A Study of Association in InsanityKent, Grace Helen
Science
A Study of Association in Insanity
Kent, Grace Helen
Association of ideas; Psychology, Pathological
Among these subjects were persons of both sexes and of ages ranging
from eight years to over eighty years, persons following different
occupations, possessing various degrees of mental capacity and
education, and living in widely separated localities. Many were from
Ireland, and some of these had but recently arrived in this country;
others were from different parts of Europe, but all were able to speak
English with at least fair fluency. Over two hundred of the subjects,
including a few university professors and other highly practiced
observers, were professional men and women or college students. About
five hundred were employed in one or another of the New York State
hospitals for the insane, either as nurses and attendants or as
workers at various trades; the majority of these were persons of
common school education, but the group includes also, on the one hand,
a considerable number of high school graduates; and on the other hand,
a few laborers who were almost or wholly illiterate. Nearly one
hundred and fifty of the subjects were boys and girls of high school
age, pupils of the Ethical Culture School, New York City. The
remaining subjects form a miscellaneous group, consisting largely of
clerks and farmers.
§ 3. THE FREQUENCY TABLES.
From the records obtained from these normal subjects, including in all
100,000 reactions, we have compiled a series of tables, one for each
stimulus word, showing all the different reactions given by one
thousand subjects in response to that stimulus word, and the frequency
with which each reaction has occurred. [1] These tables will be found
at the end of this paper.
[Footnote 1: A similar method of treating associations has been used
by Cattell (Mind, Vol. XII, p. 68; Vol. XIV, p. 230), and more
recently by Reinhold (Zeitschr. f. Psychol., Vol. LIV, p. 183), but
for other purposes.]
With the exception of a few distinctive proper names, which are
indicated by initials, we have followed the plan of introducing each
word into the table exactly as it was found in the record. In the
arrangement of the words in each table, we have placed together all
the derivatives of a single root, regardless of the strict
alphabetical order.[1]
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