From splitting to priming associations: An interdisciplinary approach to a linguistically based therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder

Abstract

Association Splitting (AS) is a self-help therapy for obsessive-compulsive disorder which finds its basis in linguistic theories. Multidisciplinary principles were used to argue that AS is mechanistically based on the fan effect. Using different cross-disciplinary evidence, this thesis shows that AS takes place in semantic memory, where there is no fan effect. This leaves AS without a solid theoretical basis. I will therefore propose a different approach to AS, namely, Association Priming (AP). I will argue that priming processes are not only able to explain the workings of the treatment, but also imply several clinical advantages compared to AS.