Key Terms

Question 1

A chronic state of low mood, usually with an insidious onset and lasting at least 2 weeks

Answer 1

dysthymia

Question 2

Happy, contented mood

Answer 2

euthymia

Question 3

Word used to describe sustained and pervasive emotion

Answer 3

mood

Question 4

Short lived observable pattern of behaviour that expresses the subjective emotional state of an individual. It is subject to variation over brief periods of time

Answer 4

affect

Question 5

Affect is rapidly changeable with marked fluctuations. Subject may be cheerful/smiling then crying

Answer 5

labile

Question 6

Total inability to enjoy anything in life or get accustomed satisfaction from everyday events/objects. Cannot experience pleasure

Answer 6

anhedonia

Question 7

An inability to verbally express one’s emotions

Answer 7

alexithymia

Question 8

The subject sits abnormally still or walks abnormally slowly or takes a long time to initiate movement

Answer 8

psychomotor retardation

Question 9

The subject talks too much. There seems to be undue pressure to get the words out. He speaks too fast, his voice is too loud and unnecessary words are added

Answer 9

pressure of speech

Question 10

No speech, inability to produce words orally

Answer 10

aphasia

Question 11

New words with no real meaning

Answer 11

neologisms

Question 12

Repetition of a particular response (phrase/word) despite absence or cessation of stimulus. Linked to organic brain disorders

Answer 12

preseveration

Question 13

Rapid flow of thought, manifested by accelerated speech with abrupt changes in topic (often some form of link). Loss of normal thought structure (illogical or muddled) often seen in mania

Answer 13

flight of ideas

Question 14

As if own thoughts are being spoken out loud. Repetition may not be an echo alone, it may be changed to some degree

Answer 14

thought echo

Question 15

The subject experiences thoughts which are not his own intruding into his mind. In the most typical case the alien thoughts are said to have been inserted into the mind from outside, by means of radar telepathy or some other means

Answer 15

thought insertion

Question 16

The subject says that his thoughts have been removed from his head by an external agency so that he has no thoughts (often able to describe the sensation of the thoughts leaving)

Answer 16

thought withdrawal

Question 17

Subject experiences thoughts as if they’re shared with others (often many). Often claims they are shared via telepathy, radio or TV

Answer 17

thought broadcast

Question 18

This represents a step down from normal alertness. There is a deterioration in thinking, attention, perception and memory and usually drowsiness and reduced awareness of environment

Answer 18

clouding of consciousness

Question 19

Inability to understand abstract ideas or concepts, literalness of understanding or expression

Answer 19

concrete thinking

Question 20

Loss of normal structured thinking: muddled or illogical without becoming clearer with questioning. Disorder of thought form

Answer 20

loosening of associations

Question 21

Change in awareness of self. The individual feels as if they are not real and detached. May feel they have changed and the world around them is vague, dreamlike or lacks significance. Has insight (to a degree) and recognises this is abnormal

Answer 21

depersonalisation

Question 22

The subject experiences his surroundings as unreal. An office or bus or a street seems like a stage set with actors, rather than real people. Everything seems colourless, artificial and dead. The subject maintains some understanding and recognises this is abnormal

Answer 22

derealisation

Question 23

Flase perception of a real stimulus. Three types: affect, completion and pareidolia

Answer 23

illusion

Question 24

A perceptual experience which is figurative, not concretely real and occurs in inner subjective space, not in external objective space. It has the quality of an idea.

Answer 24

pseudo hallucination

Question 25

Perception which occurs in the absence of a stimulus. The experience is false but to the individual experiencing it, it has the full force of a real perception so is indistinguishable from reality. It is in external space not the mind’s eye

Answer 25

withdrawal

Question 26

the voices say “you’re going to die; you’re going to die”

Answer 26

2nd person auditory hallucination

Question 27

“The voices are talking to each other about me, they say I am evil and mad”

Answer 27

3rd person auditory hallucination

Question 28

Believes thoughts/feelings/actions are not their own but imposed by an outside force e.g. someone else’s words leaving their mouth

Answer 28

delusions of control/passivity

Question 29

A type of primary delusion: this is present when the patient receives a normal perception which is then interpreted with delusional meaning and has immense personal value e.g. seeing a traffic light turn red means you are the king

Answer 29

delusional perception

Question 30

A fixed, firmly held belief that is held with unshakable conviction despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary and cannot be explained by the subject’s cultural or religious background

Answer 30

delusion

Question 31

Extreme negativity – such as the subject no longer existing, about to die, already dead or feeling impending doom

Answer 31

nihilistic delusion

Question 32

Special status or significance or special powers/attributes or special mission/purpose

Answer 32

delusions of grandeur

Question 33

Delusional belief that innocuous events/coincidences are directly linked and have significance e.g. TV or radio are talking about them

Answer 33

ideas of reference