title: Intersubjectivity in schizophrenia: life story analysis of three cases.
abstract: The processes involved in schizophrenia are approached from a viewpoint of understanding, revealing those social elements susceptible to integration for psychotherapeutic purposes, as a complement to the predominant medical-psychiatric focus. Firstly, the paper describes the patients' disturbances of self-experience and body alienations manifested in acute phases of schizophrenia. Secondly, the paper examines the patients' personal biographical milestones and consequently the acute episode is contextualized within the intersubjective scenario in which it manifested itself in each case. Thirdly, the patients' life stories are analyzed from a clinical psychological perspective, meaningfully connecting symptoms and life-world. Finally, it will be argued that the intersubjective dimension of the patients' life stories shed light not only on the interpersonal processes involved in schizophrenia but also upon the psychotherapeutic treatment best suited to each individual case.
authors.affiliation: Centro de Estudios de Fenomenología y Psiquiatría, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Diego Portales Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Leonor
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Irarrázaval
authors.affiliation: Escuela de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias Sociales, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile Santiago, Chile.
authors.forename: Dariela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sharim
keywords: clinical psychology; hermeneutic; intersubjectivity; life stories; phenomenology; schizophrenia