View in EDS HTML Full Text PDF Full Text

The Disenchanted Self: Anthropological Notes on Existential Distress and Ontological Insecurity Among ex-Mormons in Utah.

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Title: The Disenchanted Self: Anthropological Notes on Existential Distress and Ontological Insecurity Among ex-Mormons in Utah.
Authors: Brooks, E. Marshall (AUTHOR)
Source: Culture, Medicine & Psychiatry. Jun2020, Vol. 44 Issue 2, p193-213. 21p.
Subjects: Mormonism, Medical personnel, Religious trauma, Psychological distress, Paranoia, Mormons, Mental health
Geographic Terms: Utah
Abstract: This paper describes a pervasive form of psychological distress occurring among people undergoing a sudden and acute collapse of faith in the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka LDS, or Mormon Church). Drawing on 18 months of fieldwork in Utah, I trace the cultural-historical etiology of this unique form of psycho-existential trauma, focusing on ex-Mormons' narratives of 'world collapse'-in which the all-encompassing symbolic-existential framework of reality once provided by religion disintegrated once they lost faith in the Mormon Church. Although marked by symptoms resembling depression, anxiety, dissociation and paranoia, this condition is however unlike mental health disorders described in psychiatric diagnostic manuals, and has thus been largely overlooked within the mental health professions. I thereby discuss the extent to which the distress of religious disenchantment constitutes a unique form of 'cultural syndrome' (Hinton and Lewis-Fernandez in Cult Med Psychiatry 34(2):209-218, 2010), reflective of complex historical, cultural, and religious transformations occurring within contemporary Utah Mormonism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Culture, Medicine & Psychiatry is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
Full text is not displayed to guests.
FullText Links:
  – Type: pdflink
Text:
  Availability: 1
Header DbId: pbh
DbLabel: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
An: 142942868
AccessLevel: 6
PubType: Academic Journal
PubTypeId: academicJournal
PreciseRelevancyScore: 0
IllustrationInfo
Items – Name: Title
  Label: Title
  Group: Ti
  Data: The Disenchanted Self: Anthropological Notes on Existential Distress and Ontological Insecurity Among ex-Mormons in Utah.
– Name: Author
  Label: Authors
  Group: Au
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="AR" term="%22Brooks%2C+E%2E+Marshall%22">Brooks, E. Marshall</searchLink> (AUTHOR)
– Name: TitleSource
  Label: Source
  Group: Src
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Culture%2C+Medicine+%26+Psychiatry%22">Culture, Medicine & Psychiatry</searchLink>. Jun2020, Vol. 44 Issue 2, p193-213. 21p.
– Name: Subject
  Label: Subjects
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Mormonism%22">Mormonism</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Medical+personnel%22">Medical personnel</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Religious+trauma%22">Religious trauma</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Psychological+distress%22">Psychological distress</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Paranoia%22">Paranoia</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Mormons%22">Mormons</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Mental+health%22">Mental health</searchLink>
– Name: SubjectGeographic
  Label: Geographic Terms
  Group: Su
  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Utah%22">Utah</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
  Label: Abstract
  Group: Ab
  Data: This paper describes a pervasive form of psychological distress occurring among people undergoing a sudden and acute collapse of faith in the teachings of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (aka LDS, or Mormon Church). Drawing on 18 months of fieldwork in Utah, I trace the cultural-historical etiology of this unique form of psycho-existential trauma, focusing on ex-Mormons' narratives of 'world collapse'-in which the all-encompassing symbolic-existential framework of reality once provided by religion disintegrated once they lost faith in the Mormon Church. Although marked by symptoms resembling depression, anxiety, dissociation and paranoia, this condition is however unlike mental health disorders described in psychiatric diagnostic manuals, and has thus been largely overlooked within the mental health professions. I thereby discuss the extent to which the distress of religious disenchantment constitutes a unique form of 'cultural syndrome' (Hinton and Lewis-Fernandez in Cult Med Psychiatry 34(2):209-218, 2010), reflective of complex historical, cultural, and religious transformations occurring within contemporary Utah Mormonism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
– Name: AbstractSuppliedCopyright
  Label:
  Group: Ab
  Data: <i>Copyright of Culture, Medicine & Psychiatry is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
PLink https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&site=eds-live&db=pbh&AN=142942868
RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1007/s11013-019-09646-5
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 21
        StartPage: 193
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Mormonism
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Medical personnel
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Religious trauma
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychological distress
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Paranoia
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Mormons
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Mental health
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Utah
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: The Disenchanted Self: Anthropological Notes on Existential Distress and Ontological Insecurity Among ex-Mormons in Utah.
        Type: main
  BibRelationships:
    HasContributorRelationships:
      – PersonEntity:
          Name:
            NameFull: Brooks, E. Marshall
    IsPartOfRelationships:
      – BibEntity:
          Dates:
            – D: 01
              M: 06
              Text: Jun2020
              Type: published
              Y: 2020
          Identifiers:
            – Type: issn-print
              Value: 0165005X
          Numbering:
            – Type: volume
              Value: 44
            – Type: issue
              Value: 2
          Titles:
            – TitleFull: Culture, Medicine & Psychiatry
              Type: main
ResultId 1