MAIN PROJECTS
The i4i Mental Health Challenge Award: Immersive virtual reality to transform the lives of patients with psychosis
NHS NIHR Research Professorship: Overcoming Persecutory Delusions
Oxford Virtual Reality (VR) for Mental Health
The Feeling Safe Study
Immersive Virtual Reality Cognitive Treatment (VRCT) for persecutory delusions
Daniel Freeman
PhD DClinPsy CPsychol FBPsS
Professor of Clinical Psychology
- Lead, Oxford Cognitive Approaches to Psychosis (O-CAP)
- NIHR Research Professor
- Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust
- Founder of Oxford VR
- Fellow, University College Oxford
- Fellow, British Psychological Society
Follow Daniel Freeman on Twitter
Research Group: Oxford Cognitive Approaches to Psychosis (O-CAP)
BBC Radio 4 Series: A History of Delusions
The purpose of my work is to make significant advances in the understanding and treatment of mental health disorders, particularly the problem of paranoia. Drawing on a variety of approaches, including epidemiological studies, psychological experiments, clinical trials, and a ground-breaking virtual reality laboratory, I use the theoretical knowledge to develop carefully tested psychological treatments that will truly make a difference.
At the moment several randomised controlled treatment trials are in progress. This includes a test of a new targeted, personalised psychological treatment for persecutory delusions, called the Feeling Safe Programme. This is a translational treatment built upon advances by my research group in the theoretical understanding of paranoia. The target is a recovery rate of 50% for persecutory delusions that have not responded to previous treatment. There are also a number of studies running that will lead to a greater understanding of the causes of psychotic experiences. The research is supported by the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR), UK Medical Research Council (MRC), and the Wellcome Trust.
I pioneered the use of virtual reality (VR) to assess, understand, and treat paranoia. Subsequently I have led work designing and testing new automated VR psychological therapies for mental health disorders. The aim is to produce VR therapies that produce greater clinical effects than face-to-face therapies. I founded and am a non-executive board member of Oxford VR, a spinout company from the University. Oxford VR built on my research into the use of virtual reality to understand and treat psychological disorders. I founded the company in 2016 with Jason Freeman, Mel Slater, Bernhard Spanlang, and Mavi Sánchez-Vives.
I’m also committed to making knowledge of the best psychological research and treatments for mental health problems available to the general public. Therefore I’ve written a number of popular science books on mental health issues. The latest to appear is The Stressed Sex: Uncovering the Truth about Men, Women, and Mental Health, which sets out to answer a simple, but crucial, question: are rates of psychological disorder different for men and women? This important issue has been largely ignored in all the debates raging about gender differences.
I studied natural sciences at the University of Cambridge, completed a PhD and a doctorate in clinical psychology (DClinPsy) at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, then held a Wellcome Trust Fellowship and a Medical Research Council Senior Clinical Fellowship. In 2011 I moved to the University of Oxford and set up the Oxford Cognitive Approaches to Psychosis (O-CAP) research group. I am the recipient of the 2020 British Psychological Society Presidents' Award.
Recent open access papers
Sleep disturbance and psychiatric disorders
Automated virtual reality cognitive therapy for patients with psychosis
Automated psychological therapy using virtual reality (VR) for patients with persecutory delusions
Coronavirus conspiracy beliefs, mistrust, and compliance with government guidelines in England
Automated psychological therapy using immersive VR for treatment of fear of heights
Virtual reality in the assessment, understanding, and treatment of mental health disorders
Treatable clinical intervention targets for patients with schizophrenia
The weeks before 100 persecutory delusions
The effects of improving sleep on mental health (OASIS)
Persecutory delusions: a cognitive perspective on understanding and treatment [pdf]
Suicidal ideation and behaviour in patients with persecutory delusions
The Dunn Worry Questionnaire and the Paranoia Worries Questionnaire: new assessments of worry
The revised Green et al., Paranoid Thoughts Scale (R-GPTS)
Virtual reality in the treatment of persecutory delusions
The concomitants of conspiracy concerns
Effects of cognitive behaviour therapy for worry on persecutory delusions (WIT)
Targeting recovery in persistent persecutory delusions
Advances in understanding and treating persecutory delusions
Height, social comparison, and paranoia: an immersive virtual reality experimental study
Key publications
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Journal article
FREEMAN D., (2020), Psychological Medicine
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2020), Lancet Psychiatry, 7, 628 - 637
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2018), The Lancet Psychiatry, 5, 625 - 632
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2017), The Lancet Psychiatry, 4, 749 - 758
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Freeman D., (2016), The Lancet Psychiatry, 3, 685 - 692
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Freeman D. et al, (2016), British Journal of Psychiatry, 209, 62 - 67
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Freeman D. et al, (2015), The Lancet Psychiatry, 2, 305 - 313
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2015), The Lancet Psychiatry, 2, 975 - 983
Recent publications
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Immersive virtual reality and digital applied gaming interventions for the treatment of mental health problems in children and young people: The need for rigorous treatment development and clinical evaluation
Journal article
CRESWELL C. et al, (2021), Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry
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Journal article
Bird JC. et al, (2021), Aust N Z J Psychiatry
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Journal article
FREEMAN D., (2020), Psychological Medicine
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Cognitive appraisals of dissociation in psychosis: A brief new measure
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CERNIS E. et al, (2020), Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy
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Treating sleep problems in young people at ultra-high-risk of psychosis: study protocol for a single-blind parallel group randomised controlled feasibility trial (SleepWell)
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WAITE F. et al, (2020), BMJ Open
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Journal article
Brown P. et al, (2020), Behaviour Research and Therapy, 132
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Dissociation in relation to other mental health conditions: An exploration using network analysis
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CERNIS E. et al, (2020), Journal of Psychiatric Research
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Journal article
Henry AL. et al, (2020), Journal of Sleep Research
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Journal article
Brown P. et al, (2020), Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol
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3. Schizophrenia spectrum disorders (schizophrenia,
schizoaffective disorder, short-term psychotic episodes)
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SHEAVES B. and FREEMAN D., (2020), European Sleep Medicine Textbook (Second Edition)
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The challenges and opportunities of social connection when hearing derogatory and threatening voices: a thematic analysis with patients experiencing psychosis
Journal article
SHEAVES B. et al, (2020), Psychology and Psychotherapy: theory, research and practice
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Conference paper
Freeman D., (2020), JOURNAL OF NEUROLOGY NEUROSURGERY AND PSYCHIATRY, 91
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2020), Psychol Med, 1 - 2
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Journal article
Morrison AP. et al, (2020), Lancet Psychiatry
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Waite F. et al, (2020), Schizophrenia Research, 221, 44 - 56
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2020), Lancet Psychiatry, 7, 628 - 637
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Estimating EQ-5D utilities based on the Short-Form Long Term Conditions Questionnaire (LTCQ-8)
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TSIACHRISTAS A. et al, (2020), Health and Quality of Life Outcomes
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2020), Psychol Med
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Bird JC. et al, (2020), Schizophrenia Research, 220, 116 - 122
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Why do patients with psychosis listen to and believe derogatory and threatening voices? 21 reasons given by patients
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SHEAVES B. et al, (2020), Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy
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Journal article
Brown P. et al, (2020), Scientific Reports
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Brown P. et al, (2020), Sci Rep, 10
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Freeman D. et al, (2020), Psychological Medicine, 1 - 13
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Journal article
Brown P. et al, (2020)
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Journal article
Brown P. et al, (2020), JMIR Research Protocols
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BELIEFS ABOUT THE SELF AND OTHERS IN PARANOIA
Conference paper
Brown P. et al, (2020), SCHIZOPHRENIA BULLETIN, 46, S269 - S269
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THE CAUSAL DYNAMICS OF PARANOIA IN PATIENTS WITH SCHIZOPHRENIA: A THEORY DRIVEN NETWORK ANALYSIS
Conference paper
Bird J. et al, (2020), SCHIZOPHRENIA BULLETIN, 46, S274 - S274
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2020), Psychological Medicine, 50, 771 - 780
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Sleep disturbance and psychiatric disorders: the non-specific as essential in understanding and treating mental ill health
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FREEMAN D. et al, (2020), Lancet Psychiatry
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Journal article
Černis E. et al, (2020), PLOS ONE, 15, e0229091 - e0229091
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Freeman D. et al, (2019), Trials, 20
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Journal article
Henry A. et al, (2019), Sleep Medicine, 64, S150 - S151
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Journal article
Isham L. et al, (2019), Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice
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THE REVISED GREEN ET AL PARANOID THOUGHTS SCALE (R-GPTS): PSYCHOMETRIC PROPERTIES, SEVERITY RANGES, AND CLINICAL CUT-OFFS.
Journal article
FREEMAN D., (2019), Psychological Medicine
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Journal article
Martens MAG. et al, (2019), Journal of Psychopharmacology, 33, 1264 - 1273
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Bird JC. et al, (2019), Schizophrenia Bulletin, 45, 1134 - 1142
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Waite F. et al, (2019), BJPsych Open, 5
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Freeman D. et al, (2019), BJPsych Open, 5
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Freeman D. et al, (2019), Schizophrenia Research, 211, 44 - 50
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Marshall E. et al, (2019), Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice
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Freeman D. et al, (2019), BMJ Open, 9, e031606 - e031606
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Freeman D. et al, (2019), Comprehensive Psychiatry, 93, 41 - 47
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Pyle M. et al, (2019), Trials, 20
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Sheaves B. et al, (2019), The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, 070674371984742 - 070674371984742
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Brown P. et al, (2019), Clin Psychol Rev, 68, 25 - 37
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Barkhuizen W. et al, (2019), J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry, 58, 267 - 276.e8
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Kuipers J. et al, (2019), Psychological Medicine, 49, 388 - 395
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Reeve S. et al, (2019), Schizophrenia Research, 204, 326 - 333
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Espie CA. et al, (2019), JAMA Psychiatry, 76, 21 - 21
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Journal article
Hardy A. et al, (2018), JMIR Mental Health, 5, e11222 - e11222
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Journal article
Sheaves B. et al, (2018), Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 46, 661 - 675
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Do environmentally-induced psychotic experiences exist in adolescence?
Conference paper
Ronald A. et al, (2018), BEHAVIOR GENETICS, 48, 510 - 511
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Journal article
Reeve S. et al, (2018), Psychiatry Research, 269, 673 - 680
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Journal article
Murphy P. et al, (2018), The Lancet Psychiatry, 5, 913 - 929
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Bullying Victimisation and Risk of Psychotic Phenomena
Conference paper
Broome M. et al, (2018), EARLY INTERVENTION IN PSYCHIATRY, 12, 83 - 83
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Journal article
Reeve S. et al, (2018), Schizophrenia bulletin
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Journal article
Isham L. et al, (2018), Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 46, 619 - 625
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Waite F. et al, (2018), Frontiers in Psychiatry, 9
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Freeman D. et al, (2018), The Lancet Psychiatry, 5, 625 - 632
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Journal article
Sheaves B. et al, (2018), Psychological Medicine, 48, 1694 - 1704
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Journal article
Pain O. et al, (2018), American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics, 177, 416 - 425
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Journal article
Shakoor S. et al, (2018), Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 59, 565 - 573
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Journal article
Waite F. and Freeman D., (2018), Psychiatry Research, 263, 281 - 281
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Journal article
Tsiachristas A. et al, (2018), BJPsych Open, 4, 126 - 135
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Vorontsova N. et al, (2018), Journal of Psychiatric Research, 100, 5 - 7
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Journal article
Bradley J. et al, (2018), Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 46, 276 - 291
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ANXIETY IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF PSYCHOTIC EXPERIENCES IN CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENTS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW
Conference paper
Bird J. et al, (2018), SCHIZOPHRENIA BULLETIN, 44, S335 - S336
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Journal article
Hundal H. et al, (2018), Journal of Psychopharmacology, 32, 276 - 282
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Journal article
Waite F. and Freeman D., (2017), Psychiatry Research, 258, 136 - 140
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Journal article
Garety PA. et al, (2017), Trials, 18
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Journal article
Bird JC. et al, (2017), Psychiatry Research, 257, 34 - 39
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Investigation of genetic factors underlying specific psychotic experience traits during adolescence and their relationship with psychiatric disorders
Conference paper
Ronald A. et al, (2017), BEHAVIOR GENETICS, 47, 687 - 687
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Journal article
Moffa G. et al, (2017), Schizophrenia Bulletin, 43, 1273 - 1279
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2017), The Lancet Psychiatry, 4, 749 - 758
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2017), Psychological Medicine, 47, 2393 - 2400
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An explanatory randomised controlled trial testing the effects of improving sleep on mental health: an interventionist-causal model approach with mediation analysis.
Journal article
Freeman D., (2017), The Lancet Psychiatry
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Journal article
Rek S. et al, (2017), Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 52, 1123 - 1133
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Journal article
Reeve S. et al, (2017), Schizophrenia Bulletin
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Freeman D. and Waite F., (2017), World Psychiatry, 16, 208 - 209
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Journal article
Freeman D. and Bentall RP., (2017), Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, 52, 595 - 604
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Journal article
Rehman A. et al, (2017), Psychosis, 9, 129 - 139
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Journal article
Bebbington P. and Freeman D., (2017), Schizophrenia Bulletin, 43, 273 - 282
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Journal article
Hosang GM. et al, (2017), Journal of Affective Disorders, 207, 228 - 235
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Journal article
Espie CA. et al, (2016), Trials, 17
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Journal article
Geddes G. et al, (2016), Psychiatry Research, 246, 601 - 605
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2016), Trials, 17
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Journal article
Startup H. et al, (2016), British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 55, 387 - 400
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Clinician perceptions of sleep problems and their treatment in patients with non-affective psychosis
Conference paper
Rehman A. et al, (2016), JOURNAL OF SLEEP RESEARCH, 25, 283 - 283
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Journal article
Zavos HMS. et al, (2016), Schizophrenia Bulletin, 42, 1197 - 1206
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2016), Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 44, 539 - 552
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Journal article
Taylor MJ. et al, (2016), Psychiatry Research, 241, 35 - 42
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Journal article
Sheaves B. et al, (2016), Psychiatry Research, 241, 141 - 146
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Journal article
Freeman D., (2016), The Lancet Psychiatry, 3, 685 - 692
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Journal article
Hardy A. et al, (2016), Schizophrenia Bulletin, 42, S34 - S43
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Journal article
Černis E. et al, (2016), Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 44, 472 - 481
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Journal article
Freeman D. et al, (2016), British Journal of Psychiatry, 209, 62 - 67
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Journal article
Shakoor S. et al, (2016), British Journal of Psychiatry, 208, 532 - 538
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Journal article
Li SX. et al, (2016), Sleep, 39, 1275 - 1282
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Journal article
Waite F. et al, (2016), Psychology and Psychotherapy: Theory, Research and Practice, 89, 181 - 193
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Journal article
Spain D. et al, (2016), Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 25, 97 - 111