The Semantics of Freedom in Agoraphobic Patients: An Empirical Study
This study aimed to empirically test the clinical theory, common to constructivist and constructionist psychotherapeutic approaches, that the semantics of freedom (i.e., bipolar constructs regarding the dimension of meaning “free/constrained”) are psychologically linked
to agoraphobia. Repertory grid technique was used to elicit constructs from 30 agoraphobic patients and from a matched control group of patients suffering from other psychological disorders, and the two sets of constructs were compared in terms of their semantic content. Results confirm the
hypothesis, suggesting that freedom semantics seem to be prevalent in agoraphobia in terms of both frequency and importance. These results and their limitations are discussed in relation to their clinical applications and in light of the methodological issues arising from the study.
Document Type: Research Article
Affiliations: 1: Department of Human Sciences “R. Massa, ”, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy 2: Department of Psycolology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy 3: Department of Personality, Assessment and Psychological Treatments, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
Publication date: 01 April 2014
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