Concurrent validity of Family Semantics Grid

The Family Semantics Grid (FSG) is a unitizing and coding system for the semantic analysis of dyadic therapeutic conversations and self-narratives. It is based on the hypothesis (Guidano 1987; Ugazio 1998) stating that each psychopathology is linked to a prevalent bipolar pattern of meanings or Family Semantics (FS). In particular, phobic disorders should be connected to the “semantics of freedom” which has the fear/courage emotions and independence/dependence polarity at its core, obsessive-compulsive disorders to the “semantics of goodness” based on the innocence/guilt emotions and good/evil polarity, eating disorders to the “semantics of power” characterized by pride/shame emotions and victory/defeat polarity, and finally mood disorders to the “semantic of belonging” which has the joy/desperation emotions and inclusion/exclusion polarity at its core. The FSG provides a system for coding these four semantics extracted from the transcripts. In order to test the FSG concurrent validity we applied it and the SWAP-200 to the first counseling session of 75 subjects divided into five groups with different psychopathologies: respectively 15 with a phobic disorder, 15 with a obsessive-compulsive disorder, 15 with an eating disorder, 15 with a mood disorder and 15 without symptoms that ask for a consultation for life problems. The results on the correlation between FSG and SWAP-200 will be presented. We expect that individuals with a phobic, obsessive, eating and mood disorder are matched by a corresponding SWAP-200 diagnosis and by the semantics hypothesized. The clinical implications relating to the therapeutic process will be addressed as well.