Scrupulosity – cognitive-behavioural understanding of religious/moral obsessive-compulsive disorder

Abstract

The paper focuses on the problem of scrupulosity in the context of cognitive-behavioural therapy. The disorder has long aroused the curiosity of both psychologists and theologians. Advances in clinical psychology have directed the attention of researchers and therapists to the aetiology and nosological classification of this psychological/moral phenomenon. For many years, the variety of psychological approaches and the ambiguities of treatment strategies have aroused controversy, with treatment outcomes considered only negligible, resulting in scepticism among patients. The change was brought about by the conceptualisation of the disorder in the cognitive-behavioural paradigm. This paper briefly discusses the evolution of therapeutic models and techniques used in patients diagnosed with scrupulosity. Reference was made to the epidemiology of the phenomenon in the context of its place in the group of obsessive-compulsive disorders. The changes in the conceptualisation of problems experienced by scrupulous individuals are also presented, taking into account the cognitive-behavioural models of an obsessive-compulsive disorder, the subtype of which is nowadays scrupulosity, most often cited in psychological-medical literature. The cognitive-behavioural model of the disorder, which is not widely discussed in Polish literature, and its implications for clinical practice, as well as modifications in the standard protocol for treating patients diagnosed with obsessivecompulsive disorder, introduced to adjust for the needs of patients presenting with the moral-religious aspect of the disease, are also discussed. The aim of the article is also to promote knowledge about scrupulosity among therapists, priests and scientists, thereby inspiring creative work and improvement of the quality of everyday functioning of patients.