Lecture 20 - Life dories and psychotherapy - November 14

Question 1

how does life story link to C

Answer 1

Joy in work accomplishments

Question 2

how does life story link to A

Answer 2

Joy in social accomplishments

Question 3

how does life story link to N

Answer 3

Negative emotions and

contamination plots

Question 4

how does life story link to O

Answer 4

Especially complex; multiple

plots, higher level of coherence

Question 5

how does life story link to E

Answer 5

it doesn’t

Question 6

how does life story relate to level 2

Answer 6

big 3 motives (story will focus on your motive)
psycho-social stage
attachent
autonomy

Question 7

what are Key Features of a Story

Answer 7

Genre
Ideological setting Imagery
Themes Characters
Key Scenes Ending (Implied

Question 8

what are common dimensions of narrative identity; coded in life story accounts

Answer 8

agency
communion
redemption
contamination
coherence
complexity
meaning making

Question 9

explain agency

Answer 9

degree to which the protagonist is able to effect change in their own life or influence others in the environment, often through demonstrations of self-mastery, empowerment, achievement or status. Highly agent stories emphasize individual accomplishment and ability to control one’s own fate

Question 10

explain communion

Answer 10

the degree to which you demonstrate or experience interpersonal connection through live, friendship, dialogue, or connection to a broad collective. The story emphasizes intimacy, caring and belonginess

Question 11

explain redemption

Answer 11

scenes in which a demonstrably ‘bad’ or emotionally negative event or circumstance leads to a demonstrably good or positively outcome. The initial negative state is ‘redeemed’ or salvaged by the good that follows it. Example; the narrator describes the death of her father as reinvigorating closer emotional tiers to her other family members

Question 12

explain contamination

Answer 12

scenes in which a good/positive event turns dramatically bad/negative, such that the negative emotion overwhelms, destroys its the effects of the preceding positivity. Example; the protagonist of the story is excited about a promotion at work but learns that is came at the expense of his friends being fired

Question 13

explain coherence

Answer 13

the extent to which a narrative demonstrates clear causal sequencing, thematic integrity and appropriate integration of emotional responses

Question 14

explain complexity

Answer 14

the level of structural differentiation and integration shown in the narrative. Complex stories evince many different and sometimes conflicting plots and characters, and they show how the different parts are related to each other. Simpler stories have fewer plots and characters, and they show fewer connections

Question 15

explain meaning making

Answer 15

the degree to which the protagonist learn something or gleans a message from an event. The dimension ranges from no meaning, to learning a concrete lesson, to gaining a more abstract insight about life. Example of gaining insight; ‘it (the event) really made me go through and relook at my memories and see how there are so many things behind a situation that you never see. Things are not always as they seem’

Question 16

explain

Coding a life story for themes; agency

Answer 16

“Individual’s autonomy, achievement, mastery, and ability to influence the course of his or her own life. “

origin vs pawn

Question 17

explain Coding a life story for themes; coherence

Answer 17

 Causal: linking life events to one’s
developing sense of self.
 Thematic: evaluative or reflective connections between episodes in the story

Question 18

It is challenging to develop a good life story.

Qualities the Story Should Have…

Answer 18

coherence (does plot make sense)
openness (unsure of where it is going, not predictable)
credibility
differentiation (how your story is different and complex; are all your characters 3D)
reconciliation

Question 19

The life stories and psychotherapy.

 McAdams point of view:

Answer 19

 Psychotherapy represents an opportunity to refine and
strengthen your life story narrative.
 “A collaborative revision of a life narrative that is no longer serving the person well.”

Question 20

How Does Counselling or Psychotherapy Help?

Answer 20

 Common Factors
 1.Therapeutic alliance (bond and act with another person)
 2. Autonomous motivation (patients begin to hear their own voice and figure out what they want to do)
 3. Narrative disclosure (and refining the stories we carry around)

It is collaborative, it helps you find your voice, it helps you tell your story

Question 21

for the ego-development experiment, what were the results

Answer 21

 Agency themes increase across assessment points.
 Agency themes are significantly associated with improved mental health across assessments.
 Changes in agency themes occur temporally prior to changes in mental health.
 Results hold controlling for Big 5 traits.
 Big 5 trait of Neuroticism is reduced over time.

Question 22

what are the

Key Points:

Answer 22

 We are constructing an autobiography  Some people do it better than others
 We can evaluate it in literary terms.
 The life story can be changed
 Psychotherapy is one way this can happen  Not the only way – new experiences.
 The Life Story contributes to Well Being