Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
1 Profeesor of Linguistics, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran
2 Ph.D. Student in Linguistics, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran.
3 Assistant Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Islamic Azad University, Chalous Branch, Mazandaran, Iran.
Abstract
Incoherent speech is considered one of the main characteristics of schizophrenic patients. In this research, 11 schizophrenic patients and 11 healthy individuals were compared using the experiential metafunction in Halliday’s Systemic Functional Grammar. Transitivity is a very important concept in the experiential metafunction, which is examined with the processes in the discourse, i.e. material, mental, relational, behavioral, verbal, existential. To collect data, we used The Persian Aphasia Battery, western aphasia battery, Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination, the story “Frog, where are you?” and questions such as “Tell one of your good and bad memory, Talk about Nowruz, etc.” SPSS software was used for data analysis. The results showed that in the discourse of schizophrenic patients and healthy people, the material, relational, mental, verbal, existential and behavioral processes had the highest frequency, respectively. Also, there were significant differences between the discourses of both groups in terms of the application of the six processes. Based on gender variable, only the use of relational process was different between men and women. Based on education variable, only the use of verbal and relational processes was different. According to the findings of this research, the discourse of schizophrenic patients is different from the discourse of healthy people in terms of the situational context and cultural context. Schizophrenic patients usually create the connection of participants/process/circumstantial adjuncts in a very special way, which shows that the reality is perceived or constructed in an unconventional way.
Keywords
- Schizophrenia, Experiential Metafunction, Halliday&rsquo
- s Systemic Functional Grammar,, Process, Discourse
Main Subjects
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