Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Carolina at Greensboro, 2005. / Title from PDF title page screen. Includes bibliographical references (p. 41-49).

Thèse--Universit́e de Paris.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Washington State University, August 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 46-55).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Clark University, 1905.

There is little research which examines the real life experience of those who have Mood Disorders, and yet studies suggest that in North America as many as one in four people in the general population will develop a major episode of Mood Disorder at some point during his or her lifetime (O'Connor, 1997). The researcher has adopted the classification of Mood Disorders as described in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (APA, 1994), a manual developed by the American Psychiatric Association to guide medical practitioners, psychiatrists and psychologists in the diagnosis and treatment of mental illness. This research study, “an examination of the experience of living with Mood Disorders”, focuses on the unique experiences of five participants who live with the condition. The researcher conducted a narrative study of individuals who met the research criteria: men and women between the ages of 25 and 55 who had been diagnosed with a Mood Disorder by a medical practitioner. In one-to-one interviews, the participants told their “stories” of living with the condition. The researcher explores the impact of Mood Disorders on the lives of each of the five participants. The study examines the literature with respect to the causes, diagnosis and treatment of Mood Disorders, and surveys from an historical perspective, the field of human science research in general and narrative studies in particular. The distorted and distorting lens of an individual with Mood Disorders interferes, in a profound way, with the recognition and identification of the symptoms, and with the diagnosis and the treatment of the condition. With the passage of time, all areas of functioning become affected; the affective, cognitive, occupational, philosophical, physical, psychological, social and spiritual lives of those with the condition become influenced by the distorting quality of their lens. The research identifies five predominant states encountered by individuals with Mood Disorders. These five states are episodic, sporadic, overlapping and ambiguous: state (1) dismissing the symptoms, state (2) externalizing the cause, state (3) internalizing the cause, state (4) accepting the diagnosis, and, state (5) developing the management strategies. The researcher presents implications for educators, for professional practitioners, for those who live or work with individuals with Mood Disorders, and for those who experience Mood Disorders themselves. / Graduate

Hand gestures were coded from videotaped interviews of male prison inmates divided into high (P), medium (M) and low (NP) groups based on the Psychopathy Checklist (Hare, 1980). Compared with other groups, psychopaths were found to make more beats (a type of nonreferential language-related gesture) when speaking about their family background but not when speaking about their criminal history. There were no group differences in the use of other language gestures or nonlanguage gestures. The results are discussed in terms of speech encoding difficulties that psychopaths may experience in relation to content that involves concepts or words that are abstract or emotion-laden. The results are consistent with language research, and suggest that psychopaths differ from others in the processing and use of language. / Arts, Faculty of / Psychology, Department of / Graduate

A review of the literature on psychopathy indicated that the concept has been defined in many different ways, causing confusion among those attempting to understand and treat the disorder. Studies were reviewed which showed there is a high frequency of E.E.G. abnormality among psychopaths. These abnormalities usually consist of an excess of bilateral theta activity of a non-specific kind, but they may be focal, especially in the posterior temporal regions. Studies indicated that these abnormalities disappear over time. Various autonomic correlates of psychopathy were examined, and the theory evolved that psychopaths are chronically cortically underaroused, since much of the data indicated that the psychopath's optimal level of stimulation tends to be significantly higher than that which is considered normal. Psychopaths with E.E.G. abnormalities tend to behave in a more socially acceptable manner as they get older, whereas the prognosis for psychopaths in general is poor. The central hypothesis of this study was that psychopaths with E.E.G. abnormalities manifest asocial behaviour because of their pathological need for stimulation, while psychopaths with normal E.E.G.s manifest asocial behaviour due to factors unrelated to pathological stimulation seeking. Ss were 39 male inmates of three correctional institutions. All Ss were volunteers. Ss were placed in four groups; psychopaths with E.E.G. abnormalities, psychopaths with normal E.E.G.'s, non-psychopaths with E.E.G. abnormalities and non-psychopaths with normal E.E.G's. Due to sampling problems, the fourth group had only 9 Ss, while the other three groups contained 10 Ss each. M.M.P.I. scores were used to assign the diagnosis of psychopathy, while E.E.G. recordings were made and analysed by two competent technicians. Standard criteria were used in the diagnosis of psychopathy using the M.M.P.I.; tests used for analysis of E.E.G. configurations were also standard. Both are described in the study. The Sensation Seeking Scale was used as a measure of need for stimulation. All Ss completed the standard S.S.S. as well as a short form of the M.M.P.I. Activity Preference Questionnaire data was also obtained, but was not used in the analysis, as S.S.S. scores rendered this information redundant. The results supported the central hypothesis that psychopaths with abnormally slow E.E.G.s have stronger needs for varied sensory experience than do psychopaths with normal E.E.G.s or non-psychopaths. The results have important implications for diagnosis, prognosis and treatment of psychopaths. It appears logical to diag-nostically separate psychopaths with E.E.G. abnormalities from those with normal E.E.G.'s. Prognosis for the former group is good, and normalization of E.E.G. patterns could be speeded up through the use of biofeedback techniques. Suggestions for future research were made. / Arts, Faculty of / Psychology, Department of / Graduate

M.A. / The problem concerning the indication of psychotherapy is examined by means of a literature study. On the basis of the literature studied, it is observed that the question concerned has originated from Newtonian (linear) epistemology and that it has been stimulated by inter alia (i) research on the effectiveness of psychotherapy; (ii) the growing awareness of the possible adverse effects of psychotherapy, and (iii) the limitations of a single school of psychotherapy, which has given rise to the need for integrating the respective schools of thought. For the purposes of the discussion in hand the indication problem is divided into two problem statements: (i) When is psychotherapy indicated? (ii) What form of psychotherapy is indicated? In answering the question involved, an attempt is made to formulate a comprehensive definition of psychotherapy. Based on the literature studied, the assumption is made that there has occurred an epistemological shift in the conceptualization of psychotherapy. Psychotherapy, which was initially embedded in Newtonian epistemology, has shifted towards an ecosystemic epistemology. In the field of psychotherapy the latter is described as a means of gathering knowledge on problem situations and change. This is done from an epistemological framework as represented by ecology, system theory and cybernetics. It is concluded that an ecosystemic metatheory makes it possible to integrate the different schools of psychotherapy by considering them merely as different punctuations in a comprehensive circular process. In view of the latter statement psychotherapy is tentatively defined as a strategic description and manipulation of systems by the therapist who finds himself in a metaposition, but who forms part of the interactional patterns which he describes and manipulates. An attempt is made to give an ecosystemic description of problem behaviour in order to answer the question of when psychotherapy is indicated. Problem behaviour is described as a rigid manner in which a system interacts with itself and with other higher-order and lower-order systems, and this leads to the introduction of rigid system rules and the monotonous repitition of patterns of interaction. The linking of the initial complaint with the description of the circular interaction pattern constitutes a pivotal part of the attempt to find an answer to the question regarding the indication of psychotherapy. With regard to the question as to what form of psychotherapy is indicated, an ecosystemic diagnosis is eventually examined. By means of such an ecosystemic diagnosis descriptions of circular patterns between and within the respective hierarchic system levels can be offered. It is tentatively suggested that a functional, interactional and structural analysis, as well as circular questioning and psychometric tests should be used in combination, since the respective analyses or diagnostic systems provide different information on different system levels. Finally a brief summary is given of the implications of the epistemological shift in psychotherapy for research, training and the role of the clinical psychologist in the mental health team and in the courts. Future investigation into the role of the ecosystemic clinical psychologist in these fields is recommended.

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