Work

The Multi-Center Dilemma Project: An Investigation on the Role of Cognitive Conflicts in Health

Year: 2004

Type: article

Abstract: The Multi-Center Dilemma Project is a collaborative research endeavour aimed at determining the role of dilemmas--a kind of cognitive conflict, detected by using an adaptation of Kelly's Repertory Grid Technique--in a variety of clinical conditions. Implicative dilemmas appear in one third of the non-clinical group (n = 321) and in about half of the clinical group (n = 286), the latter having a proportion of dilemmas that doubles that of the non-clinical sample. Within the clinical group, we studied 87 subjects, after completing a psychotherapy process, and found that therapy helps to dissolve those dilemmas. We also studied, independently, a group of subjects diagnosed with social phobia (n = 13) and a group diagnosed with irritable bowel syndrome (n = 13) in comparison to non-clinical groups. In both health related problems, dilemmas seem to be quite relevant. Altogether, these studies, though preliminary (and with a small group size in some cases), yield a promising perspective to the unexplored area of the role of cognitive conflicts as an issue to consider when trying to understand some clinical conditions, as well as a focus to be dealt with in psychotherapy when dilemmas are identified.

Source: The Spanish Journal of Psychology

DOI: 10.1017/s1138741600004765

Authors: Guillem Feixas, Luis Ángel Saúl

Institutions: Universitat de Barcelona, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia

Language: English

Topic: Cognitive and psychological constructs research

Subfield: Social Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: Universitat de Barcelona