Clinically relevant CCRT-LU relationship patterns

AIM. Considering the psychopathology as a problem developing in the subject`s relationship system it is crucial to identify the specific relationship pattern of each disorder. This study is aimed to test the hypothesis (Guidano 1987; Ugazio 2013) that the psychopathological disorders may be grouped in four main areas, each characterized by a prevalent cognitive style, a typical emotional configuration and a specific relationship pattern: phobic, obsessive-compulsive, eating and mood disorders. METHOD. Within 190 first diagnostic interviews conducted by the same psychotherapist we selected 60 patients falling clearly in just one of these four diagnostic areas: 15 phobic (agoraphobia, panic attack, specific phobia, generalized anxiety), 15 obsessive-compulsive (OC personality, OCD), 15 eating (bulimia, anorexia, binge eating) and 15 depressive (major depression, dysthymia, cyclothymia) disorders. All 60 first interviews were transcribed and analyzed by two raters trough the CCRT-LU category system. RESULTS. We found differences between the four diagnostic groups in the fifth most detailed level of the CCRT-LU categories. In particular the categories unambiguously connected to specific emotions are not equally distributed between the four diagnostic groups: Categories related to (i) fear-courage, (ii) guiltinnocence, (iii) boast-shame, and (iv) joy-anger-desperation emotions are more present respectively in the (i) phobic, (ii) obsessive-compulsive, (iii) eating and (iv) mood disorders groups. DISCUSSION. These results help the psychotherapist to better a) understand the relational origin and function of the main psychopathologies, b) predict how the patient presumably will constructs the therapeutic relationship, c) focus the therapeutic attention on relationship pattern underpinning symptoms.