Tra libertà e costrizione. Il dilemma dell'agorafobia

Marco Castiglioni; Laura Contino; Manuel Villegas y Besora

doi:10.3280/PSOB2011-001010

Freedom and constraint. Agoraphobia dilemma

Journal title PSICOBIETTIVO
Author/s Marco Castiglioni, Laura Contino, Manuel Villegas y Besora
Publishing Year 2011 Issue 2011/1
Language Italian Pages 15 P. 139-153 File size 355 KB
DOI 10.3280/PSOB2011-001010
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This study aimed to empirically test the clinical theory, common to different psychotherapeutic approaches, that agoraphobia is psychologically linked to the semantics of freedom. The hypothesis was that personal constructs of "free-constrained" and associated meanings are predominant for people suffering from agoraphobia. Participants and method . The Repertory Grid Technique (Kelly, 1955) was carried out with 30 agoraphobic patients to elicit their personal constructs. A group of 30 patients suffering from other psychological disorder was used as a control group. Participants’ constructs were grouped into semantic categories using hermeneutic criteria and then the data compared using appropriate statistical techniques. Results. The constructs of agoraphobic group were found to be significantly more connected to the semantics of freedom than those of the control group. The empirical data seems to confirm the hypothesis. These results and their limitations are discussed in the light of their possible clinical applications and of methodological and epistemological issues raising from the study.

Keywords: Agoraphobia; Psychopathology; Meaning; "Free-Constrained" Semantics; Personal Constructs; Repertory Grid Technique

Marco Castiglioni, Laura Contino, Manuel Villegas y Besora, Tra libertà e costrizione. Il dilemma dell'agorafobia in "PSICOBIETTIVO" 1/2011, pp 139-153, DOI: 10.3280/PSOB2011-001010