What Does It Mean If You Have Apophenia?

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhat It MeansExampleIs Apophenia a Mental Disorder?Causes of ApopheniaApophenia vs. PareidoliaCan Apophenia Lead to Schizophrenia?Coping

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

What It Means

Example

Is Apophenia a Mental Disorder?

Causes of Apophenia

Apophenia vs. Pareidolia

Can Apophenia Lead to Schizophrenia?

Coping

Apophenia is a term used to describe the human behavior of finding meaning in instances where no such meaning exists. Another term for apophenia is patternicity. To some extent, all humans exhibit this behavior at times, and you can be a healthy, stable person who engages in apophenia. At the same time, extreme cases of apophenia are associated with psychotic states, and apophenia is sometimes asymptom of schizophrenia.

Let’s take a deeper look at apophenia, including how it manifests, what causes it, what its links are tomental illness, and what to do if you or a loved one is experiencing it.

List of Psychological Disorders

What Does It Mean If You Have Apophenia?

The term apophenia is attributed to German neurologist Klaus Conrad who was describing a typical symptom ofpsychosis, where people in that state tend to find patterns in meaning when they don’t exist. Apophenia is thought to be a feature common to psychotic states wherehallucinationsanddelusionsoccur.

But even though the concept of apophenia began as a way to describe a psychotic state, it is also a feature that occurs regularly in non-psychotic people. In our search for meaning and connection, many of us look for patterns where none exist or come to conclusions about what something means when we don’t have our facts quite clear.

The idea that certain occurrences and phenomena that don’t have a clear reason behind them can make us uncomfortable, and many of us find comfort in assigning meaning to these things so the world makes a little more sense.

Psychosis vs. Schizophrenia: What Are the Differences?

What Is an Example of Apophenia?

Anytime you make connections that don’t exist, find patterns where there are none, or assign meaning without clear evidence, you may be engaging in apophenia.

Some common examples of apophenia include:

What Causes Hallucinations?

Apophenia is not a mental disorder, though it can potentially be a symptom of one. Again, we all experience moments of apophenia from time to time. It’s human nature to search to make connections and “connect the dots.” It’s a common tendency to engage in “magical thinking” from time to time because this type of thinking helps create order in a world that can often feel out of order.

How Long Do Manic and Depressive Episodes Last?

Problems in Decision-Making

What’s The Difference Between Apophenia And Pareidolia?

Pareidolia is a concept related to apophenia, in that it involves finding meaning where there is no meaning. But pareidolia is when you find meaning invisualrepresentations. It’s most closely associated with faces, such as when people seem to see faces where there are none.

Examples of facial pareidolia include seeing Jesus in a potato chip or thinking the Virgin Mary is depicted in a grilled cheese sandwich.Like apophenia, pareidolia is frequently associated with schizophrenia.

Delusions versus Hallucinations: What Are the Differences?

Remember, some amount of apophenia is normal. There’s not much research about whether it can lead to schizophrenia and under what circumstances. One older study found that having greater tendencies toward apophenia may make you more vulnerable to developing schizophrenia in the future.

2020 research indicates apophenia may be a risk factor forpsychotic disorders, which can include schizophrenia.

What Is Psychosis?

How to Cope With Apophenia

If you enjoy engaging in some forms of apophenia, such as reading your horoscope, or looking for shapes in the clouds, there is usually nothing to be concerned about. If you have any concerns about your desire to find meaning or patterns, or if you are concerned about a loved one’s apophenia tendencies, please reach out to a mental health professional.

The greatest concern with apophenia is that it can be a symptom of unfolding psychosis. Signs of psychosis may include:

If you or a loved one has any of these signs, it’s important to seek mental health care as soon as possible. Psychosis is treatable, but if it’s not treated, it can become dangerous. People with psychosis may become a danger to themselves or others.

Treatment for psychosisusually involves a combination of therapy and antipsychotic mediation.Help is out there, and you deserve to feel more like yourself again.

If you or a loved one are struggling with psychosis, contact theSubstance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) National Helplineat1-800-662-4357for information on support and treatment facilities in your area.For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.

For more mental health resources, see ourNational Helpline Database.

8 SourcesVerywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Blain SD, Longenecker JM, Grazioplene RG, et al.Apophenia as the disposition to false positives: A unifying framework for openness and psychoticism.Journal of Abnormal Psychology. 2020;129(3):279-292. doi:10.1037/abn0000504Hanson NA, Lavallee MB, Thiele RH.Apophenia and anesthesia: how we sometimes change our practice prematurely. [Apophénie et anesthésie: comment il nous arrive de modifier prématurément notre pratique].Canadian Journal of Anesthesia. 2021;68(8):1185-1196. doi:10.1007/s12630-021-02005-2National Institute of Mental Health.Understanding Psychosis.National Institute of Mental Health.Schizophrenia.Kovic M, Kristiansen S.The gambler’s fallacy fallacy (fallacy).Journal of Risk Research. 2016:291-302. doi:10.1080/13669877.2017.1378248Wang C, Yu L, Mo Y, et al.Pareidolia in a Built Environment as a Complex Phenomenological Ambiguous Stimuli.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022;19(9):5163. doi:10.3390/ijerph19095163Rolf R, Sokolov AN, Rattay TW, et al.Face pareidolia in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research. 2020;218:138-145. doi:10.1016/j.schres.2020.01.019Fyfe S, Williams C, Mason OJ, et al.Apophenia, theory of mind and schizotypy: perceiving meaning and intentionality in randomness.Cortex. 2008;44(10):1316-1325. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2007.07.009

8 Sources

Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Blain SD, Longenecker JM, Grazioplene RG, et al.Apophenia as the disposition to false positives: A unifying framework for openness and psychoticism.Journal of Abnormal Psychology. 2020;129(3):279-292. doi:10.1037/abn0000504Hanson NA, Lavallee MB, Thiele RH.Apophenia and anesthesia: how we sometimes change our practice prematurely. [Apophénie et anesthésie: comment il nous arrive de modifier prématurément notre pratique].Canadian Journal of Anesthesia. 2021;68(8):1185-1196. doi:10.1007/s12630-021-02005-2National Institute of Mental Health.Understanding Psychosis.National Institute of Mental Health.Schizophrenia.Kovic M, Kristiansen S.The gambler’s fallacy fallacy (fallacy).Journal of Risk Research. 2016:291-302. doi:10.1080/13669877.2017.1378248Wang C, Yu L, Mo Y, et al.Pareidolia in a Built Environment as a Complex Phenomenological Ambiguous Stimuli.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022;19(9):5163. doi:10.3390/ijerph19095163Rolf R, Sokolov AN, Rattay TW, et al.Face pareidolia in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research. 2020;218:138-145. doi:10.1016/j.schres.2020.01.019Fyfe S, Williams C, Mason OJ, et al.Apophenia, theory of mind and schizotypy: perceiving meaning and intentionality in randomness.Cortex. 2008;44(10):1316-1325. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2007.07.009

Blain SD, Longenecker JM, Grazioplene RG, et al.Apophenia as the disposition to false positives: A unifying framework for openness and psychoticism.Journal of Abnormal Psychology. 2020;129(3):279-292. doi:10.1037/abn0000504Hanson NA, Lavallee MB, Thiele RH.Apophenia and anesthesia: how we sometimes change our practice prematurely. [Apophénie et anesthésie: comment il nous arrive de modifier prématurément notre pratique].Canadian Journal of Anesthesia. 2021;68(8):1185-1196. doi:10.1007/s12630-021-02005-2National Institute of Mental Health.Understanding Psychosis.National Institute of Mental Health.Schizophrenia.Kovic M, Kristiansen S.The gambler’s fallacy fallacy (fallacy).Journal of Risk Research. 2016:291-302. doi:10.1080/13669877.2017.1378248Wang C, Yu L, Mo Y, et al.Pareidolia in a Built Environment as a Complex Phenomenological Ambiguous Stimuli.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022;19(9):5163. doi:10.3390/ijerph19095163Rolf R, Sokolov AN, Rattay TW, et al.Face pareidolia in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research. 2020;218:138-145. doi:10.1016/j.schres.2020.01.019Fyfe S, Williams C, Mason OJ, et al.Apophenia, theory of mind and schizotypy: perceiving meaning and intentionality in randomness.Cortex. 2008;44(10):1316-1325. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2007.07.009

Hanson NA, Lavallee MB, Thiele RH.Apophenia and anesthesia: how we sometimes change our practice prematurely. [Apophénie et anesthésie: comment il nous arrive de modifier prématurément notre pratique].Canadian Journal of Anesthesia. 2021;68(8):1185-1196. doi:10.1007/s12630-021-02005-2

National Institute of Mental Health.Understanding Psychosis.

National Institute of Mental Health.Schizophrenia.

Kovic M, Kristiansen S.The gambler’s fallacy fallacy (fallacy).Journal of Risk Research. 2016:291-302. doi:10.1080/13669877.2017.1378248

Wang C, Yu L, Mo Y, et al.Pareidolia in a Built Environment as a Complex Phenomenological Ambiguous Stimuli.International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022;19(9):5163. doi:10.3390/ijerph19095163

Rolf R, Sokolov AN, Rattay TW, et al.Face pareidolia in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research. 2020;218:138-145. doi:10.1016/j.schres.2020.01.019

Fyfe S, Williams C, Mason OJ, et al.Apophenia, theory of mind and schizotypy: perceiving meaning and intentionality in randomness.Cortex. 2008;44(10):1316-1325. doi:10.1016/j.cortex.2007.07.009

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What Does It Mean If You Have Apophenia?#

What Is an Example of Apophenia?#

What’s The Difference Between Apophenia And Pareidolia?#

How to Cope With Apophenia#

What Does It Mean If You Have Apophenia?

What Is an Example of Apophenia?

What’s The Difference Between Apophenia And Pareidolia?

How to Cope With Apophenia