DISSOCIATION AS COMPLEX ADAPTATION

In this article the general theory of complex adaptive systems, substa ntiated by non-linear dynamics, will be used to put the dissociative d isorders into a theoretical framework and clarify their genesis and pr esentation. When a system is far out of equilibrium, dissipative struc tures may be formed ('order out of chaos', as Prigogine (1) has put it ). These structures provide the starting point for further evolution a nd co-evolution of competing groups of functional schemata divided on a bifurcation surface. Complex adaptation is almost inevitable in a co mplicated system (such as the brain) driven by nonlinear dynamics. Dis sociation is thus regarded as a consequence of adaptation to a chaotic environment rich in contrasts. in a sufficiently complex environment a person with dissociative identity disorder is more adapted and thus more likely to occur than a 'normal' monopersonality individual.