SUBJECTIVE THEORIES OF ILLNESS AND PERSON ALITY IN PHOBIA AND PANIC DISORDERS

Verbatim transcripts of 12 psychotherapeutic interviews with patients suffering from phobia and panic disorders were examined, focussing on subjektive theories of illness, biography, and descriptions of the own personality. The results of our qualitative content analysis allow th e reconstruction of some central features of these patients, like char acterizing the own personality as normal and without any problems in a stereotype way (1), at the same time feeling wrong understood and exp loited from other persons (2), feeling as an outsider and left alone ( 3), and being no more able to compete with others (4). These and other findings are discussed in the context of psychoanalytic concepts of p hobia and panic disorders.