Semantic expression of the body boundary personality in person-centred psychotherapy

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract / Description of output

This study is based on the assumption that the exposure and internalisation of social values, and behavioural expectations represent the most important influence in the formation of body boundary finiteness (Fisher & Cleveland, 1958) and the development of psychological disturbances (Rogers, 1951, 1961). Given this relationship between body boundary formation and Roger’s influence on the development of body psychotherapy, this correlational study examines the use of words and changes in body boundary finiteness of twelve patients attending person-centred psychotherapy. It does this by measuring the strengths of associations between barrier imagery, as measured using the Body Type Dictionary (BTD) (Wilson, 2006), and the general semantic content, as measured using the Linguistic Inquiry Word Count text analysis program (LIWC) (Pennebaker, Booth, & Francis, 2007), as well as progressive psychotherapy sessions in the verbal behaviour of low and high barrier patients. The findings of this study might benefit body psychotherapy practitioners to obtain a deeper insight into the body boundary and its regulatory function of inter- and intra-psychic processes.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)48-64
Number of pages17
JournalInternational Body Psychotherapy Journal
Volume14
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 2015

Keywords / Materials (for Non-textual outputs)

  • Body boundaries
  • psychotherapy
  • semantics
  • primordial cognition
  • person-centred psychotherapy

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