Not just right experiences and incompleteness as a predictor of OC symptoms in clinical and community samples: A meta-analysis

Sensory phenomena (SP) are uncomfortable feelings, including bodily sensations, “just-right” perceptions and feelings of incompleteness, which have been shown to be predictors of symptom severity in individuals with obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD). These sensory phenomena have also been related to obsessive compulsive (OC) traits within the general population. This meta-analysis aimed to quantify a possible relationship between sensory phenomena (incompleteness and Not Just in Right Experiences; NJRE), with OC symptoms in clinical and non-clinical samples. Methods: A systematic search was conducted for studies in children and adult populations of patients with OCD and in general populations displaying symptoms of OCD. Results: Effect sizes of incompleteness and NJRE were correlated to OCD symptoms. The effects sizes in the clinical and non-clinical groups did not differ significantly. Discussion: Robust effect sizes of incompleteness and NJRE in relation to OC symptomatology confirm sensory phenomena as marker of OC symptoms in both groups. The findings suggest that sensory phenomena could be targeted as an intervention in those showing both clinical and sub-clinical levels of OC traits.