Table 4.
Thematic structure
| Themes | Sub‐themes | |
|---|---|---|
| Perceived causal influences on paranoia | Historical contexts fostering mistrust | ‘I've seen my mum being suspicious’: Family context |
| ‘They're looking at us, what are they thinking?’: School context | ||
| ‘It could be anyone’: Neighbourhood context | ||
| ‘Men – they will either like wink at you, smile at you or they will sit there and actually literally stare’: Gendered fears | ||
| Finding a social situation strange | ‘They look at me and it makes me feel uncertain’: Finding behaviour unusual | |
| Pondering the ‘unknowns’ of a situation | ||
| Anticipating threat | ||
| Evaluating the concern | Wrestling with one's inner dialogue | |
| Getting others’ perspectives on the situation | ||
| Living with paranoia | Effects on everyday life | ‘It's a bit infantilising’: Student Life |
| Trying to minimize the effects of paranoia and regaining control | Engaging in reassuring internal dialogue | |
| ‘I got busier so that helped’: Turning attention to other things | ||
| ‘If you accept your demons you can fight them’ | ||
| Confiding (vs. not confiding) |