From collective memory to clinical cases: analyzing political delusions in patients with psychotic disorders.
BMC psychiatry November 3, 2025 Ahmet Selim Başaran, Hande Gazey, Sena Çağlayan et al.
In Turkey, political themes in delusions among people with psychotic disorders are structured, culturally anchored narratives rather than random noise. Analyzing 122 inpatient records from 1985 to 2024, eight recurring patterns emerged: intrusive state surveillance and mind-body control (39.5%), grandiosity through identification with leaders (13.7%), persecution based on ideological identity (12.1%), foreign states as enemies (10.5%), the leader's gaze as direct persecution (8.1%), ethno-religious others as contaminants (6.5%), psychotic nationalism merging self and nation (3.2%), and illegitimate pursuers like terrorist groups (6.5%). These themes reflect blurred self-world boundaries and recruitment of widely circulated political symbols.