Disordered Selfhood in Schizophrenia and the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience: Accumulated Evidence and Experience.

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.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Disordered selfhood in schizophrenia was rediscovered at the turn of the millennium. In 2005, Psychopathology published the psychometric instrument, the Examination of Anomalous Self-Experience (EASE). In this article, we summarize the historical background of the creation of the EASE, explicate the notion of the disorder of basic or minimal self with the help of phenomenological philosophy, and provide a brief description of clinical manifestations targeted by the EASE. We also present our personal experience using and teaching the EASE and summarize the empirical evidence obtained so far. We conclude that the basic self-disorder represents a crucial phenotype of schizophrenia spectrum disorders and that this phenotype offers a potential avenue to empirical pathogenetic research and psychotherapeutic treatment.