Metaphor Use & PTSD in the Therapeutic Space: Dialogue with Phenomenology and Enactive Cognition
Jeremy Cooper
PsyArXiv February 19, 2026 preprint DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/xpbwu_v1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Topics | Philosophy of mind PTSD |
| Key points | Argues that metaphor use in psychotherapy can serve as a tool to reveal and repair the reciprocal person-world relationship, especially for individuals with PTSD whose core relational capacity is disrupted. The theoretical discussion links "power" to epistemic mistrust, mutuality to metacognitive abilities, and emphasizes the experiential quality of sense-making, proposing that phenomenological understanding can increase empathy for patients' subjective lifeworlds. |
Abstract
This paper presents a theoretical discussion between the results of a phenomenological study inquiring on metaphor use in psychotherapy with literature from the enactive cognition framework. The possibility for conceptualizing language use has greatly developed in recent years. Now, enactive cognition and embodied approaches offer a way to understand the intricate relationship between a person and their world. This intricate relationship describes the reciprocal relationship between being influenced and influencing one’s world. Metaphor use, as a therapeutic tool, can be one way to clearly see and repair this relationship, especially for those in which other phenomenological works have already identified as having a core disruption in their ability to relate to how they previously understood their life. The results of the previous study will be contrasted with literature from phenomenology and enactive cognition in order to broaden academic, transdisciplinary dialogue and assist in broadening scope of clinical understanding. Conceptualizations of cognitive life, language use, and philosophical notions for selfhood are considered beforehand. The primary results of the phenomenological study are then presented to illustrate the way individuals with PTSD approach and use metaphor. The theoretical discourse highlights the connection between “power” and epistemic mistrust, mutuality as shown in metacognitive abilities, and the experiential quality of sense-making. Suggestions for future research and limitations are then offered. A phenomenological understanding can increase empathy and regard for the subjective lifeworld of the patient. This study is intended to help psychotherapists and researchers alike to better grasp the application of the enactive cognition framework.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on philosophy of mind, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psychosis as a state of aberrant salience: a framework linking biology, phenomenology, and pharmacology in schizophrenia. | 2003 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From dopamine to salience to psychosis--linking biology, pharmacology and phenomenology of psychosis. | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How do the brain's time and space mediate consciousness and its different dimensions? Temporo-spatial theory of consciousness (TTC). | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The phenomenology of deep brain stimulation-induced changes in OCD: an enactive affordance-based model. | 2013 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Looking for the Self: Phenomenology, Neurophysiology and Philosophical Significance of Drug-induced Ego Dissolution | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |