{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,6]],"date-time":"2026-10-06T12:03:56Z","timestamp":1791288236321,"version":"4.3.0"},"reference-count":1,"publisher":"S. Karger AG","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[1999,1,1]],"date-time":"1999-01-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":915148800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/www.karger.com\/Services\/SiteLicenses"},{"start":{"date-parts":[[1999,1,1]],"date-time":"1999-01-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":915148800000},"content-version":"tdm","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/www.karger.com\/Services\/SiteLicenses"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Psychopathology"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[1999]]},"abstract":"<jats:p>&lt;i&gt;Objective:&lt;\/i&gt; Belief in demonic influence has repeatedly been described as a delusion in schizophrenic patients. The goal of this explorative study was to examine the frequency, as well as the psychodynamic and social functions of such beliefs in a sample of nondelusional patients. &lt;i&gt;Method:&lt;\/i&gt; The sample consisted of 343 psychiatric outpatients who described themselves as religious. In semistructured interviews they were asked to give their view of demonic causality of their illness. &lt;i&gt;Results:&lt;\/i&gt; A high prevalence of such beliefs was not only found in schizophrenic patients (56%) but also in the following groups of nondelusional patients: affective disorders (29%), anxiety disorders (48%), personality disorders (37%) and adjustment disorders (23%). Belief in demonic oppression tended to be associated with lower educational level and rural origin, and was significantly influenced by church affiliation. &lt;i&gt;Conclusions:&lt;\/i&gt; Beliefs in possession or demonic influence are not confined to delusional disorders and should not be qualified as a mere delusion. Rather they have to be interpreted against the cultural and religious background which is shaping causal models of mental distress in the individual.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1159\/000029097","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2003,4,15]],"date-time":"2003-04-15T13:07:10Z","timestamp":1050412030000},"page":"252-259","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":26,"title":["Demonic Attributions in Nondelusional Disorders"],"prefix":"10.1159","volume":"32","author":[{"given":"Samuel","family":"Pfeifer","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"127","published-online":{"date-parts":[[1999,9,13]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","DOI":"10.1017\/S0033291796004163"}],"container-title":["Psychopathology"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.karger.com\/Article\/Pdf\/29097","content-type":"application\/pdf","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"text-mining"},{"URL":"https:\/\/www.karger.com\/Article\/Pdf\/29097","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,4,24]],"date-time":"2025-04-24T04:21:05Z","timestamp":1745468465000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/karger.com\/article\/doi\/10.1159\/000029097"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[1999]]},"references-count":1,"journal-issue":{"issue":"5","published-online":{"date-parts":[[1999,10,1]]}},"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1159\/000029097","archive":["Portico"],"relation":{},"ISSN":["0254-4962","1423-033X"],"issn-type":[{"value":"0254-4962","type":"print"},{"value":"1423-033X","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[1999]]}}}