Presentation Title
"Where did you get your information?": Phenomenological Research of the Illness Experiences of People with "Pure" O Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
Abstract
This thesis project explores whether the ways in which obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is portrayed in the media and described in educational literature might hinder diagnosis for individuals with primarily obsessional (“Pure-O”) OCD, a rarer form of OCD. Through survey and interviews, the proposed research will investigate individuals’ experiences of realizing their condition and accessing effective treatment. It will exam various socio-cultural factors that determine access to resources and how relatively-new internet chat groups, which offer the ability to freely discuss with like-minded individuals, have affected their experience of their illness.
Primary Faculty Mentor Name
Deborah Blom
Secondary Mentor Name
Jeanne Shea
Faculty/Staff Collaborators
Deborah Blom (undergraduate thesis advisor) & Jeanne Shea (undergraduate secondary thesis advisor)
Status
Undergraduate
Student College
College of Arts and Sciences
Program/Major
Anthropology
Primary Research Category
Arts & Humanities
"Where did you get your information?": Phenomenological Research of the Illness Experiences of People with "Pure" O Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
This thesis project explores whether the ways in which obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is portrayed in the media and described in educational literature might hinder diagnosis for individuals with primarily obsessional (“Pure-O”) OCD, a rarer form of OCD. Through survey and interviews, the proposed research will investigate individuals’ experiences of realizing their condition and accessing effective treatment. It will exam various socio-cultural factors that determine access to resources and how relatively-new internet chat groups, which offer the ability to freely discuss with like-minded individuals, have affected their experience of their illness.