A Study of Association in InsanityKent, Grace Helen
Science
A Study of Association in Insanity
Kent, Grace Helen
Association of ideas; Psychology, Pathological
It may readily be seen that such definiteness and uniformity as this
classification possesses results from the introduction of more or less
arbitrary criteria for the differentiation of the various types of
reactions. The question might arise, To what extent do the
distinctions thus made correspond to reality? To consider, for
instance, our rule for the placing of sound reactions (50 per cent of
the sounds of the shorter word to be present, in the same order, in
the other word): when a given reaction (_man--minstrel_) is in
accordance with the rule assigned under the heading of sound
reactions, can it be assumed that sound similarity and not some other
relationship is the determining factor of the association in question?
Or when in, a given instance (_cabbage--cobweb_) the sound
similarity falls somewhat short of the standard required by the rule,
can it be assumed that sound similarity is not, after all, the
determining factor?
Similar questions may, of course, arise in connection with other
subdivisions.
It must, indeed, be conceded that objective methods can reveal but
indirectly and with uncertainty the inner mechanism which produces any
association and that in any given instance it would be impossible to
establish the correctness of grouping in accordance with such
methods. However, to decide that question for any given reaction is
really not necessary in practice, since an error made through wrongly
placing one, two, or three reactions tinder any heading is of no
significance; the types acquire importance only when represented by
large numbers in a record under consideration; and when many reactions
fall tinder a single heading the likelihood of error, as affecting the
record as a whole, is by that fact alone greatly reduced.
The whole question might more profitably be approached from another
point of view: To what extent are the distinctions of this
classification useful? An answer to this question can be found only in
the results.
§ 7. ANALYSIS OF PATHOLOGICAL MATERIAL
We present in Table IV, the results of a statistical examination of
the records obtained from certain groups of normal subjects and from
some groups of insane subjects.
The normal groups have been studied for the purpose of determining the
frequency and manner of occurrence among normal subjects of the
various of abnormal reactions. It seemed best for this purpose to
consider separately the records of those subjects who gave an
unusually large number of individual reactions. Fifty-three records
containing fifteen or more individual reactions were found after a
fairly diligent search among our normal test records. In the other
groups of subjects--persons of common school education, persons of
collegiate education, and children--we included no records containing
more than ten individual reactions.
The more striking departures from average normal figures are indicated
in the table by the use of heavy type.
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