[The history and phenomenology of the concept of psychosis. A perspective of the Heidelberg school (1913-2008)].

The accomplishments of Heidelberg psychopathology and their continued development are illustrated using the example of the concept of psychosis. Jaspers founded the Heidelberg school by methodologically collating the psychiatric knowledge of his time in a structured fashion and in doing so laid the foundation for modern nosology. While, however, ICD and DSM classifications tend to be modelled on symptoms of expression and behaviour, the phenomenological models which Jaspers introduced into the field of psychiatry rather focused on symptoms of subjective experience. The phenomenological developments of psychopathology which originated in this context are, in the case of the schizophrenic psychoses, presented in a kaleidoscope-like manner. It becomes evident that a legacy-oriented, phenomenological search for specific symptoms is of continued relevance. This historical wealth of knowledge and the clinical exploration of phenomena continue to represent sources of impetus and momentum for the field of psychopathology.