Editing Paranoia (section)

{{Short description|Psychotic disorder}}
{{other uses}}
{{redirect2|Paranoid|Paranoiac||Paranoid (disambiguation)|and|Paranoiac (film)}}
{{Infobox medical condition (new)
| name = Paranoia
| synonyms = Paranoid ([[adjective]])
| pronounce = {{IPAc-en|ˌ|p|ær|ə|ˈ|n|ɔɪ|ə}}
| field = [[Psychiatry]], [[clinical psychology]]
| symptoms = [[Distrust]], [[false accusations]], [[anxiety]], [[suspicion (emotion)|suspicion]]
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'''Paranoia''' is an instinct or thought process that is believed to be heavily influenced by [[anxiety]], [[suspicion (emotion)|suspicion]], or [[fear]], often to the point of [[delusion]] and [[irrationality]].<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/paranoia World English Dictionary] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180528064031/http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/paranoia |date=2018-05-28 }} (Collins English Dictionary – Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition, 2009, William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd.) 3. informal sense: ''intense fear or suspicion, esp when unfounded''</ref> Paranoid thinking typically includes [[persecutory]] beliefs, or beliefs of [[conspiracy]] concerning a perceived threat towards oneself (e.g., ''"Everyone is out to get me"''). Paranoia is distinct from [[phobia]]s, which also involve irrational fear, but usually no blame.

Making false accusations and the general distrust of other people also frequently accompany paranoia.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.livescience.com/3064-freak-paranoia-common.html |title=Don't Freak Out: Paranoia Quite Common |website=[[Live Science]] |publisher=[[Associated Press]] |date=November 12, 2008 |access-date=September 16, 2018 }}</ref> For example, a paranoid person might believe an incident was intentional when most people would view it as an accident or coincidence. Paranoia is a central symptom of [[psychosis]].<ref name="Green08">Green, C., Freeman, D., Kuipers, E., Bebbington, P., Fowler, D., Dunn, G., & Garety, P. (2008). Measuring ideas of persecution and social reference: the Green et al. Paranoid Thought Scales (GPTS). ''Psychological Medicine, 38'', 101 – 111.</ref>