Integrating Autoethnography and Phenomenology in Bipolar Disorder Research
Drawing from personal experience and established literature in phenomenological psychopathology, I focus on a phenomenological account of depression and mania in terms of basic structures of experience, i.e. body, space, and time. I am particularly interested in the disconnection between the subjective experience of time and space in mania, depression and euthymia, and spatiotemporal ordering.
I combine perspectives from both social and cognitive sciences. The study integrates "retrospective" and "front-loaded" phenomenological approaches, analyzing previous data and experiences while using these interpretations to formulate new research questions and protocols.
The presentation will discuss the development and implementation of this combined methodology, addressing the challenges and benefits of integrating autoethnography with phenomenological approaches. It will also present preliminary findings and explore the implications for future research.
By compounding self-narrative based on systematic self-reflection and self-observation with ethnographic research and phenomenological interviews, this approach offers a unique lens through which to examine the lived experience of bipolar disorder. The researcher's role as both subject and investigator provides an insight into the internal processes of the disorder while maintaining rigor through structured methodologies.
This research contributes to the growing field of phenomenological psychiatry by offering a methodological approach that bridges personal experience, rigorous self-reflection, and empirical investigation, potentially opening new avenues for understanding affective disorders.