI 1.18-1.67, p = 0.0002); diabetes 1.65 (95% CI 1.21-2.26, p = 0.0017). CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of co-existing depression/PEs was non-negligible in most countries. Our study suggests that when depression/PE or a chronic condition (e.g. arthritis, angina, diabetes) is detected, screening for the other may be important to improve clinical outcomes

Pantolang: A synthetic cognitive-semiotic approach to language origins

We present an ongoing international project, From Pantomime to Language (PANTOLANG), aiming to develop a comprehensive, empirically grounded theory of the evolution of human language and the human mind, relying on the new paradigm of cognitive semiotics, which combines methods and concepts from the humanities and the sciences (Zlatev, 2015; Zlatev, et al. 2016)

Sexual assault and psychosis in two large general population samples:Is childhood and adolescence a developmental window of sensitivity?

Background: Research has shown a strong relationship between psychosis and sexual assault. Theories on developmental trauma as a causal factor for psychosis suggest that exposure to sexual trauma in childhood would have a stronger association with psychosis than sexual trauma in adulthood. We hypothesized that exposure to sexual trauma earlier in childhood and adolescence would be more strongly associated with hallucinations, delusional beliefs and psychotic disorder than sexual trauma that occurred later in life. Methods: Using the 2007 and 2014 Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Surveys (N = 14,949) we calculated the prevalence of sexual assault, hallucinations, delusional beliefs, and psychotic disorder. We used logistic regression to examine the relationship between age of exposure to sexual assault (first exposure 16. Our findings do not support the idea that childhood and adolescence are uniquely sensitive periods for the emergence of psychotic experiences or psychotic disorder in relation to sexual trauma

Why are psychotic experiences associated with self-injurious thoughts and behaviours? A systematic review and critical appraisal of potential confounding and mediating factors

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 association between PEs and SITB and, in doing so, highlight potential mechanisms underlying the relationship. A search of electronic international databases was undertaken, including PubMed, PsycINFO and EMBASE, and eligible studies were grouped according to seven confounder categories: sociodemographics, mental disorders, alcohol and substance use, environmental, psychological, intervention and family history/genetic factors. The systematic search strategy identified 41 publications reporting on 1 39 427 participants from 16 different countries. In the majority of studies, where adjustment for other variables occurred, the association between PEs and SITB persisted, suggesting PEs have an independent role. Common mental disorders, psychological distress and negative environmental exposures explained a substantial amount of the variance and therefore need to be considered as potential underlying mechanisms. There was high variability in the variables adjusted for in these studies, and so the question still remains as to whether the association between PEs and self-harm/suicidality can be attributed (fully or in part) to confounding and mediating factors or directly causal mechanisms. Regardless of causality, the now extensive literature reporting an association between these two clinical phenomena supports the broad usefulness of PEs as an indicator of risk for SITB