SCORSOLINI-COMIN, Fabio    CAMPOS, Maria Teresa de Assis. Developmental narratives of Umbanda mediums from the bioecological model. Estud. pesqui. psicol. []. 2017, 17, 1, pp.364-385. ISSN 1808-4281.

Mediumship is a practice of cultural nature present in different traditions. This study aims to know the developmental processes of people who act as mediums in Umbanda communities. The sample was composed of five female mediums aged between 26 and 43 years. The techniques employed were oral history of life and a semi-structured interview guide. The analysis was performed from the bioecological model of human development. It can be said that Umbanda and mediumship work in a macrochronological and macrosystem scale, because the mediums fall in a social history and a cultural context that begins to make sense of their experiences. Umbanda and psychic work appeared as important tools in coping with critical moments such as of illness and greater emotional instability. Becoming a medium represented a significant ecological transition, so the mediumship was a milestone in the development of the participants throughout their life cycles by offering symbolic and cultural repertoires for understanding their life stories.

: mediumship; experiences; spirituality; Umbanda.

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