Smorti Andrea, Risaliti Francesco, Pananti Bianca, Cipriani Valentina
Department of Psychology, University of Florence, Via S. Nicolò, 93, Firenze, 50125, Italy.
J Nerv Ment Dis. 2008 Jul;196(7):531-7. doi: 10.1097/NMD.0b013e31817cf70f.
The aim of the present study was to explore how the autobiographical process can lead to a transformation in the quality of psychiatric patients' self-narrative. Fifteen participants, with ages ranging from 25 to 40 years and affected by axis I psychiatric disorders (DSM IV), were selected to participate. A 10-question interview referring to 10 autobiographical cruxes was used to collect autobiographical data; the interview was readministered 2 weeks later. A coding system (the N.O.I.S.) was used to analyze each participant's 2 autobiographical productions. Results from the second interviews showed significant and positive transformations in the quality of patients' autobiographical representation.
