Mario Cardano

Mental distress: Strategies of sense-making

The irruption of severe mental distress into the life of an individual determines a deep biographical disruption. To cope with this crisis, individuals are involved in a laborious sense-making activity, through the composition of narratives intended to create a new link between past, present and future. This essay analyses the sense-making strategies that follow this dramatic experience through the comparison of four illness narratives composed by Italian participants. The narratives are selected from a broader textual corpus in a way that authorizes their connotation as ‘flesh and blood’ ideal types. These narratives illustrate three kinds of explanation for the outset of mental distress: the biomedical adopted by Vito; the spiritual-religious adopted by Marta; and the psycho-social adopted by Giacomo. Vito, Marta and Giacomo are still inside the story they are telling, and compose the events by observing them through the eyes of a patient, qualifying their diversity as a stigma. The fourth narrative is different, composed by Serena, a ‘voices hearer’ who comes to terms with her voices not by silencing them with drugs, but by accepting them as a charisma that has transformed her into a medium and, on final analysis, a balanced woman.

Taking leave of Damanhur. Deconversion from a magico-esoteric community

This article deals with an aspect of religious behavior that has remained in the shadows, both in the scientific literature and in public discourse: deconversion from New Religious Movements. The article analyses the deconversion from a magico-esoteric community located in Northern Italy: Damanhur. Founded in the 1970s, Damanhur is one of Europe’s major spiritual communities that counts about 400 devotees. The article starts with an outline of the process of deconversion, followed by a brief description of the religious organization studied. Lastly, the process of disaffiliation from Damanhur, is reconstructed, through the close reading of twenty narratives of deconversion of former Damanhurians interviewed in 2010. The process of deconversion is analysed, distinguishing four ideal-typical steps that repropose the main results of the research in this field. They are the coming out of a vague and unfocused discomfort; the attempt to deconstruct the discomfort; the opening of a reflexive instance; and the departure from the community.

Il problema dell’invisibilità e l’eloquenza delle piccole cose: riflessioni sui punti di forza della ricerca qualitativa

I was introduced to the Brazilian academic world its liveliness and its warmth in September last year, when invited by the Brazilian Universities of Pelotas, Ribeirão Preto and Porto Alegre to a series of lectures on qualitative research, related to the translation into Portuguese of a work of mine . Each journey leaves imprinted in the memory of those who join it a set of memories, in which time intervenes, altering its intensity and creating new sometimes unexpected combinations. This happens even in the most austere version of the trip, the study trip. Thinking about my stay in Brazil and the reasons that led me there, two images strongly emerge in my memory, the poetry of Mário Quintana and the beautiful song of Antônio Carlos Jobim, Águas de março. Once lying in my thoughts and, now that I’m writing, I find at my desk the collection of poems by Mário Quintana A cor do invisível and Elis Regina & Tom Jobim’s CD, which contains the extraordinary interpretation of Águas de março. After my classes at the University of Porto Alegre, I visited Mário Quintana House of Culture, built at the Majestic Hotel, which, for many years, had the gaucho poet as a guest. Among his collections of poetry, one in particular caught my attention: A cor do invisível, which, as soon as I returned to Italy, I read its translation by Natale Fioretto. I searched in the text index for the poetry, or at least the poetry explicitly dedicated to the invisible, but I did not find it. At first I felt disillusioned, but afterwards I understood that, from that invisible, it was possible to take only the shadow, to intuit its color, and that every explicit definition though poetic would have betrayed the spirit of that work. The color of the invisible is harvested by immersing itself in the simple things spoken by Quintana’s poetry, and then directing the gaze beyond, in the tension towards its meaning. Something similar happens when listening to Águas de Março, which, in the opinion of Chico Buarque, is “the most beautiful samba in the world”. As it is known, Águas de Março comprises, in a quick succession, a series of images that portray the Brazilian daily life: the stick, the stone, a piece of bread, the design of the house, the broken car and much more. In Tom Jobim’s lyrics, we find the same interest for the small simple things, at the center of Quintana’s poetics, but also an interesting at least in the perspective of this reflection – call to the theme of invisibility. Among the splendid images of Águas de Março, we find thatConocí el mundo académico brasileño su vivacidad y su calor en septiembre del año pasado, cuando estuve como invitado en las Universidades de Pelotas, Ribeirão Preto y Porto Alegre para una serie de conferencias sobre la investigación cualitativa relacionada con la traducción al portugués de un trabajo mío . Cada viaje deja impreso en la memoria de quien lo realiza un conjunto de recuerdos, en el cual el tiempo interviene, alterando su intensidad y creando nuevas – a veces inesperadas – combinaciones. Esto sucede incluso en la versión más austera del viaje, el viaje de estudio. Pensando en mi estancia en Brasil y en las razones que me llevaron hasta allá, dos imágenes emergen fuertemente en mi memoria, las poesías de Mário Quintana y la bellísima música de Antonio Carlos Jobim, Águas de março. Antes acostadas en mis pensamientos y, ahora que estoy escribiendo, en mi mesa, encuentro la colección de poesías de Mário Quintana A cor do invisível y el CD Elis & Tom, que contiene la extraordinaria interpretación de Águas de março de Elis Regina y Tom Jobim. Después de mis clases en la Universidad de Porto Alegre, visité la Casa de la Cultura Mário Quintana, construida en el Hotel Majestic que, por muchos años, tuvo como huésped al poeta gaúcho. Entre sus colecciones de poesías, una en particular, me llamó la atención. A cor do invisível, la cual, una vez que regresé para Italia, leí en la traducción hecha por Natale Fioretto. Busqué en el índice del texto las poesías, o, por lo menos, la poesía dedicada explícitamente al invisible, pero no la encontré. En un primer momento, me sentí decepcionado, entendí después que de aquel invisible era posible agarrar solamente la sombra, intuir su color y que, cada explícita definición – aun siendo poética – habría traicionado el espirito de aquel trabajo. El color de lo invisible se recoge al sumergirse en las cosas simples de las que hablan las poesías de Quintana, para después dirigir la mirada más allá, en la tensión hacia su significado. Algo semejante sucede al oír Águas de março, según la opinión de Chico Buarque, « el samba más hermoso del mundo ». Como se sabe, Águas de março compone en una rápida sucesión una serie de imágenes que retratan la rutina de la vida brasileña: el palo, la piedra, un pedazo de pan, el diseño de la casa, el vehículo averiado y mucho más. En la lírica de Tom Jobin, encontramos el mismo interés por las pequeñasHo conosciuto il mondo accademico brasiliano – la sua vivacita e il suo calore – lo scorso settembre, quando fui ospite presso le universita di Pelotas, Ribeirao Preto e Porto Alegre per un ciclo di conferenze sulla ricerca qualitativa, legato alla traduzione in portoghese di un mio lavoro (Cardano 2017). Ogni viaggio imprime nella memoria di chi lo compie un insieme composito di ricordi, su cui il tempo interviene, alterandone l’intensita e creando nuove – talvolta inattese – combinazioni. Questo accade anche per la versione piu seriosa del viaggio, il viaggio di studio.

The problem of invisibility and the eloquence of small things: reflections on the strengths of qualitative research

I was introduced to the Brazilian academic world its liveliness and its warmth in September last year, when invited by the Brazilian Universities of Pelotas, Ribeirão Preto and Porto Alegre to a series of lectures on qualitative research, related to the translation into Portuguese of a work of mine . Each journey leaves imprinted in the memory of those who join it a set of memories, in which time intervenes, altering its intensity and creating new sometimes unexpected combinations. This happens even in the most austere version of the trip, the study trip. Thinking about my stay in Brazil and the reasons that led me there, two images strongly emerge in my memory, the poetry of Mário Quintana and the beautiful song of Antônio Carlos Jobim, Águas de março. Once lying in my thoughts and, now that I’m writing, I find at my desk the collection of poems by Mário Quintana A cor do invisível and Elis Regina & Tom Jobim’s CD, which contains the extraordinary interpretation of Águas de março. After my classes at the University of Porto Alegre, I visited Mário Quintana House of Culture, built at the Majestic Hotel, which, for many years, had the gaucho poet as a guest. Among his collections of poetry, one in particular caught my attention: A cor do invisível, which, as soon as I returned to Italy, I read its translation by Natale Fioretto. I searched in the text index for the poetry, or at least the poetry explicitly dedicated to the invisible, but I did not find it. At first I felt disillusioned, but afterwards I understood that, from that invisible, it was possible to take only the shadow, to intuit its color, and that every explicit definition though poetic would have betrayed the spirit of that work. The color of the invisible is harvested by immersing itself in the simple things spoken by Quintana’s poetry, and then directing the gaze beyond, in the tension towards its meaning. Something similar happens when listening to Águas de Março, which, in the opinion of Chico Buarque, is “the most beautiful samba in the world”. As it is known, Águas de Março comprises, in a quick succession, a series of images that portray the Brazilian daily life: the stick, the stone, a piece of bread, the design of the house, the broken car and much more. In Tom Jobim’s lyrics, we find the same interest for the small simple things, at the center of Quintana’s poetics, but also an interesting at least in the perspective of this reflection – call to the theme of invisibility. Among the splendid images of Águas de Março, we find thatConocí el mundo académico brasileño su vivacidad y su calor en septiembre del año pasado, cuando estuve como invitado en las Universidades de Pelotas, Ribeirão Preto y Porto Alegre para una serie de conferencias sobre la investigación cualitativa relacionada con la traducción al portugués de un trabajo mío . Cada viaje deja impreso en la memoria de quien lo realiza un conjunto de recuerdos, en el cual el tiempo interviene, alterando su intensidad y creando nuevas – a veces inesperadas – combinaciones. Esto sucede incluso en la versión más austera del viaje, el viaje de estudio. Pensando en mi estancia en Brasil y en las razones que me llevaron hasta allá, dos imágenes emergen fuertemente en mi memoria, las poesías de Mário Quintana y la bellísima música de Antonio Carlos Jobim, Águas de março. Antes acostadas en mis pensamientos y, ahora que estoy escribiendo, en mi mesa, encuentro la colección de poesías de Mário Quintana A cor do invisível y el CD Elis & Tom, que contiene la extraordinaria interpretación de Águas de março de Elis Regina y Tom Jobim. Después de mis clases en la Universidad de Porto Alegre, visité la Casa de la Cultura Mário Quintana, construida en el Hotel Majestic que, por muchos años, tuvo como huésped al poeta gaúcho. Entre sus colecciones de poesías, una en particular, me llamó la atención. A cor do invisível, la cual, una vez que regresé para Italia, leí en la traducción hecha por Natale Fioretto. Busqué en el índice del texto las poesías, o, por lo menos, la poesía dedicada explícitamente al invisible, pero no la encontré. En un primer momento, me sentí decepcionado, entendí después que de aquel invisible era posible agarrar solamente la sombra, intuir su color y que, cada explícita definición – aun siendo poética – habría traicionado el espirito de aquel trabajo. El color de lo invisible se recoge al sumergirse en las cosas simples de las que hablan las poesías de Quintana, para después dirigir la mirada más allá, en la tensión hacia su significado. Algo semejante sucede al oír Águas de março, según la opinión de Chico Buarque, « el samba más hermoso del mundo ». Como se sabe, Águas de março compone en una rápida sucesión una serie de imágenes que retratan la rutina de la vida brasileña: el palo, la piedra, un pedazo de pan, el diseño de la casa, el vehículo averiado y mucho más. En la lírica de Tom Jobin, encontramos el mismo interés por las pequeñasHo conosciuto il mondo accademico brasiliano – la sua vivacita e il suo calore – lo scorso settembre, quando fui ospite presso le universita di Pelotas, Ribeirao Preto e Porto Alegre per un ciclo di conferenze sulla ricerca qualitativa, legato alla traduzione in portoghese di un mio lavoro (Cardano 2017). Ogni viaggio imprime nella memoria di chi lo compie un insieme composito di ricordi, su cui il tempo interviene, alterandone l’intensita e creando nuove – talvolta inattese – combinazioni. Questo accade anche per la versione piu seriosa del viaggio, il viaggio di studio.

O problema da invisibilidade e a eloquência das pequenas coisas: reflexões sobre os pontos fortes da pesquisa qualitativa

I was introduced to the Brazilian academic world its liveliness and its warmth in September last year, when invited by the Brazilian Universities of Pelotas, Ribeirão Preto and Porto Alegre to a series of lectures on qualitative research, related to the translation into Portuguese of a work of mine . Each journey leaves imprinted in the memory of those who join it a set of memories, in which time intervenes, altering its intensity and creating new sometimes unexpected combinations. This happens even in the most austere version of the trip, the study trip. Thinking about my stay in Brazil and the reasons that led me there, two images strongly emerge in my memory, the poetry of Mário Quintana and the beautiful song of Antônio Carlos Jobim, Águas de março. Once lying in my thoughts and, now that I’m writing, I find at my desk the collection of poems by Mário Quintana A cor do invisível and Elis Regina & Tom Jobim’s CD, which contains the extraordinary interpretation of Águas de março. After my classes at the University of Porto Alegre, I visited Mário Quintana House of Culture, built at the Majestic Hotel, which, for many years, had the gaucho poet as a guest. Among his collections of poetry, one in particular caught my attention: A cor do invisível, which, as soon as I returned to Italy, I read its translation by Natale Fioretto. I searched in the text index for the poetry, or at least the poetry explicitly dedicated to the invisible, but I did not find it. At first I felt disillusioned, but afterwards I understood that, from that invisible, it was possible to take only the shadow, to intuit its color, and that every explicit definition though poetic would have betrayed the spirit of that work. The color of the invisible is harvested by immersing itself in the simple things spoken by Quintana’s poetry, and then directing the gaze beyond, in the tension towards its meaning. Something similar happens when listening to Águas de Março, which, in the opinion of Chico Buarque, is “the most beautiful samba in the world”. As it is known, Águas de Março comprises, in a quick succession, a series of images that portray the Brazilian daily life: the stick, the stone, a piece of bread, the design of the house, the broken car and much more. In Tom Jobim’s lyrics, we find the same interest for the small simple things, at the center of Quintana’s poetics, but also an interesting at least in the perspective of this reflection – call to the theme of invisibility. Among the splendid images of Águas de Março, we find thatConocí el mundo académico brasileño su vivacidad y su calor en septiembre del año pasado, cuando estuve como invitado en las Universidades de Pelotas, Ribeirão Preto y Porto Alegre para una serie de conferencias sobre la investigación cualitativa relacionada con la traducción al portugués de un trabajo mío . Cada viaje deja impreso en la memoria de quien lo realiza un conjunto de recuerdos, en el cual el tiempo interviene, alterando su intensidad y creando nuevas – a veces inesperadas – combinaciones. Esto sucede incluso en la versión más austera del viaje, el viaje de estudio. Pensando en mi estancia en Brasil y en las razones que me llevaron hasta allá, dos imágenes emergen fuertemente en mi memoria, las poesías de Mário Quintana y la bellísima música de Antonio Carlos Jobim, Águas de março. Antes acostadas en mis pensamientos y, ahora que estoy escribiendo, en mi mesa, encuentro la colección de poesías de Mário Quintana A cor do invisível y el CD Elis & Tom, que contiene la extraordinaria interpretación de Águas de março de Elis Regina y Tom Jobim. Después de mis clases en la Universidad de Porto Alegre, visité la Casa de la Cultura Mário Quintana, construida en el Hotel Majestic que, por muchos años, tuvo como huésped al poeta gaúcho. Entre sus colecciones de poesías, una en particular, me llamó la atención. A cor do invisível, la cual, una vez que regresé para Italia, leí en la traducción hecha por Natale Fioretto. Busqué en el índice del texto las poesías, o, por lo menos, la poesía dedicada explícitamente al invisible, pero no la encontré. En un primer momento, me sentí decepcionado, entendí después que de aquel invisible era posible agarrar solamente la sombra, intuir su color y que, cada explícita definición – aun siendo poética – habría traicionado el espirito de aquel trabajo. El color de lo invisible se recoge al sumergirse en las cosas simples de las que hablan las poesías de Quintana, para después dirigir la mirada más allá, en la tensión hacia su significado. Algo semejante sucede al oír Águas de março, según la opinión de Chico Buarque, « el samba más hermoso del mundo ». Como se sabe, Águas de março compone en una rápida sucesión una serie de imágenes que retratan la rutina de la vida brasileña: el palo, la piedra, un pedazo de pan, el diseño de la casa, el vehículo averiado y mucho más. En la lírica de Tom Jobin, encontramos el mismo interés por las pequeñasHo conosciuto il mondo accademico brasiliano – la sua vivacita e il suo calore – lo scorso settembre, quando fui ospite presso le universita di Pelotas, Ribeirao Preto e Porto Alegre per un ciclo di conferenze sulla ricerca qualitativa, legato alla traduzione in portoghese di un mio lavoro (Cardano 2017). Ogni viaggio imprime nella memoria di chi lo compie un insieme composito di ricordi, su cui il tempo interviene, alterandone l’intensita e creando nuove – talvolta inattese – combinazioni. Questo accade anche per la versione piu seriosa del viaggio, il viaggio di studio.

Exes speak out, narratives of apostasy: Jehovah’s witnesses, scientology and Soka Gakkai

The paper presents a study of the trajectories of apostasy from three religious movements, Jehovah’s Witnesses, the Soka Gakkai Buddhist institute and the Church of Scientology, through the analysis of a body of autobiographical narratives posted online by Italian apostates. Even more than being the account of a past religious experience, these narratives are the last stage in the gradual articulation of a voice with which the disaffected believers publicly express a critical view of the organizations they have left, charging them with using practices of interdiction to prevent dissent by their members. The common theme that emerges from these stories is not the loss of faith, but the discovery of a hidden deception, the breach of the implicit pact of trust that bound the narrator to the religious group.

Grupos de ouvidores de vozes: estratégias e enfrentamentos

RESUMO O objetivo deste artigo e discutir as estrategias utilizadas por diferentes grupos de pessoas que ouvem vozes, para o enfrentamento de tal experiencia. Trata-se de um estudo etnografico realizado junto a grupos italianos de ouvidores de vozes. Os dados, que foram obtidos no periodo entre outubro de 2014 e janeiro de 2016, atraves da observacao participante, com registros em diarios de campo, demonstram que estrategias de enfrentamento em espaco grupal, tais como o dialogo com as vozes, a busca de informacao e a escrita sobre as mesmas sao importantes para a superacao das dificuldades decorrentes dessa vivencia e estimulam o protagonismo daqueles que as ouvem.

Diálogo Aberto: a experiência finlandesa e suas contribuições

RESUMO O Dialogo Aberto e um metodo desenvolvido na decada de 1980, na Finlândia, para o enfrentamento da crise psicotica. Este artigo e um ensaio teorico que tem como objetivo apresentar o Dialogo Aberto em seus principios e enquanto pratica de saude mental desinstitucionalizante, enfatizando seu potencial terapeutico, seus resultados e suas contribuicoes para outros paises. Conclui-se que, para a implementacao do Dialogo Aberto em outros contextos, e necessaria uma mudanca organizativa na estruturacao dos servicos e uma substantiva mudanca cultural no interior da equipe e da comunidade.