The stability of results in self identity plots. An empirical examination
of 311 psychoso-matic in-patients
Frank Schoeneich *, Alrun Seidler *, Otto B Walter * *, Cora Weber*,
Pia Thier*, Burghard F. Klapp *
*Charité/Virchow Clinic, Medical School of Humboldt University,
Internal Medicine - Psychosomatics, Berlin, **GridLab-Software-Development,
Berlin
Abstract
Introduction: The present study explores the question as to what extent
the self identity plot (SILP; Norris & Makhlouf-Norris, 1976) can be
used in empirical evaluations of the effects of therapy.
Method. The (relative) stability of SIP findings (self isolation, ideal
self isolation, double isola-tion, actual self-ideal self divergence and
actual self - ideal self convergence, as well as possible combinations
within particular results) are to be examined here by means of 2-point
measure-ments.
Presented here is a sample - gathered both from the time of admission
and release - of 311 psy-chosomatic in-patients from 1988 to 1996 (clinical
diagnoses resulted in the following ICD10 groups: (a) anxious-depressive
neurotic syndromes: n=102, (b) eating disorders: n=55, (c) soma-toform
disorders: n=103, (d) adjustment disorders/structural organic lesions:
n=33, and (e) other disorders: n=18).
Results: The results of this 2-point measurements reveal that all patients
from the various ICD diagnostic groups demonstrate very frequent changes
(74,3 %) in their SIIP findings in the time period between admission and
release from hospital. There does not appear to be a tendency to change
towards particular results. The 2-point measurement carried out here revealed
a positive relationship between medium-length hospital stays and a change
in SIP findings - no relationship could be found, however, between ICD
diagnoses and changes in SIEP results during the time of treatment in hospital.
Conclusions: The hypothesis that the extent of change is dependent
on length of treatment is sup-ported by the presented results. The changes
in the SIP findings can be understood as a patient's process of relativizing
his/her previous self concept.
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