Paranoia is a thought process believed to be heavily influenced by
anxiety or
fear, often to the point of
irrationality and
delusion. Paranoid thinking typically includes persecutory, or beliefs of concerning a perceived threat towards oneself (e.g. "
Everyone is out to get me"). Paranoia is distinct from
phobias, which also involve irrational fear, but usually no blame. Making
false accusations and the general
distrust of others also frequently accompany paranoia. For example, an incident most people would view as an
accident or
coincidence, a paranoid person might believe it was intentional.