An examination of factors associated with diachronic disunity.

Diachronic disunity is the phenomenon of feeling the lack of a continuous sense of self over time. It is understood to occur in the general population, but is more prevalent in those with psychiatric illnesses. However, it is not currently well understood in the psychological literature. This study aimed to explore factors that may contribute to a sense of diachronic disunity including dissociation, autobiographical reasoning, autobiographical memory functioning, wellbeing, sense of self and self-concept clarity in a sample of 251 individuals from the general population. Higher levels of trait dissociation and reduced self-concept clarity were significantly associated with higher levels of diachronic disunity. Furthermore, problems with autobiographical reasoning, autobiographical memory functioning, and sense of self were found to be weak, yet significant, predictors of diachronic disunity on some, but not all, measures of diachronicity. In contrast to expected results, state dissociation, and subjective wellbeing did not predict diachronic disunity. These findings suggest that trait dissociation and self-concept clarity in particular, play a role in the extent to which an individual may experience diachronic disunity. Findings have implications for clinical practice