Inner worlds as social systems: How insights from anthropology can inform clinical practice

Abstract

Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID) is characterized by severe disconnection among parts of the personality to the extent that they are experienced as separate identities or selves. A primary clinical goal is often the reintegration of these parts into a singular. core self. Through the case study of one young-adult client with DID, an anthropologist-clinician challenges this imperative for a unitary self and builds on anthropological insights to offer an alternative approach for working with internal dissociation.

Keywords

• Dissociative identity disorder
• Psychotherapy
• Anthropology
• Case study
• Posttraumatic stress disorder
• Identity