Grasping the mechanisms of narratives' incoherence in schizophrenia: an analysis of the temporal structure of patients' life story

Allé, Mélissa C.; Gandolphe, Marie-Charlotte; Doba, Karyn; Köber, Christin; Potheegadoo, Jevita; Coutelle, Romain; Habermas, Tilmann; Nandrino, Jean‐Louis; Danion, Jean-Marie; Berna, Fabrice

doi:10.1016/j.comppsych.2016.04.015

Cited by 27 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 36 publications

(76 reference statements)

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…We found that the life stories of individuals with schizophrenia were imbued with the same level of temporal macrostructure as the controls. This result diverges from other studies, which have found impaired temporal coherence in individuals with schizophrenia (Allé et al, 2015;Allé, Gandolphe et al, 2016). The present findings may reflect that our participants with schizophrenia were relatively highly educated compared to patient samples in the previous studies and were cognitively well-functioning when assessed on cognitive processes that are typically affected in schizophrenia (see Holm et al, 2016 for further details; Keefe et al, 2008).…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

“…The preserved narrative structure and themes indicate that psychotherapy focused on storying the self as more agentic and connected to others may appeal to this group. The present findings extend previous studies on the structural aspects of life stories (Allé et al, 2015;Allé, D'Argembeau et al, 2016, Allé, Gandolphe et al, 2016Lysaker et al, 2015;Raffard et al, 2009;. While focusing on structural aspects of life stories is in line with ideas emphasizing fragmentation and discontinuity as central in schizophrenia (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…For example, individuals suffering from schizophrenia are less likely to include meaning-making in self-defining memories compared to non-clinical controls (Berna et al, 2011;Raffard et al, 2009;. Other studies have shown that life stories of individuals with schizophrenia are less temporally, causally, and thematically coherent compared to non-clinical controls (Allé et al, 2015;Allé, D'Argembeau et al, 2016, Allé, Gandolphe et al, 2016.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A definitive version was subsequently published in Psychiatry Research, 269, 772-778. DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2018 Difficulties in establishing narrative coherence has been identified as one of the key deficits in schizophrenia (Allé et al, 2015;Allé, D'Argembeau et al, 2016, Allé, Gandolphe et al, 2016Berna et al, 2011;Raffard et al, 2009;. Examining both structure (temporal coherence) and content (themes of agency and communion) would give us information about whether changes in these life story characteristics necessarily occur together in individuals with schizophrenia.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Themes of unfulfilled agency and communion in life stories of patients with schizophrenia

Holm

Thomsen

Bliksted

2018

Psychiatry Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We examined themes of agency and communion in life stories of individuals with schizophrenia. Twenty-four individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia and 24 control participants matched on age, gender, and education described their life stories in a free format. The life stories were coded for the presence of agency and communion themes and whether or not the themes captured fulfillment of agency and communion needs. In addition, the temporal macrostructure was coded. Individuals with schizophrenia described their life stories with similar levels of temporal macrostructure as controls, but they expressed more themes focusing on unfulfilled agency and communion needs. We suggest possible avenues for using these insights to improve recovery in schizophrenia.

show abstract

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Themes of unfulfilled agency and communion in life stories of patients with schizophrenia

Holm

Thomsen

Bliksted

2018

Psychiatry Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In terms of the separate dimensions of SDMs, research on autobiographical memories (ATM) highlights that specific ATM can be impacted by neurocognitive deficits in psychosis 9,10 . They may also be linked to negative symptoms in schizophrenia 11 , which are related to avoidance of trauma memories, hence a lower likelihood of reporting specific memories.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Self-defining Memories Predict Engagement in Structured Activity in First Episode Psychosis, Independent of Neurocognition and Metacognition

Wright

Davies

Fowler

et al. 2018

Schizophrenia Bulletin

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Self-defining memories (SDMs) are vivid personal memories, related to narrative identity. Individuals with schizophrenia report less specific, more negative, and extract less meaning from these memories compared to control groups. SDMs have been shown to be predicted by neurocognition, associated with metacognition, and linked to goal outcomes in healthy controls. As neurocognition and metacognition are known predictors of poor functioning in psychosis, SDMs may also be a predictor. No study has assessed the relationship to functioning or pattern of SDMs in first episode psychosis (FEP). Methods This was a cross-sectional study involving 71 individuals with FEP and 57 healthy controls who completed an SDM questionnaire. FEP participants completed measures of neurocognition, metacognition (Metacognitive Assessment Interview), functional capacity (The University of California, San Diego [UCSD] Performance-Based Skills Assessment), and functional outcome (Time-Use Survey). Results SDMs reported by individuals with FEP were less integrated compared to healthy controls. Within the FEP sample, holding less specific memories was associated with engagement in significantly fewer hours of structured activity per week and specificity of SDMs mediated the relationship between neurocognition and functional outcome, independent of metacognition. Conclusion This is the first study to assess SDMs in FEP and to explore the important role of SDMs on clinical outcomes, compared to healthy controls. This study suggests that elaborating on specific SDMs is a valid therapeutic target and may be considered a tool to improve daily functioning in FEP.

show abstract

An evolutionary account of impairment of self in cognitive disorders

et al. 2022

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Recent research has proposed that certain aspects of psychosis, as experienced in, e.g., schizophrenia (SCZ), but also aspects of other cognitive conditions, such as autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and synesthesia, can be related to a shattered sense of the notion of self. In this paper, our goal is to show that altered processing of self can be attributed to an abnormal functioning of cortico-striatal brain networks supporting, among other, one key human distinctive cognitive ability, namely cross-modality, which plays multiple roles in human cognition and language. Specifically, our hypothesis is that this cognitive mechanism sheds light both on some basic aspects of the minimal self and on some aspects related to higher forms of self, such as the narrative self. We further link the atypical functioning in these conditions to some recent evolutionary changes in our species, specifically, an atypical presentation of human self-domestication (HSD) features. In doing so, we also lean on previous work concerning the link between cognitive disorders and language evolution under the effects of HSD. We further show that this approach can unify both linguistic and non-linguistic symptoms of these conditions through deficits in the notion of self. Our considerations provide further support for the hypothesis that SCZ and ASD are diametrically opposed cognitive conditions, as well for the hypothesis that their etiology is associated with recent human evolution, leading to a deeper understanding of the causes and symptoms of these disorders, and providing new cues, which can be used for an earlier and more accurate diagnostics.

show abstract

Grasping the mechanisms of narratives' incoherence in schizophrenia: an analysis of the temporal structure of patients' life story

Cited by 27 publications

References 36 publications

Themes of unfulfilled agency and communion in life stories of patients with schizophrenia

Themes of unfulfilled agency and communion in life stories of patients with schizophrenia

Self-defining Memories Predict Engagement in Structured Activity in First Episode Psychosis, Independent of Neurocognition and Metacognition

An evolutionary account of impairment of self in cognitive disorders

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About