DIFFERENTIAL PSYCHOLOGY (Individual Differences)
An area of psychology concerned with behavioral differences between individuals and groups of individuals—including, among others, sex, race, nationality, cultural…
DIRECT ANALYSIS
A therapeutic approach developed by John Rosen, in which an attempt is made to understand and communicate directly with the…
DIRECTIVE PSYCHOTHERAPY
An eclectic procedure developed by Frederick C. Thorne, in which the therapist provides the type of treatment needed at each…
DISCIPLINE (literally, “to learn”)
Discipline is the process of learning to adapt one’s behavior to the requirements of society. It “arises from the need…
DEMONOLOGY
Even before Greek and Roman civilization collapsed under the impact of the barbarian onslaught in the fifth century, the Dark…
DISSOCIATION
The unconscious defense mechanism of keeping conflicting attitudes and impulses apart.This is the common human tendency of not letting the…
DEMYELINATING DISORDERS
These diseases, which include multiple sclerosis and diffuse sclerosis, are due to the degeneration of the insulating (myelin) sheath around…
DISSOCIATIVE REACTION
A psychoneurotic reaction in which a portion of experience is split off, or isolated, from conscious awareness.As a neurotic reaction,…
DENIAL OF REALITY (DENIAL)
The unconscious defense mechanism of denying the existence of painful facts.This technique enables an individual to escape from intolerable thoughts,…
DIX, DOROTHEA LYNDE (1802-87)
Dorothea Dix was the most effective advocate of humanitarian reform in American mental institutions during the nineteenth century. Born in…
DARWIN, CHARLES ROBERT
Darwin, whose theory of evolution has had a profound influence on psychology, was born in ShrewsburyEngland, the son of a…
DAYDREAMING (Fantasy)
A waking fantasy or reverie; the free play of thought or imagination.Daydreaming is classed as a form of autistic thinking,…
DAY HOSPITAL (Day Care Program)
A mental hospital program organized on a daytime basis. The patients come to the hospital in the morning, receive practically…
DEFENSE MECHANISM (Ego Defense Mechanism)
An adjustive reaction, typically habitual and unconscious, employed to protect oneself from anxiety, guilt, or loss of self-esteem.In the course…
DEHYDRATION REACTION
A disturbance in behavior resulting from an insufficiency of water, classified as a metabolic disorder.In addition to intense thirst sensations,…
DELAYED REACTION
An experimental technique for determining whether an animal or young child can remember the solution to a problem after a…
DELIRIUM TREMENS
An acute psychotic reaction occurring in chronic alcoholics following a prolonged drinking bout. The disturbance may also occur after a…
DECISION RULE
Hypothesis testing. The formal statement of a set of values of a test statistic that leads to a rejection of…
DECONDITIONING
Behaviour therapy. Where a learned response such as phobia is unlearned. See desensitisation.
DEEP PROCESSING
The cognitive processing of a stimulus for its meaningful properties over its perceptual properties. See levels of processing model of memory- conceptually driven…