Self-narrative as meaning construction: the dynamics of self-investigation.
Starting from the metaphor of the person as a motivated storyteller, a theory of meaning construction and reconstruction is presented. Two motives are assumed to be particularly influential in the process of meaning construction: The striving for self-enhancement and the longing for contact and union with somebody or something else. A self-confrontation method is discussed and illustrated, enabling clients to perform, in close cooperation with the psychotherapist, a self-investigation on the content and organization of their personal meaning units. The method represents a gradual transition between assessment and change. Three functions of the method are discussed: assessment, process promotion, and evaluation. These functions are illustrated with a diversity of clinical phenomena: the finding of a central theme in the client's self-narrative, the experience of hopelessness and helplessness, the organized nature of depression, and the construction of a scenario for emerging from a depressive state. Finally, the multivoiced and dialogical nature of the self is illustrated by the dream of a murderer who was perceived by the client as both inside and outside the self. Special attention is given to the shifting boundaries between self and nonself.
Hermans
H J
HJ
Department of Psychology, University of Nijmegen, The Netherlands. HHermans@psych.kun.nl
D000339:Affect; D003863:Depression; D004325:Dreams; D006801:Humans; D007802:Language; D008297:Male; D019365:Metaphor; D008875:Middle Aged; D011613:Psychotherapy; D012649:Self Concept; D012660:Semantics; D014705:Verbal Behavior