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The Phenomenology of Anomalous World Experience in Schizophrenia: A Qualitative Study

Elizabeth Pienkos, Steven M. Silverstein, Louis Arnorsson Sass

Journal of Phenomenological Psychology October 20, 2017 DOI: 10.1163/15691624-12341328 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Qualitative study Peer reviewed
Sample size 13
Population Ten participants with schizophrenia spectrum disorders and three comparison participants with major depressive disorder
Measures Examination of Anomalous World Experience (EAWE)
Topics Philosophy of mind
Citations 26
Key findings Interviews with people with schizophrenia spectrum disorders revealed two forms of anomalous world experience the authors call "Destabilization" (reality and the intersubjective world felt less comprehensible, stable, and real) and "Subjectivization" (inner subjective experience dominated perception and interpretation of the lived world). Participants with major depressive disorder did not report disruptions of the world's reality or independence or significant disruptions of appearance or meaning.

Abstract

Abstract This current study is a pilot project designed to clarify changes in the lived world among people with diagnoses within the schizophrenia spectrum. The Examination of Anomalous World Experience ( eawe ) was used to interview ten participants with schizophrenia spectrum disorders ( sz ) and a comparison group of three participants with major depressive disorder ( dep ). Interviews were analyzed using the descriptive phenomenological method. This analysis revealed two complementary forms of experience unique to sz participants: Destabilization, the experience that reality and the intersubjective world are less comprehensible, less stable, and generally less real; and Subjectivization, the dominance of one’s internal, subjective experiences in the perception or interpretation of the lived world. Persons with depressive disorders, by contrast, did not experience disruptions of the reality or independence of the world or any significant disruptions of appearance or meaning. These results are consistent with contemporary and classic phenomenological views on anomalous world experience in schizophrenia.

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Phenomenology and Sequelae of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine Use Psychiatrists who had taken MDMA 1992 Qualitative study n = 20
A phenomenology of meditation-induced light experiences: traditional buddhist and neurobiological perspectives American Buddhist practitioners 2014 Qualitative study
Evoking the ineffable: The phenomenology of extreme sports. Extreme sports participants across three continents, including BASE jumping, big wave... 2017 Qualitative study n = 15
Phenomenology and content of the inhaled N, N-dimethyltryptamine (N, N-DMT) experience. Naturalistic inhaled N,N-DMT experiences posted to the r/DMT Reddit community 2022 Qualitative analysis n = 3,778

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Philosophy of mind Depression