Abstracts

Jae Ryeong Sul (Bio)

A Phenomenological Reflection on Silence and Its Relevance to Psychopathology

In mental health research, silence has been often viewed as a distressing phenomenon resulting from unjust structural issues associated with psychiatric practices. While this negative appraisal has provided invaluable insights, it risks neglecting two important aspects of silence. They are: a.) a type of distressing silence that does not stem from the structural issues and b.) a kind of silence that is therapeutic for individuals with psychiatric conditions. In this paper, I draw on the recent psychopathological research and illuminate those two important aspects of silence. Following Degerman’s (2024) proposal, I refer to a.) as an ‘empty silence’ and develop its interpersonal dimension using Merleau-Ponty’s concept of existential signification. Afterwards, I term b.) as ‘undemanding silence’ and detail its experiential profile, highlighting its therapeutic benefits. In doing so, I argue for the need to provide a more concerted research effort in understanding multifaceted aspects of silences implicated in mental disorders.