SYMMETRY AND PSYCHOSOCIAL ADAPTATION TO TRAUMA, ILLNESS AND DISABILITY PART I: VIEWS FROM PHYSICS, MEDICINE AND PSYCHOLOGY.

This article examines the concept of symmetry, including symmetry breaking (SB) and asymmetry, and their roles in understanding psychosocial adaptation to trauma, illness, and disability from interdisciplinary perspectives in physics, biology, medicine, and psychology. It outlines how symmetry underlies fundamental physical laws, conservation principles, and forces of nature, while SB processes contribute to the emergence of complexity and order in the universe. In biological systems, symmetry and SB interplay to shape molecular structures, organismal development, homeostasis, and disease onset, with life existing in a dynamic balance between order and disorder. Psychologically, symmetry influences perception, personality, attitudes, interpersonal relationships, and mental health, with theories such as psychoanalysis, Lewin’s field theory, chaos and complexity theory, and Dabrowski’s positive disintegration highlighting the dynamic tension between symmetrical equilibrium and asymmetrical adaptation. The paper sets the stage for a subsequent discussion on how these concepts inform the understanding of trauma adaptation, emphasizing the balance between stability and change in human functioning.