article Closed Access EN 2017-01-01

EAWE: Examination of Anomalous World Experience

Louis A. Sass, Elizabeth Pienkos, Borut Škodlar, Giovanni Stanghellini, Thomas Fuchs, Josef Parnas, Nev Jones

Psychopathology, Vol. 50, Issue 1, pp. 10–54 (2017)

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, University of Hartford, University of Ljubljana, University of Chieti-Pescara, Heidelberg University, University of Copenhagen, Felton Institute

DOI: 10.1159/000454928 PMID: 28268224

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Abstract

The "EAWE: Examination of Anomalous World Experience" is a detailed semi-structured interview format whose aim is to elicit description and discussion of a person's experience of various aspects of their lived world. The instrument is grounded in the tradition of phenomenological psychopathology and aims to explore, in a qualitatively rich manner, six key dimensions of subjectivity - namely, a person's experience of: (1) Space and objects, (2) Time and events, (3) Other persons, (4) Language (whether spoken or written), (5) Atmosphere (overall sense of reality, familiarity, vitality, meaning, or relevance), and (6) Existential orientation (values, attitudes, and worldviews). The EAWE is based on and primarily directed toward experiences thought to be common in, and sometimes distinctive of, schizophrenia spectrum conditions. It can, however, also be used to investigate anomalies of world experience in other populations. After a theoretical and methodological introduction, the EAWE lists 75 specific items, often with subtypes, in its six domains, together with illustrative quotations from patients. The EAWE appears in a special issue of Psychopathology that also contains an orienting preface (where the difficulty as well as necessity of studying subjective life is acknowledged) and a brief reliability report. Also included are six ancillary or background articles, which survey phenomenologically oriented theory, research, and clinical lore relevant to the six experiential domains.

Topics

Mental Health and Psychiatry 1.00 Psychosomatic Disorders and Their Treatments 0.99 Empathy and Medical Education 0.98

Field: Arts and Humanities · Subfield: Philosophy

Keywords

Psychology,Existentialism,Relevance (law),Experiential learning,Subjectivity,Meaning (existential),Exposition (narrative),Phenomenology (philosophy),Psychopathology,Vitality

MeSH Terms

AttitudeAttitudeAttitudeExistentialismExistentialismExistentialismHumansHumans

UN Sustainable Development Goals

Quality Education (0.55)

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