Goggin, A. Michelle (1/13) Multiplicity, dissociation and self-complexity (Nicholas Papouchis, Ph.D.; Kevin B. Meehan, Ph.D.;Benjamin Saunders, Ph.D.)
The purpose of the current study was to extend preliminary work on the relationship between self-organization and reflective functioning by introducing psychometrically sound self-report measures of self-complexity to tease out the particular nature of the relationship of self-organization and reflective functioning. It also examined the relationship of self-organization to reflective functioning and to self-reported dissociative experiences. Finally, it investigated the relationship of these variables to personality characteristics, behavioral patterns, and important life outcomes. The sample consisted of 80 university students and individuals recruited from the community. They completed a combination of the following measures: A demographic questionnaire, the Tellegen Absorption Scale, the Dissociative Experiences Scale, the Self-Concept Clarity Scale, the Self-Concept Consistency Scale, the Balanced Index of Psychological Mindedness, the Ego Resiliency Scale, the Perceived Stress Scale, and the Self-Descriptive Sorting Task. They were also administered the AAI, the transcripts of which were coded for RF. Results partially confirmed the main hypotheses of the study. Reflective functioning was significantly related to self-complexity. Results provided some empirical support for Bromberg's (1993, 1996) theoretical model of the mind. The results suggested that in healthier psychological functioning, there exists a set of separate schemata, overlapping to various degrees, that comprise the whole of who one is. Finally, the results added to the evidence base in the social cognitive literature for the contribution of differentiation to adaptive psychological functioning. They also added to the more equivocal findings on integration, suggesting that lacking integration poses a threat to psychological coherence and stability and can contribute to maladaptive functioning.
