STIMULUS (literally “goad”)
In general terms, any event that initiates behavior; or more specifically, any energy change that activates a sense organ.The idea…
STARTLE REACTION (Startle Pattern)
An extremely rapid response to a sudden, unexpected stimulus, such as a pistol shot or a face looming up in…
SPINAL NERVES
The thirty-one pairs of nerves of the somatic nervous system, which enter and leave the spinal cord between the spinal…
SPEECH DISORDERS
Marked deviations in the manner or content of speech. These deviations include speech that is not readily intelligible or audible;…
SPECIFIC ENERGIES
The view that the various kinds of sensory experience, such as touch, taste, and sight, are dependent on the specific…
SOMNAMBULISM
A dissociative reaction in which repressed impulses, anxieties or conflicts are acted out during sleep.Somnambulism is more than merely walking…
SOMATOPSYCHIC DISORDERS
A term applied by some psychiatrists to psychological disturbances resulting from bodily disorders.An example is the post-encephalitic syndrome, in which…
SOCIOPATHIC PERSONALITY DISTURBANCE
A group of personality or character disorders marked primarily by failure to adapt to prevailing ethical and social standards and…
SOCIAL PSYCHIATRY
A broad area of psychiatric investigation and practice covering the relation between mental health and the social environment.The social viewpoint…
SOCIAL NORM (Group Norms)
The standards by which behavior is judged in a given social group; the way the members of a group are…
SOCIAL CLASS (Social Stratification)
A broad social grouping based upon level of prestige determined by such characteristics as occupation, income, family genealogy, moral standing,…
SMELL PRISM
A three-dimensional diagram representing six “primary” odors and their mixture.Scientists have not yet been able to pin down the physical…
SKIN SENSES (Cutaneous Sense)
The senses of warmth, cold, pain, and touch (pressure) located in the skin.Skin sensations are the source of relatively simple…
SHERRINGTON, CHARLES SCOTT(1857-1952)
Sherrington, to whom we owe much of our knowledge of nerve activity, obtained his medical degree in 1885, then devoted…
SEXUAL DEVIATIONS (GENERAL)
There is considerable confusion about the definition of sexual deviation. One approach puts the primary emphasis on social disapproval, and…
SEPTAL AREA (Septal Region, Septum)
A region of the brain lying beneath the forward end of the corpus callosum, the connection between the two hemispheres.…
SENTENCE COMPLETION METHOD
A projective technique in which the subject completes a fragmentary sentence.The Sentence Completion Method is a further development of the…
SENSITIVITY DISTURBANCES
A term used in this book to designate various conditions of reduced, exaggerated, or distorted sensitivity, either organic or functional…
SENILE PSYCHOSIS (SIMPLE DETERIORATION TYPE)
This is the most common form of senile psychosis, comprising about 50 per cent of the entire group. The symptoms…