Psychopathology
January 1, 2021
Julie Nordgaard, Mads Gram Henriksen, Lennart Jansson et al.
52 citations
The concept of disordered selfhood in schizophrenia reemerged around the year 2000. In 2005, the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE) was published as a psychometric tool. This article traces the historical background of the EASE, explains the idea of a disorder of the basic or minimal self using phenomenological philosophy, and describes the clinical signs the EASE targets. The authors share their own experience using and teaching the EASE and review the empirical evidence gathered so far. They argue that basic self-disorder is a key phenotype of schizophrenia spectrum disorders, offering a path for empirical research into causes and for psychotherapeutic treatment.
Schizophrenia research
April 1, 2020
Karl Erik Sandsten, Julie Nordgaard, Troels Wesenberg Kjaer et al.
45 citations
Patients with schizophrenia often report not recognizing themselves in the mirror, a form of self-alienation. Using the Enfacement Illusion, a multisensory paradigm that manipulates self-other facial recognition through visuo-tactile stimulation, this study compared 35 patients with schizophrenia and 35 healthy matched controls. At baseline, patients showed a significant skew toward perceiving another person's face as their own. After both synchronous and asynchronous visuo-tactile stimulation, patients' self-recognition was significantly altered compared to baseline. In contrast, healthy controls only showed altered self-recognition after synchronous stimulation, consistent with prior research. The findings suggest that temporal factors in multisensory integration may contribute to altered self-recognition in schizophrenia.
Psychopathology
January 1, 2022
Karl Erik Sandsten, Dan Zahavi, Josef Parnas
42 citations
Self-disorders in schizophrenia reveal a pervasive disturbance of self-experience, fundamentally altering consciousness. An analysis of seven videotaped interviews, encompassing diverse symptoms from patients, highlighted experiences like diminished self-presence and alienation. Four excerpts were closely examined, showcasing that these disturbances form a cohesive Gestalt rather than isolated symptoms. This suggests that self-disorders may represent a transdiagnostic phenotype, affecting the core structures of consciousness. The findings emphasize the intricate relationship between phenomenology and psychopathology in understanding schizophrenia's impact on the self.
Schizophrenia research
August 1, 2024
Josef Parnas, Karl Erik Sandsten
17 citations
Schizophrenia's resistance to understanding its causes may stem from neglecting its characteristic overall pattern (Gestalt) of psychopathological structure. Disorders of selfhood play a crucial role in forming this Gestalt. A phenomenological account of the self is presented, followed by basic complaints in schizophrenia that reflect a disordered selfhood, often dating back to childhood. Characteristic features of schizophrenic psychosis include "double bookkeeping," where hallucinations, delusions, and double bookkeeping are all linked to instability of the self. Self-disorders play an important diagnostic role in encounters with patients. The article emphasizes the role of phenomenology in psychiatric research.
Psychopathology
June 30, 2025
Stephan Lechner, Karl Erik Sandsten, Dusan Hirjak et al.
7 citations
Altered experiences of time and space are linked to general symptoms and basic self-disorders in people with schizophrenia spectrum disorder. Self-disturbance acts as a key mediator through which fundamental time-space disruptions influence perceptual changes as well as negative, positive, and general symptoms. Data were collected at three medical expert centers using semi-structured phenomenological interviews and analyzed with network and mediation methods.