Humpston, Clara S. orcid.org/0000-0001-5132-1531 (2018) The paradoxical self:Awareness, solipsism and first-rank symptoms in schizophrenia. Philosophical Psychology. pp. 210-231. ISSN 1465-394X
Abstract
Schizophrenia as a pathology of self-awareness has attracted much attention from philosophical theorists and empirical scientists alike. I view schizophrenia as a basic self-disturbance leading to a lifeworld of solipsism adopted by the sufferer and explain how this adoption takes place, which then manifests in ways such as first-rank psychotic symptoms. I then discuss the relationships between these symptoms, not as isolated mental events, but as end-products of a loss of agency and ownership, and argue that symptoms like thought insertion and other ego-boundary disorders are by nature a multitude of paradoxes created by a fragmented awareness. I argue that such fragmentation does not always require or lead to a delusional elaboration as the definitive feature of its phenomenology, and present reasons for the role of the first-person pronoun as a mere metaphor used to represent the patient’s bizarre experiences where sensory perception and thinking processes converge. Further, I discuss the initial benefits of adopting a solipsistic stance and how despite being a maladaptive strategy, it nevertheless acts as a protective barrier for the integrity of one’s self. Lastly, I offer some suggestions for clinical practice, emphasizing the importance of understanding the patient’s suffering in any therapeutic alliance.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | Publisher Copyright: © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. |
Keywords: | Delusion,first-rank symptoms,hallucination,phenomenology,psychosis,self-disturbance |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Sciences (York) > Psychology (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 01 Apr 2022 09:00 |
Last Modified: | 21 Jan 2025 18:02 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1080/09515089.2017.1410877 |
Status: | Published |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1080/09515089.2017.1410877 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:185365 |
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