Speak to me...speak to me please : Conversational sociability: an emergent ability amidst perceived disability in chronic schizophrenia

Abstract

An analysis of the conversational interactions of people with chronic schizophrenia, to expose an ability where heretofore disability has been described, is the focus of this thesis. Conversation is one aspect of communication and is, by definition, a dynamic, two-way interaction between interlocutors. A focus on naturally occurring conversational interactions allows language-in-use to be explored, as this is viewed as the most difficult domain of verbal expression for people with schizophrenia (C. Frith, 1992, 1997). Schizophrenia is a poorly understood psychiatric illness. Almost a century after it was first described, debate continues as to its existence, nature and cause (see Bentall, 1990; Boyle, 1990). Misunderstandings of the illness also permeate the public's attitude to the disorder. Schizophrenia is generally viewed in a negative light, with the standard paradigm of 'disability' pervading discussions of the disorder. Concepts of disability also infiltrate the literature on communication and schizophrenia, where the person with schizophrenia is viewed as the one with a communication disability and consequently responsible for conversational breakdown when it occurs.