Dr. Rosa Ritunnano (University of Birmingham), Understanding delusional complexities in the clinical encounter: a phenomenological meaning-centred approach

December 15, 2020

h. 16.45-18.15 CET 


Dr. Rosa Ritunnano (University of Birmingham), Understanding delusional complexities in the clinical encounter: a phenomenological meaning-centred approach

Synopsis

In the context of psychiatry research and practice, the investigation of delusion formation has largely focused on identifying higher-order cognitive abnormalities (such as reasoning biases) that could explain the irrational and incomprehensible content of psychotic thinking – in keeping with an internalist (brain-based) framework. Constrained by an inflexible disconnect between thought, perception, action and motivation, this framework of understanding often adopts notions of “deficient reality testing” or “lack of insight” as the final explanation for most instances of incomprehensibility. 

In contrast, phenomenologists have long been concerned with the experiential underpinnings of delusional phenomena, arguing that higher-order cognitive processes are not the proper locus of investigation for understanding and explaining delusions. Rather, more attention should be payed to the delusional experience itself (in its non-derivative immediacy). Despite the rich phenomenological tradition and revived contemporary discussion in the area of phenomenological psychopathology, so far there has been relatively little cross-disciplinary effort into understanding the experiential and meaning dimensions of delusions. 

In this talk, I sketch a pluralist, multi-layered conceptual framework for understanding delusions that makes room for meaning and purpose within what is most commonly considered either meaningless, in its strongest interpretation, or relatively unimportant in a more charitable interpretation. I present a case study which highlights the complexities intrinsic to the clinical encounter with delusional phenomena, where the co-constitution of a shared narrative is needed to overcome apparently irreconcilable “realities”. I argue that a phenomenological and narrative approach are both indispensable when it comes to exploring the meaning of delusions as an object of psychopathological enquiry, and their meaningfulness in the context of human existence.

Rosa Ritunnano’s PhD research is based at the Institute for Mental Health at the University of Birmingham, and she works as a Consultant Psychiatrist in an NHS team that provides early intervention in psychosis. Rosa is interested in the cross-disciplinary applications of phenomenological philosophy in mental health research and practice. Her doctoral project (Priestley Scholarship - Universities of Birmingham & Melbourne) focuses on the psychopathology of early psychosis and seeks to integrate classical phenomenological theories with the existential dimension of experience.

Please contact fbrencio@us.es to receive the Zoom link

Lectures and Discussions will be held in English