THE ALIENATION OF THE PHYSICAL SELF: THE STUDY OF PATIENTS WITH PHYSICAL DEFECTS AND SUBJECTS WITH NORMAL APPEARANCE

Abstract

The paper represents the exploration of the alienation of the physical Self in the context of the assignment of the body by the subject. The following assumptions were formulated: 1) the phenomena of alienation are the manifestations of the disintegration of the physical Self; 2) integration of the physical Self refers to the ability to recognize and adopt the physical characteristics of the body, the formation of an instrumental attitude to it. Therefore empirical hypotheses have been put forward. The study involved 2 test samples, representing some vital context of the formation of body image: 1) patients in oral and maxillofacial surgery with visible physical defects (30 people); 2) subjects without physical defects (30 people). The following techniques were used: semi-structured interviews, photo and video shootings, projective techniques, questionnaires. As the result of the research, the physical phenomenology of alienation of the physical Self and its psychological meaning has been allocated, the patterns of attitude to the body in the samples tested and the dependence of acceptance or rejection of the body on the type of personal organization of study participants have been shown.