Thinking is the process of constructing an image of the surrounding world and its knowledge, which gives rise to creativity. Pathology of thinking is divided into disorders according to tempo (accelerated, slow thinking), structure (discontinued, paralogical, detailed, sperrung, mentism), content (obsessive, overvalued and delusional ideas).

History, norm and evolution

Judgments about a person are based on observing his behavior and analyzing his speech. Thanks to the data obtained, we can say how much the surrounding world corresponds (adequate) to the inner world of a person. The inner world itself and the process of knowing it constitute the essence of the thinking process. Since this world is consciousness, we can say that thinking (cognition) is the process of forming consciousness. Reasoning as such can be represented as a sequential process in which each previous judgment is connected with the next one, that is, a logic is established between them, which is formally enclosed in the “If ... then” scheme. With this approach, there is no third, hidden meaning between the two concepts. For example, if it is cold, then you should wear a coat. However, in the thinking process, the third element may be motivation. A person who is hardening up will not put on a coat when the temperature drops. In addition, he may have a group (social) idea of ​​what low temperature is and his own experience with similar temperatures. A child runs barefoot through cold puddles, although he is forbidden to do this, just because he likes it. Consequently, thinking can be divided into processes of logic, processes associated with speech (including its pace), individual and social motivation (goal), and the formation of concepts. It is absolutely certain that in addition to the conscious, actually expressed process of thinking, there is also an unconscious process that can be identified in the structure of speech. From the position of logic, the thinking process consists of analysis, synthesis, generalization, concretization and abstraction (distraction). However, logic can be formal, or it can be metaphorical, that is, poetic. We can refuse something because it is harmful, but we can also because we don’t intuitively like it or its harm is justified not by experience, but by the word of authority. Such a different logic is called mythological or archaic. When a girl tears up a portrait of her lover because he cheated on her, she symbolically destroys his image, although in a logical sense, a piece of paper with a picture of a person has nothing to do with the person himself. A person and his image, or his object, or parts of a person (hair, for example) are identified in this mythological thinking. Another law of mythological (archaic, poetic) thinking is binary oppositions, that is, oppositions such as good - evil, life - death, divine - earthly, male - female. Another sign is etiology, which leads a person to think, “Why did this happen to me,” although he is well aware that a similar accident has occurred many times in others in the past. In mythological thinking, the unity of perception, feelings and thinking (statements) is inseparable; this is especially noticeable in children who talk about what they see and what they feel without a distinct delay. Mythological thinking in adults is characteristic of poets and artists, but in psychopathology it manifests itself as an uncontrolled spontaneous process. The thinking process is formed as a result of learning. Tolman believed that this occurs due to the formation of a cognitive chain, and Keller pointed to the role of sudden insight - “insight.” According to Bandura, this learning occurs through a process of imitation and repetition. According to I.P. Pavlov, thinking processes reflect the physiology of conditioned and unconditioned reflexes. Behaviorists developed this theory into the concept of operant learning. According to Torndike, thinking is a reflection of behavior associated with trial and error, as well as fixing the effects of punishment in the past. Skinner identified such operants of learning as prejudices, one's own reflective behavior, behavioral modifications associated with learning, and the formation of new behavior (shaping). Behavior and thinking shape goals as a result of reinforcement, positive or negative (one form of negative reinforcement is punishment). Thus, the thinking process can be shaped by selecting a list of reinforcements and punishments. Positive reinforcements that contribute to the formation of motivation and specific thinking patterns include: food, water, sex, gifts, money, increased economic status. Positive reinforcement encourages reinforcement of behavior that precedes reinforcement, such as “good” behavior that is followed by a gift. In this way, cognitive chains or behaviors are formed that are rewarded or socially acceptable. Negative reinforcement is caused by darkness, heat, shock, loss of social face, pain, criticism, hunger or failure (deprivation). Thanks to the system of negative reinforcements, a person avoids the way of thinking that leads to punishment. Social motivation for the thinking process depends on culture, the influence of an authoritarian personality, and the need for social approval. It is driven by the desire for the prestigious values ​​of a group or society and consists of a strategy for overcoming difficulties. The highest needs according to Masloy are self-actualization, as well as cognitive and aesthetic needs. An intermediate place in the hierarchy of needs belongs to the desire for order, justice and beauty, as well as the need for respect, recognition and gratitude. At the lowest level are the needs for affection, love, belonging to a group, as well as physiological needs.

The main thought processes are the formation of concepts (symbols), judgments and inferences. Simple concepts are essential signs of objects or phenomena; complex concepts involve abstraction from the object - symbolization. For example, blood as a simple concept is associated with a specific physiological fluid, but as a complex concept it also means proximity, “bloodiness”. Accordingly, the color of the blood symbolically indicates the gender - “blue blood”. The sources of interpretation of symbols are psychopathology, dreams, fantasies, forgetting, slips of the tongue and mistakes.

Judgment is the process of comparing concepts through which a thought is formulated. This comparison occurs according to the type: positive - negative concept, simple - complex concept, familiar - unfamiliar. Based on a series of logical actions, a conclusion (hypothesis) is formed, which is refuted or confirmed in practice.

Symptoms of Thought Disorder

The following variants of thinking disorders are distinguished: by tempo, content, structure.

Tempo thinking disorders include:

• - acceleration of thinking, which is characterized by an acceleration of the tempo of speech, a jump of ideas that, despite the significant intensity of the tempo, do not have time to be expressed (fuga idearum). Often ideas are productive in nature and are associated with high creative activity. The symptom is characteristic of mania and hypomania.

Once you think about one thing, you immediately want to talk about the details, but then a new idea appears. You don’t have time to write it all down, but if you write it down, new thoughts appear again. It’s especially interesting at night, when no one bothers you and you don’t want to sleep. It seems like you can write a whole book in an hour.

• - slow thinking- a decrease in the number of associations and a slower rate of speech, accompanied by difficulty in choosing words and the formation of general concepts and conclusions. It is characteristic of depression, asthenic symptoms, and is also observed with minimal disorders of consciousness.

Once again they asked me something, but I need time to concentrate, I can’t do it right away. I’ve said everything and there are no more thoughts, I have to repeat it all over again until I get tired. When asked about conclusions, you generally need to think long and hard and it’s better if you do your homework.

• - mentism- an influx of thoughts, which is often violent. Usually such thoughts are diverse and cannot be expressed.
• - sperrung- “blockage” of thoughts, is perceived by the patient as a break in thoughts, a sudden emptiness in the head, silence. Sperrung and mentism are more characteristic of schizophrenia and schizotypal disorders.

All this looks like a whirlwind at the time of conversation or when you are thinking, there are many thoughts and they are confused, not a single one remains, but it is no better if they disappear. I just said a word, but there was no next word, and the thought disappeared. Often you get lost and leave, people get offended, but what can you do if you don’t know when it will happen.

To thinking disorders by content includes affective thinking, egocentric thinking, paranoid, obsessive and overvalued thinking.

Affective thinking characterized by a predominance of emotionally charged ideas in thinking, a high dependence of thinking on others, a quick reaction of the mental and emotionally inseparable process to any, often insignificant, stimulus (affective instability). Affective thinking is characteristic of patients suffering from mood disorders (depressive or manic thinking). The system of judgments and ideas in affective thinking is completely determined by the leading mood.

It seems that you have already decided everything for yourself. But in the morning you get up- and everything is gone, the mood is gone, and all decisions have to be canceled. Or it happens that someone upsets you, and then you get angry at everyone. But it also happens the other way around, a little thing, they will tell you that you look good, and the whole world is different and you want to be happy.

Egocentric thinking - with this type of thinking, all judgments and ideas are fixed on the narcissistic ideal, as well as on whether one’s own personality is useful or harmful. The rest, including social ideas, are swept aside. This type of thinking is often formed in dependent individuals, as well as in alcoholism and drug addiction. At the same time, egocentric traits may be normative for childhood.

It’s not clear what they all demand from me, my parents think that I should study, N., with whom I’m friends, that I need to look better. It seems like no one really understands me. If I don’t study and don’t work and don’t want to earn money, then it turns out I’m not a person, but I don’t bother anyone, I only do what I like. You can’t please everyone, but let them walk the dog themselves, she loves them more.

Paranoid thinking - thinking is based on delusional ideas, combined with suspicion, mistrust, and rigidity. Delusion is a false conclusion that arises on a painful basis, for example, it can be secondary from an altered mood, increased or decreased, hallucinations, or primary, as a result of the formation of a special logic that is understandable only to the patient himself.

Too much around is connected into one chain. When I was going to work, a man dressed in all black pushed me, then at work there were two suspicious calls, I picked up the phone and heard angry silence and someone’s breathing. Then a new sign “You’re here again” appeared at the entrance, then the water was turned off at home. I go out onto the balcony and see the same man, but dressed in a blue shirt. What do they all want from me? You need to add an additional lock to the door.

Delusional ideas do not lend themselves to persuasion, and there is no criticism of them from the patient himself. The cognitive connections that support the existence of delusions based on the feedback principle are as follows: 1) distrust of others is formed: I am probably not too friendly - other people therefore avoid me - I understand why they do this - increased distrust of others. The stages of delirium formation according to K. Conrad are as follows:

• - trema - delusional premonition, anxiety, detection of the source of the formation of a new logical chain;
• - apophene - the formation of a gestalt of delirium - the formation of a delusional idea, its crystallization, sometimes sudden insight;
• - apocalypse - the collapse of the delusional system due to therapy or affective exhaustion.

According to the mechanism of formation, delusions are divided into primary - it is associated with the interpretation and construction of step-by-step logic, secondary - associated with the formation of holistic images, for example, under the influence of an altered mood or hallucination, and induced - in which the recipient, being a healthy person, reproduces the delusional system of the inducer, mentally sick person.

According to the degree of systematization, delirium can be fragmented and systematized. According to the content, the following variants of delusional ideas are distinguished:

• - Ideas of relationship and meaning. People around him notice the patient, look at him in a special way, and hint with their behavior at his special purpose. He is in the center of attention and interprets environmental phenomena that were previously not significant to him as significant. For example, he associates car license plates, glances of passers-by, accidentally dropped objects, words addressed not to him as hints related to himself.

It started about a month ago when I was returning from a business trip. There were people sitting in the next compartment and they looked at me in a special way, with meaning, they deliberately went out into the corridor and looked into my compartment. I realized that something was wrong with me. I looked in the mirror and realized that it was my eyes, they were kind of crazy. Then at the station everyone seemed to know about me, they specially broadcast on the radio “Now he’s already here.” On my street they dug a trench almost to my house, this is a hint that it’s time to get out of here.

• - Ideas of persecution - the patient believes that he is being followed, finds a lot of evidence of surveillance, finds hidden equipment, gradually noticing that the circle of pursuers is expanding. He claims that his pursuers irradiate him with special equipment or use hypnosis to control his thoughts, mood, behavior and desires. This version of delusion of persecution is referred to as delusion of influence. The persecution system may include ideas of poisoning. The patient believes that poison is being added to his food, the air is being poisoned, or objects that have been previously treated with poison are being replaced. Transitive delusions of persecution are also possible, in which the patient himself begins to pursue imaginary pursuers, using aggression against them.

It's strange that no one notices this- There is listening equipment everywhere, they even talked about it on TV. You look at the computer screen, but in fact it is looking at you, there are sensors there. Who needs it? Probably the secret services, which are engaged in recruiting people who should be involved in the secret drug trade. They specially mix ecstasy into Coca-Cola, you drink it and you feel like you are being led. They teach it and then use it. I was washing in the bathroom, but I didn’t close the door, I felt like they were coming in, leaving a bag in the hallway, blue, I didn’t have one like that, but there was something smeared inside it. You touch it, and a mark remains on your hand, by which you can be identified anywhere.

• - Ideas of greatness are expressed in the patient’s conviction that he has power in the form of exceptional strength, energy due to divine origin, enormous wealth, exceptional achievements in the field of science, art, politics, and the exceptional value of the reforms he proposes. E. Kraepelin divided ideas of greatness (paraphrenic ideas) into expansive paraphrenia, in which power is the result of an increased (expansive) mood; confabulatory paraphrenia, in which the patient ascribes to himself past exceptional merits, but at the same time he forgets the real events of the past, replacing them with a delusional fantasy; systematized paraphrenia, which is formed as a result of logical constructions; as well as hallucinatory paraphrenia, as an explanation of exceptionalism, “suggested” by voices or other hallucinatory images.

During a period of catastrophic inflation, when salaries amounted to millions of coupons, patient Ts., 62 years old, believes that he has extremely valuable sperm, which is used to grow the SSA army. The high value of excrement is characteristic of the Moses symptom (Moses), in which patients claim that their feces, urine and sweat have a value comparable only to gold. The patient also claims to be the president of America, Belarus and the CIS. He assures that a helicopter arrives in the village with 181 virgins, whom he inseminates at a special point at the breeding plant, and 5,501 boys are born from them. He believes that he revived Lenin and Stalin. He considers the President of Ukraine to be God, and Russia - the First King. In 5 days he inseminated 10 thousand and for this he received from the people 129 million 800 thousand dollars, which they bring to him in bags, he hides the bags in the closet.

• - Ideas of jealousy consist in the conviction of adultery, while the arguments are absurd. For example, the patient claims that his partner has sexual intercourse through the wall.

She cheats on me anywhere and with anyone. Even when I get down and agree with my friends about control, it still works out. Proof. Well, I come home, there is a trace of a person on the bed, such a dent. There are spots on the carpet that look like sperm, my lip is bitten from a kiss. Well, at night, sometimes, she gets up and goes, as if to the toilet, but the door closes, what is she doing there, I listened, moans were heard, as if during an orgasm.

• - Love delusion is expressed in the subjective conviction that she (he) is the object of love of a politician, movie star or doctor, often a gynecologist. The person in question is often persecuted and forced to reciprocate.

My husband is a famous psychotherapist, and he is constantly pursued by patients, especially women, but among them there is one who is different from all the other fans. She even steals our rugs and makes scandals with me that he is dressed incorrectly or looks bad. Often she literally sleeps in our yard, and there is no escape from her. She thinks that I am a fictitious wife, and she is the real one. Because of her, we constantly change phone numbers. She publishes her letters to him in newspapers and there describes various indecent things that she attributes to him. She tells everyone that her child is his, although she is 20 years older than him.

• - Ideas of guilt and self-blame are usually formed against the background of low mood. The patient is convinced that he is guilty of his actions before his loved ones and society; he is awaiting trial and execution.

Because I can't do anything at home, everything is bad. The children are not dressed like that, my husband will soon leave me because I don’t cook. This must all be for the sins of my family, if not mine. I must suffer to atone for them. I ask them to do something with me, and not look at me with such reproach.

• - Hypochondriacal delusion - the patient interprets his somatic sensations, paresthesia, senestopathy as a manifestation of an incurable disease, for example, AIDS, cancer. Requires examination, expects death.

This spot on the chest used to be small, but now it is growing. It is melanoma. Yes, they did histology for me, but probably incorrectly. The spot itches and shoots into the heart, these are metastases, I read in the encyclopedia that there are metastases in the mediastinum. That's why I have difficulty breathing and a lump in my stomach. I have already written my will and I think that everything will end quickly, as weakness is growing.

• - Nihilistic delirium (Cotard's delirium) - the patient assures that his insides are missing, they are “rotten”, similar processes are occurring in the environment - the whole world is dead or is at various stages of decomposition.
• - Delusion of staging - is expressed in the idea that all surrounding events are specially arranged as in a theater, the staff and patients in the department are actually secret service officers in disguise, the patient’s behavior is staged, which is shown on television.

I was brought here for interrogation, supposedly you are a doctor, but I see how your shoulder straps are outlined under your robe. There are no patients here, everything is arranged. Maybe a special film is being made based on an intelligence scenario. For what? To find out from me the truth of my birth, that I am not at all who I say I am. This is not a pen in your hands, but a transmitter, you write, but in reality- transmit the encryption.

• - The delusion of a double consists of the conviction of the presence of a positive or negative, that is, embodying negative personality traits, double, which may be located at a considerable distance and may be associated with the patient through hallucinatory or symbolic constructions.

Patient L. assures that his incorrect behavior is not his behavior at all, but his twin, who was abandoned by his parents and ended up abroad. Now he acts on his behalf to recruit him. “He is exactly the same as me, and even dressed the same, but he always does things that I would not dare to do. You say that it was I who broke the window at home. That’s not true, I was in a completely different place at that time.”

• - Manichaean delusion - the patient is convinced that the whole world and he himself are an arena for the struggle between good and evil - God and the devil. This system can be confirmed by mutually exclusive pseudohallucinations, that is, voices that argue with each other for possession of a person's soul.

I go to church twice a day and carry a Bible with me at all times because I have trouble figuring things out on my own. At first I didn’t know what was right and what was sin. Then I realized that there is God in everything and there is a devil in everything. God calms me down, but the devil tempts me. For example, I drink water, take an extra sip - it’s a sin, God helps to atone - I read prayers, but then two voices appeared, one of God, the other of the devil, and they began to argue with each other and fight for my soul, and I got confused.

• - Dysmorphoptic delusion - the patient (patient), often a teenager, is convinced (convinced) that her face shape is changed, there is an anomaly of the body (most often the genitals), insists on surgical treatment of the anomalies.

I'm in a bad mood because I always think about the fact that my penis is small. I know that it increases during an erection, but I still think about it. I’ll probably never be sexually active, although I’m 18 years old, it’s better not to think about it. Maybe have surgery now before it's too late. I read that it can be increased with special procedures.

• - Delusion of possession - consists in the fact that the patient feels himself transformed into an animal, for example, into a wolf (lycanthropy), into a bear (Lokis symptom), into a vampire or into an inanimate object.

At first there was a constant rumbling in the stomach, like turning on the ignition, then a space like a cavity with fuel formed between the stomach and bladder. These thoughts turned me into a mechanism, and a network of plexuses with wires and pipes formed inside. At night, a computer was built behind the eyes, with a screen inside the head, which showed quick codes of glowing blue numbers.

All forms of delirium are similar to mythological constructs (mythologems), which are embodied in archaic traditions, epics, myths, legends, plots of dreams and fantasies. For example, ideas of possession are present in the folklore of most countries: a girl is a fox werewolf in China, Ivan Tsarevich is a gray wolf, and the Frog Princess in Russian folklore. The most common plots of delirium and corresponding mythologies relate to the ideas of prohibition and its violations, struggle, victory, persecution and salvation in stories of origin, rebirth, including miraculous ones, death, and fate. In this case, the actor plays the role of a saboteur, a giver, a magical helper, a sender and a hero, as well as a false hero.

Paranoid thinking is characteristic of schizophrenia, paranoid disorders and induced delusional disorders, as well as organic delusional disorders. The equivalents of delusions in children are delusional fantasies and overvalued fears. At delusional fantasies the child talks about a fantastic made-up world, and is sure that it really exists, replacing reality. In this world there are good and evil characters, aggression and love. Just like delirium, it is not subject to criticism, but it is very changeable, like any fantasy. Overvalued fears are expressed in fears towards objects that do not themselves have such a phobic component. For example, a child may be afraid of the corner of the room, part of the parents’ body, a radiator, or a window. The full picture of delirium often appears in children only after 9 years.

Overvalued thinking includes extremely valuable ideas, which are not always false conclusions, develop in special sthenic individuals, but they dominate in their mental life, crowding out all other motives, there is no criticism of them. Examples of highly valuable formations are the ideas of revolutionary transformation of the world, invention, including the invention of a perpetual motion machine, the elixir of youth, the philosopher's stone; ideas of physical and moral perfection with the help of an endless number of psychotechniques; ideas of litigiousness and struggle against a specific person through litigation; as well as extremely valuable ideas for collecting, for the implementation of which the patient completely subordinates his entire life to the object of passion. The psychological analogue of overvalued thinking is the process of formation and formation of love.

Overvalued thinking is characteristic of paranoid personality disorders.

I quarreled with my loved ones and wanted to live separately. But this is completely impossible, since I have nowhere to take my collection. They accuse me that I spend all my money on old and empty bottles and they are everywhere, even in the toilet. There are bottles from the time of the siege of Sevastopol by the British and French, for which I paid a fortune. What do they understand about this? Yes, I gave it to my wife because she broke, supposedly by accident, a bottle that was hard for me to get. But I was ready to kill her for it, because I exchanged it for a whole collection of beer bottles.

Obsessive thinking characterized by stereotypically repetitive thoughts, ideas, memories, actions, fears, rituals that arise against the patient’s will, usually against a background of anxiety. However, in contrast to nonsense and overvalued ideas, there is complete criticism of them. Obsessive thoughts can be expressed in repeated memories, doubts, for example, memories of hearing a melody, an insult, obsessive doubts and double-checking the gas turned off, the iron, or a closed door. Obsessive attraction is also accompanied by obsessive thoughts that must be impulsively carried out, such as compulsive theft (kleptomania), arson (pyromania), suicide (suicidomania). Obsessive thoughts can lead to phobias, that is, obsessive fears, such as fears of crowded places and open spaces (agoraphobia), closed spaces (claustrophobia), pollution (mysophobia), fear of contracting a specific disease (nosophobia) and even fear of fear (phobophobia). The occurrence of fears is avoided by rituals.

Even as a child, Kostya, when he went to an exam, had to first get dressed, and then undress, touch me 21 times, and then wave me three more times from the street. Then it became more and more difficult. He washed himself for 20 - 30 minutes, and then spent hours in the bathroom. He spent half my salary on shampoo. His hands had cracks from the water, so he rubbed his palms with a sponge, thinking that this would wash away the infection. In addition, he was afraid of sharp objects and demanded that they be removed from the table so as not to cut himself. But eating is a whole torture for him. He places the spoon on the left, then on the right, then he levels it slightly in relation to the plate, then he levels the plate, and so on ad infinitum. When he puts on his trousers, the creases must be straight, but to do this he must climb onto the sofa and pull the trousers down from the sofa. If something doesn’t work out for him, everything is repeated all over again.

Obsessive thinking is characteristic of obsessive-compulsive disorders, anancastic and anxiety personality disorders.

Thinking disorders by structure can be divided into changes in the system of logic (paralogical thinking), changes in the smoothness and coherence of thinking.

Paralogical thinking E.A. Sevalev divides it into prelogical, autistic, formalizing and identifying. Each of these types of thinking is based on its own logic.

Prelogical thinking is the equivalent of the mythopoetic thinking we described above. In psychopathology, such thinking is characterized by filling images and ideas with ideas of witchcraft, mysticism, psychoenergetics, religious heresy, and sectarianism. The whole world can be understood in the symbols of poetic, sensual logic and explained based on intuitive ideas. The patient is sure that he should behave one way and not another based on signs of nature or his own premonitions. This kind of thinking can be considered regressive because it resembles childish thinking. Thus, prelogical thinking operates with archaic logic, characteristic of ancient peoples. Characteristic of acute sensory delirium, hysterical personality disorders.

All these troubles are due to the fact that I was jinxed. I went to a psychic, and he said that I needed to put a screen against the evil eye and damage and gave me some kind of herb. This helped immediately, but then the neighbor said that the damage was repeated, and showed a dirty door and a tossed tuft of hair. I went to church and asked to bless the apartment, as the troubles continued and my husband began to come home drunk every evening. This also helped for a short time. There must be a strong evil eye. She went to Grandma Marfa, who gave her a charged photograph and hid it under her husband’s pillow. He slept soundly, but in the evening he got drunk again. Against a strong evil eye, you probably need a strong energy drink.

Autistic thinking is characterized by the patient’s immersion in the world of his own fantasies, which in symbolic form compensate for inferiority complexes. With external coldness, detachment from reality, and indifference, the patient’s rich, bizarre and often fantastic inner world is striking. Some of these fantasies are accompanied by visualized ideas; they fill the patient’s creative output and can be filled with deep philosophical content. Thus, behind the colorless scenes of the personality, magnificent feasts of mental life take place. In other cases, when their emotional state changes, autistic patients can openly express their creative imagination. This phenomenon is referred to as “inside-out autism.” An autistic child has relatively rich fantasies, and even high success in certain abstract areas of knowledge, for example philosophy, astronomy, are masked by avoidance of bodily contact, gaze, uncoordinated motor skills and motor stereotypies. One of the autists expressed his world so symbolically: “with the ring of self-creativity, you can firmly secure yourself outside.” Autistic thinking is based on fantasy logic, which is understandable based on unconscious individual motivation and is a compensation for high sensitivity to stress. Therefore, the autistic world is a kind of escape from cruel reality. It is characteristic of schizophrenia, schizotypal and schizoid personality disorders, although it can also occur with accentuations, that is, in mentally healthy people.

My son is 21 years old, and I take care of him all the time, since he has always been an unusual boy. He graduated from 11th grade, but did not know anyone in the class. I negotiated the grades myself. He doesn’t go outside on his own, only with me. He only reads books about birds. He can sit on the balcony for hours and watch sparrows or tits. But he never says why he needs this. He keeps diaries and has filled many thick notebooks. It is written in them like this: “she flew up and sat on a branch and ran her foot across her abdomen three times,” a bird was drawn next to her, and these drawings with different comments were written in all the notebooks. I tried to persuade him to go to university, but he refused, he was not interested. When we go out for a walk, he stops by some tree and looks at the birds for a long time, then writes it down. He doesn’t write to anyone about his observations and doesn’t want to talk about them, he doesn’t watch TV or read newspapers, and doesn’t know how much bread costs.

Formalizing thinking can also be called bureaucratic. The cognitive life of such patients is filled with rules, regulations and patterns, which are usually drawn from the social environment or associated with upbringing. It is impossible to go beyond these schemes, and if reality does not correspond to them, then such individuals experience anxiety, protest, or a desire for edification. Characteristic of paranoid personality disorders and Pick's disease.

There must be order throughout the world. It is completely untrue that some of our neighbors come home late, I struggle with this, and I made a lock with keys on the entrance. Everything we achieved before was connected with order, but now there is no order. There is dirt everywhere because they don’t clean it up, state control over everything needs to be restored so that people don’t wander around the streets. They don’t like that at work I demand to report on who went where and when he will return. It is impossible without this. There is no order at home either, every day I post a diagram of how much was spent and how many calories my wife and daughter should consume depending on their weight.

Symbolic thinking is characterized by the production of symbols that are understandable only to the patient himself, which can be extremely pretentious and expressed in invented words (neologisms). So, for example, one of the patients explains the word “syphilis” this way - physically strong, and the word “tuberculosis” - I take the one I love to tears. In other words, if an ordinary complex concept (symbol) can be interpreted based on the characteristics of culture (collective unconscious), religious allegories, semantics of the group, then with symbolic thinking such an interpretation is possible only based on personal deeply unconscious or past experience. Characteristic of schizophrenia.

I didn't just decide that my parents weren't real. The fact is that my name Kirill contains the truth. It consists of the words “Cyrus” - there was such a king, it seems, and “silt”, that is, found in a swamp. This means they just found me and I have a real name, but not a last name.

Patient L. creates a special symbolic font based on the inclusion of “feminine in the understanding of the letter”: a - anesthetic, b - shaving, c - performing, d - looking, e- extractive, e - natural, w - vital, living, z - healthy, i - going, ......n - real, ...s - free, ...f - milling, naval, ...sch- panelboard, ..yu - jewelry.

Identifying thinking is characterized by the fact that a person uses in his thinking meanings, expressions and concepts that actually do not belong to him, but to other, often authoritarian, dominant individuals. This type of thinking becomes the norm in countries with a totalitarian regime, requiring constant reference to the authority of the leader and his understanding of a particular situation. This thinking is due to the mechanism of projective identification. Characteristic of dependent and dissocial personality disorders.

I try to explain to them that there is no need to do this, because they will judge you and will not understand you. Who? All. You need to behave in such a way that you are like everyone else. When they call me “up”, I always think that I have done something bad, that they found out about me, because everything seems to be in order. I am no worse or better than others. I love the songs of singer P., I bought a dress like hers. I like our president, he is a very careful person, he says everything correctly.

Changes in the fluidity and coherence of thinking are manifested in the following disorders: amorphous thinking is expressed in the presence of coherence among themselves in the meaning of individual parts of a sentence and even individual sentences while the general meaning of what was said eludes. It seems that the patient is “floating” or “spreading out”, being unable to express the general idea of ​​​​what was said or directly answer the question. Characteristic of schizoid personality disorders and accentuations.

You are asking about when I left the institute. In general, yes. The situation seemed to be such that I didn’t really want to study, somehow gradually. But that’s not what we’re talking about; immediately after admission, disappointment arose, and I stopped liking everything. So day after day I wanted to change something, but I didn’t know what, and everything stopped interesting me, and I stopped going to classes because of this very disappointment. When it’s not interesting, then, you know, there’s simply no need to study further, it’s better to work smart, although there weren’t any particular troubles. What question did you ask?

Subject-specific thinking characteristic of persons with mental retardation, expressed in primitive speech with formal logic. For example, to the question - how do you understand the saying “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree?” answers: “The apples always fall close to the tree.” Characteristic of mental retardation and dementia.

Reasonable thinking expressed in reasoning about a question instead of a direct answer to the question. Thus, the wife of one patient says this about her husband: “He is so smart that it is absolutely impossible to understand what he is talking about.”

To the question “How do you feel?” the patient answers: “It depends on what you understand by the word feelings. If you understand by them your sensation of my feelings, then your sense of self will not correspond to my thoughts about your feelings.”

Characteristic of schizotypal disorders, schizophrenia and accentuations.

Thorough thinking characterized by detail, viscosity, and sticking on individual parts. When answering even a simple question, the patient tries to endlessly delve into the smallest details. Characteristic of epilepsy.

I have headaches. You know, in this place there is a slight pressure on the temple, especially when you get up or immediately after lying down, sometimes after eating. This slight pressure in this place happens when you read a lot, then it pulsates slightly and something beats... Then you feel nauseous, this happens at any time of the year, but especially often in the fall, when you eat a lot of fruit, however, the same thing happens in the spring when it rains It happens. Such a strange nausea from bottom to top and you swallow... Although not always, sometimes it happens, as if there is a lump in one place that you cannot swallow.

Thematic slippage characterized by a sudden change in the topic of conversation and a lack of connection between spoken sentences. For example, to the question “How many children do you have?” the patient answers “I have two children. I think I’ve eaten too much this morning.” Thematic slippage is one of the signs of a special structure of thinking and speech - schizophasia, in which a paralogical connection between individual sentences is likely. In the above example, in particular, the indicated connection is established between the children and the fact that they refused food in the morning, so the patient ate it himself.

Incoherent thinking(incoherent) - with this type of thinking, there is no connection between individual words in a sentence, repetitions of individual words often appear (perseveration).

Verbigeration- a thinking disorder in which the connection not only between words, but also between syllables is disrupted. The patient may pronounce individual sounds and syllables stereotypically. Various degrees of fragmented thinking are characteristic of schizophrenia.

Speech stereotypies can be expressed as repetitions of individual words, phrases or sentences. Patients can tell the same stories, anecdotes (gramophone record symptom). Sometimes standing turns are accompanied by attenuation, for example, the patient utters the phrase “A headache sometimes bothers me. I get a headache sometimes. Headache me. Headache. Head". Speech stereotypies are characteristic of dementia.

Coprolalia- the predominance of obscene phrases and phrases in speech, sometimes with complete displacement of ordinary speech. Characteristic of dissocial personality disorders and manifests itself in all acute psychoses.

Diagnosis of thought disorders

Methods for studying thinking include studying the structure of language, since language is the main field of manifestation of thinking. In modern psycholinguistics, there are studies of the semantics (meaning) of a statement, syntactic analysis (the study of sentence structure), morphemic analysis (the study of units of meaning), the analysis of monologue and dialogic speech, as well as phonemic analysis, that is, the study of the basic sounds of speech that reflect its emotional content. The rate of speech reflects the speed of thinking, but it should be remembered that the only tool for comparing the speed of speech, as well as its content, is the thinking of the doctor himself. The level and course of thought processes is studied using the methods of “regularities of a number series”, a test of quantitative relations, unfinished sentences, understanding of plot pictures, highlighting essential features, exception tests and the formation of analogies, as well as the Ebbenhausen test (see the corresponding section of the textbook). The processes of symbolization and identification of unconscious thinking structures are studied using the method of pictograms and associative experiments.

25.04.2019

The long weekend is coming, and many Russians will go on holiday outside the city. It's a good idea to know how to protect yourself from tick bites. The temperature regime in May contributes to the activation of dangerous insects...

Medical articles

Ophthalmology is one of the most dynamically developing areas of medicine. Every year, technologies and procedures appear that make it possible to obtain results that seemed unattainable just 5-10 years ago. For example, at the beginning of the 21st century, treating age-related farsightedness was impossible. The most an elderly patient could count on was...

Almost 5% of all malignant tumors are sarcomas. They are highly aggressive, rapidly spread hematogenously, and are prone to relapse after treatment. Some sarcomas develop for years without showing any signs...

Viruses not only float in the air, but can also land on handrails, seats and other surfaces, while remaining active. Therefore, when traveling or in public places, it is advisable not only to exclude communication with other people, but also to avoid...

Regaining good vision and saying goodbye to glasses and contact lenses forever is the dream of many people. Now it can be made a reality quickly and safely. The completely non-contact Femto-LASIK technique opens up new possibilities for laser vision correction.

Classification of thinking according to Zeigarnik. The theory is based on:

1. Violation of the operational side of thinking (synthesis, analysis, abstraction)

a) reduction in the level of generalization

b) distortion of the generalization process

a) in the thinking of patients one can distinguish concreteness, an insufficient level of abstraction, the use of simple unambiguous connections between phenomena, and a concrete situational type of problem solving. Those. the patient draws a conclusion, uses the situation to combine situations with each other, the situations are related to life experience. For example: classification methodology. When considering a specific situation, patients will be allocated an abstract sign. This will manifest itself in organic diseases of the brain, epilepsy, mental retardation, mental retardation.

b) repression of judgments based on non-basic latent features. The patient does not use standard signs, but collateral connections. For example: a sparrow and a nightingale - a person with schizophrenia will say that they can make sounds.

2. Violation of the dynamic side of thinking.

Lability of thinking - excessive mobility of thought processes (often in a manic state). The patient jumps from one thing to another, thinks out loud.

Inconsistency, slipping - the patient is able to maintain the correct line of reasoning for some time, but at some point he switches and performs the task incorrectly.

Often with vascular diseases of the brain

Often caused by fluctuations in attention.

Fleeting fluctuations in performance:

• responsiveness
• the patient is not able to maintain the course of reasoning for a long time and his mental activity is disorganized as a result of the appearance of side stimuli.
• inertia of thinking (rigidity, rigidity) is due to the rigidity of already formed connections, methods of action and past experience. It is difficult to switch from one type of activity to another, and difficulties arise in inclusion in the task.

3. Violation of the motivational aspect of thinking

1). reasoning- ethereal reasoning. The patient discusses some topic in sufficient detail, which is not required by the situation.

In patients with schizophrenia, unproductive reasoning and ineffectiveness of the process. Each mental illness has its own specifics.

• in schizophrenia - the topic is significant, has an abstract nature, there are many details in its development in the absence of the result of reasoning, the inadequacy of the whole situation. Pretentiousness of definitions, isolation from reality
• with epilepsy - the patient as a moralist, a defender of rules, ethical standards, a person explains himself pathetically, the position of a broadcaster.
• in case of organic brain lesions, reasoning is of a compensatory nature; for the patient it is a way to compensate for his failure, to avoid performing a difficult task.
• putting into the plan loud external speech, the execution of operations and the general program of actions.

Avoiding the topic, avoiding a difficult situation.

2). diversity of thinking When performing the same task, the patient comes from different attitudes, often not related to either the instructions or the content of the task. As a result, the patient may make conflicting judgments. Most common in schizophrenia

Diversity levels:

• slippage - single acts, single deviations from the general progress of the task
• actual diversity
• fragmented thinking in general

It is often impossible to restore the patient's logical connections and judgments. Speech and judgments are fragmentary, may be correctly grammatically formulated, but are devoid of meaning, entire phrases are meaningless, but with the correct grammatical structure.

4. Violation of criticality

Violation of criticality - the personal level is activated. They occur frequently, in principle, in everyone, with the exception of neurotics.

Inability to adequately evaluate one’s actions, their compliance with the requirements of the task, insufficient planning, control over one’s actions, error correction.

Different patients have different aspects of criticality. Criticality is associated with social adaptation, the ability to evaluate one’s behavior in accordance with social requirements and rules.

1. Acceleration of thinking (“leap of ideas”) Conventionally, more associations are formed per unit of time than normal, and at the same time their quality suffers. Images, ideas, judgments, and conclusions that quickly replace each other are extremely superficial. The abundance of ease of new associations that spontaneously arise from any stimulus is reflected in speech production, which may resemble the so-called. machine gun speech. From continuous talking, patients sometimes lose their voice, or it becomes hoarse and whispery. In general, acceleration of thinking is an obligatory derivative of manic syndrome of various origins (affective disorders, schizophrenia, drug addiction, etc.) Jump of ideas (fuga idearum). This is an extreme acceleration of thinking: the thought process and speech production continuously flows and jumps; they are incoherent. However, if this speech is recorded on a tape recorder and played back at a slow pace, it is possible to determine some meaning in it, which never happens with true incoherent thinking. The basis of the race of ideas is the increased lability of cortical processes.

Characteristic:

• Quick associations, increased distractibility, expressive gestures and facial expressions.
• Analysis, synthesis, and understanding of the situation are not impaired.
• They don’t think much about the answer.
• Errors are easily corrected if pointed out.
• Associations are chaotic, random, and uninhibited.
• The generalized meaning of the task is accessible; he can perform it at this level if he is not distracted.

2. Inertia of thinking Manifestations: inhibition, poverty of associations. The slowdown in the associative process is most pronounced in an absolutely “empty head, in which thoughts do not appear at all.” Patients answer questions in monosyllables and after a long pause (the latent period of speech reactions increases compared to the norm by 7-10 times). The general goal of the thought process is preserved, but switching to new goals is extremely difficult. Such a disorder is usually characteristic of epilepsy (“primary disorder”), epileptoid psychopathy, manic-depressive syndrome, but can be observed in apathetic and asthenic conditions, as well as in mild degrees of clouding of consciousness. Patients can change the way they work, change their judgment, or switch to another type of activity. Characterized by slowness, stiffness, and poor switchability. The solution to a problem is available if it is performed in only one specific way. The inertia of connections from past experience leads to a decrease in the level of generalization.

3. Inconsistency of judgment Unsustainable way of completing a task. The level of generalization has not been reduced. Analysis, synthesis, and assimilation of instructions are intact. Understand the figurative meaning of proverbs and metaphors. The adequate nature of judgments is unstable. Alternate between the correct and incorrect way to complete a task. 81% vascular diseases 68% trauma 66% MDP 14% schizophrenia (in remission) With an unexpressed degree of the disease, such inconsistency of judgment can be corrected. Often it is enough to attract attention for the patient to correct himself. Oscillations occur at the slightest change in task conditions.

4. “Responsiveness” In patients suffering from severe vascular diseases. The instability of the method of performing a task and the associated fluctuations in mental achievements acquire a grotesque character. Example: after completing the classification, the patient suddenly begins to treat the pictures as real objects: he tries to put the card with a ship, because if you put it down, it will drown. Such patients may not be oriented in place and time. They are not critical of their condition. They don’t remember the names of loved ones, significant dates, or the name of the doctor. Speech is impaired and may be incoherent. The behavior is often ridiculous. There are no spontaneous statements. These violations are dynamic. Over a short period of time, the nature of the patients’ judgments and actions fluctuates. Characterized by increased responsiveness to a variety of environmental stimuli that are not addressed to them. Sometimes environmental objects are woven into speech. A forced tendency is created to reflect in speech, without selection, everything that is perceived. Rapid response to external random stimuli is combined with poor switching ability. In earlier works, the phenomenon of responsiveness was described as field behavior.

It is necessary to distinguish between responsiveness and distractibility (in children). They have different genesis:

• responsiveness is a consequence of a decrease in the level of cortical activity; contributes to the destruction of purposeful activity.
• distractibility is a consequence of an enhanced orientation reflex and high activity of the cortex.

The formation of a large number of temporary connections is the basis for further purposeful activity.

5. Slipping Correctly solving any task and adequately reasoning about any subject, patients suddenly stray from the correct train of thought due to a false, inadequate association, and then are again able to continue reasoning consistently, without repeating the error, but without correcting it. Typical for fairly intact patients with schizophrenia. Slips are sudden and episodic. In an associative experiment, random associations and associations based on consonance (woe-sea) often appear. The process of generalization and abstraction is not disrupted. They can correctly synthesize material and correctly identify essential features. At the same time, for a certain period of time, the correct course of thinking is disrupted due to the fact that patients in their judgments begin to be guided by random, unimportant signs in a given situation.

II. Violations of the operational side of thinking in mental illness.

1. Reduced level of generalization In the judgments of patients, direct ideas about objects and phenomena dominate; Operating with general features is replaced by establishing specific connections between objects. They cannot select the features that most fully reveal the concept. 95% oligophrenia 86% epilepsy 70% encephalitis

2. Distortion of the generalization process. They reflect only the random side of phenomena, the essential relationships between objects are little taken into account; the substantive content of things and phenomena is not taken into account. More common in patients with schizophrenia (67%) and psychopaths (33%). The disruption of the generalization process is caused by the fact that patients are not guided by culturally accepted relationships between objects. So, in the problem, the fourth-too-man can combine a table, a bed and a closet, calling them volumes limited by wooden planes.

III. Disturbances in the motivational component of thinking.

1. Diversity of thinking - patients’ judgments about any phenomena occur on different planes. Patients do not complete tasks, although they assimilate instructions; their mental operations of comparison, discrimination, generalization, and distraction are intact. The patient's actions lack purposefulness. Diversity appears especially clearly in tasks on classifying objects and eliminating objects.

2. Reasoning - “a tendency to fruitless philosophizing”, “verbal tumor” (I.P. Pavlov). Speech is replete with complex logical constructions, fanciful abstract concepts, and terms that are often used without understanding their true meaning. If a patient with thoroughness strives to answer the doctor’s question as fully as possible, then for patients with reasoning it does not matter whether their interlocutor understood. They are interested in the process of thinking itself, and not the final thought. Thinking becomes amorphous, devoid of clear content. When discussing simple everyday issues, patients find it difficult to accurately formulate the subject of the conversation, express themselves in florid ways, and consider problems from the point of view of the most abstract sciences (philosophy, ethics, cosmology). Such a penchant for lengthy, fruitless philosophical reasoning is often combined with absurd abstract hobbies (metaphysical intoxication). Psychological research. Thus, from the point of view of psychiatrists, reasoning is a pathology of thinking itself, however, psychological studies (T.I. Tepenitsyna) have shown that these are violations not so much of intellectual operations, but of the personality as a whole (increased affectivity, inadequate attitude, the desire to let anyone down). , even the most insignificant phenomenon under some “concept”). Research has shown that the inadequacy, reasoning of patients, and their verbosity appeared in cases where there was affective preoccupation, an excessive narrowing of the circle of meaning-forming motives, and an increased tendency to “value judgments.” Affectivity is also manifested in the very form of the statement: meaningful, with inappropriate pathos. Sometimes only the intonation of the subject allows us to regard the statement as reasonable (that’s why what is described in textbooks looks so faded - there is no emotionality in intonations). Types of reasoning for various mental pathologies:

1. Schizophrenic (classical) reasoning.
2. Epileptic reasoning
3. Organic reasoning

3. Violation of criticality. Loss of focus of thinking, superficiality, incompleteness of thinking; thinking ceases to be a regulator of human actions. S.L. Rubinstein: only in the process of thinking, in which the subject more or less consciously correlates the results of the thought process with objective data, is an error possible and that “the ability to realize an error is the privilege of thought.” In psychopathology, criticality is a critical attitude towards delusions, hallucinations, and other painful experiences. For Zeigarnik: criticality is the ability to act thoughtfully, check and correct one’s actions in accordance with objective conditions.

4. Associative thinking. A rare phenomenon that occurs with damage to the frontal lobes of the brain and deep schizophrenia, which has led to a complete collapse of the motivational sphere. It is characterized by the fact that thinking is determined by the laws of associations.

Symptoms of the disease - thinking disorders

Violations and their causes by category:

Violations and their causes in alphabetical order:

thinking disorder -

Thinking is the process of modeling systematic relations of the surrounding world on the basis of unconditional provisions. However, in psychology there are many other definitions. For example, the highest stage of information processing by a person or animal, the process of establishing connections between objects or phenomena of the surrounding world; or - the process of reflecting the essential properties of objects, as well as the connections between them, which leads to the emergence of ideas about objective reality. Thinking is the highest form of reflection of objective reality in human consciousness. This is a generalized reflection of reality, carried out through words and mediated by existing knowledge. Debate over the definition continues to this day.

In pathopsychology and neuropsychology, thinking is classified as one of the HMFs. It is considered as an activity that has a motive, a goal, a system of actions and operations, a result and control.

What diseases cause thinking disorders:

Disturbances in the dynamics of thinking.

1. Acceleration of thinking (“leap of ideas”) Conventionally, more associations are formed per unit of time than normal, and at the same time their quality suffers. Images, ideas, judgments, and conclusions that quickly replace each other are extremely superficial. The abundance of ease of new associations that spontaneously arise from any stimulus is reflected in speech production, which may resemble the so-called. machine gun speech. From continuous talking, patients sometimes lose their voice, or it becomes hoarse and whispery. In general, acceleration of thinking is an obligatory derivative of manic syndrome of various origins (affective disorders, schizophrenia, drug addiction, etc.)

A leap of ideas (fuga idearum). This is an extreme acceleration of thinking: the thought process and speech production continuously flows and jumps; they are incoherent. However, if this speech is recorded on a tape recorder and played back at a slow pace, it is possible to determine some meaning in it, which never happens with true incoherent thinking. The basis of the race of ideas is the increased lability of cortical processes.

Characteristic:
- Quick associations, increased distractibility, expressive gestures and facial expressions.
- Analysis, synthesis, understanding of the situation is not impaired.
- They don’t think much about the answer.
- Errors are easily corrected if you point them out.
- Associations are chaotic, random, and do not slow down.
- The generalized meaning of the task is accessible; he can perform it at this level if he is not distracted.

2. Inertia of thinking Manifestations: inhibition, poverty of associations. The slowdown in the associative process is most pronounced in an absolutely “empty head, in which thoughts do not appear at all.” Patients answer questions in monosyllables and after a long pause (the latent period of speech reactions increases compared to the norm by 7-10 times). The general goal of the thought process is preserved, but switching to new goals is extremely difficult. Such a disorder is usually characteristic of epilepsy (“primary disorder”), epileptoid psychopathy, manic-depressive syndrome, but can be observed in apathetic and asthenic conditions, as well as in mild degrees of clouding of consciousness. Patients can change the way they work, change their judgment, or switch to another type of activity. Characterized by slowness, stiffness, and poor switchability. The solution to a problem is available if it is performed in only one specific way. The inertia of connections from past experience leads to a decrease in the level of generalization.

3. Inconsistency of judgments. Unsustainable way of completing a task. The level of generalization has not been reduced. Analysis, synthesis, and assimilation of instructions are intact. Understand the figurative meaning of proverbs and metaphors. The adequate nature of judgments is unstable. Alternate between the correct and incorrect way to complete a task.
81% vascular diseases
68% injury
66% MDP
14% schizophrenia (in remission)

When the degree of the disease is not expressed, such inconsistency of judgment can be corrected. Often it is enough to attract attention for the patient to correct himself. Oscillations occur at the slightest change in task conditions.

4. “Responsiveness” In patients suffering from severe vascular diseases. The instability of the method of performing a task and the associated fluctuations in mental achievements acquire a grotesque character.

Example: after completing the classification, the patient suddenly begins to treat the pictures as real objects: he tries to put a card with a ship, because if he puts it there, he will drown. Such patients may not be oriented in place and time. They are not critical of their condition. They don’t remember the names of loved ones, significant dates, or the name of the doctor. Speech is impaired and may be incoherent. The behavior is often ridiculous. There are no spontaneous statements.

These violations are dynamic. Over a short period of time, the nature of the patients’ judgments and actions fluctuates. Characterized by increased responsiveness to a variety of environmental stimuli that are not addressed to them. Sometimes environmental objects are woven into speech.

A forced tendency is created to reflect in speech, without selection, everything that is perceived. Rapid response to external random stimuli is combined with poor switching ability. In earlier works, the phenomenon of responsiveness was described as field behavior.

It is necessary to distinguish between responsiveness and distractibility (in children). They have different genesis:
- responsiveness is a consequence of a decrease in the level of activity of the cortex; contributes to the destruction of purposeful activity.
- distractibility is a consequence of an enhanced orientation reflex, high activity of the cortex. The formation of a large number of temporary connections is the basis for further purposeful activity.

5. Slipping. Correctly solving any task and adequately reasoning about any subject, patients suddenly stray from the correct train of thought due to a false, inadequate association, and then are again able to continue reasoning consistently, without repeating the error, but also without correcting it. Typical for fairly intact patients with schizophrenia. Slips are sudden and episodic. In an associative experiment, random associations and associations based on consonance (woe-sea) often appear.

The process of generalization and abstraction is not disrupted. They can correctly synthesize material and correctly identify essential features. At the same time, for a certain period of time, the correct course of thinking is disrupted due to the fact that patients in their judgments begin to be guided by random, unimportant signs in a given situation.

Violations of the operational side of thinking in mental illness.

1. Reducing the level of generalization. The judgments of patients are dominated by direct ideas about objects and phenomena; Operating with general features is replaced by establishing specific connections between objects. They cannot select the features that most fully reveal the concept.
95% oligophrenia
86% epilepsy
70% encephalitis

2. Distortion of the generalization process. They reflect only the random side of phenomena, the essential relationships between objects are little taken into account; the substantive content of things and phenomena is not taken into account. It is more common in patients with schizophrenia (67%) and psychopaths (33%).

The disruption of the generalization process is caused by the fact that patients are not guided by culturally accepted relationships between objects. So, in the problem, the fourth-over patient can combine a table, a bed and a closet, calling them volumes limited by wooden planes.

Disturbances in the motivational component of thinking.
1. Diversity of thinking. A thinking disorder, designated as “diversity,” consists in the fact that patients’ judgments about some phenomenon occur on different planes.

Patients can correctly understand the instructions. They can summarize the material offered to them; the knowledge they update about the subjects can be adequate; they compare objects on the basis of essential properties of objects reinforced in past experience. At the same time, patients do not perform tasks in the required direction: their judgments flow in different directions. We are not talking about that comprehensive approach to the phenomenon characteristic of the thinking of a healthy person, in which actions and judgments remain conditioned by the goal, the conditions of the task, and the attitudes of the individual.

If judgments are inconsistent, patients are deprived of the opportunity to reason correctly and adequately for some period of time. Patients combine objects during the performance of the same task, either on the basis of the properties of the objects themselves, or on the basis of personal tastes and attitudes. The data presented are in accordance with many clinical data. Analysis of the medical histories of these patients, observations of their behavior in life and in the hospital revealed the inadequacy of their life attitudes, the paradox of their motives and emotional reactions.

The behavior of patients deviated from normal standards. The patient might not care about his loved ones, but he showed increased concern about the “food ration” of his cat, another patient might leave his profession and, dooming his family to deprivation, spend his days arranging things in front of a photographic lens, because, according to in his opinion, “seeing from different angles leads to a broadening of mental horizons.”

2. “Reasoning.” The role of an altered personal attitude in the structure of that type of pathology of thinking, which is designated in a psychiatric clinic as reasoning, appears even more clearly. Reasoning is a tendency to empty reasoning.

This thinking disorder is defined by clinicians as a “tendency to sterile philosophizing,” a tendency to unproductive, verbose reasoning. For psychiatrists, reasoning acts as a disorder of thinking itself. The diversity and resonance of speech are expressed in speech, which acquires, as clinicians put it, the character of “discontinuity.” Analysis of samples of “broken” speech leads to the following conclusions.

Firstly, there is no reasoning in the rather lengthy statements of the patients; patients utter a number of phrases, but do not communicate any meaningful thoughts in them, do not establish any, even false, connections between objects and phenomena.
Secondly, it is impossible to detect a specific object of thought in the speech of patients. Thus, the patient names a number of objects - air, matter, an artist, the origin of man, red blood cells, but in his statement there is no semantic object, no logical subject. The above passages cannot be expressed in other words.
Thirdly, patients are not interested in the attention of their interlocutor; they do not express any attitude towards other people in their speech. The “broken” speech of these patients is devoid of the basic features characteristic of human speech; it is neither an instrument of thought nor a means of communication with other people.

Reasoning and interruption of speech are most characteristic of schizophrenia.

The most qualitatively expressed thought disorder is delusion.
Delusions are ideas and conclusions that do not correspond to reality, the fallacy of which cannot be dissuaded by a subject who is pathologically convinced of their correctness. Its content can be very diverse: delusions of persecution, poisoning, jealousy, grandeur, etc. Delirium differs from ordinary human delusions in the following ways:
1) it always occurs on a painful basis, it is always a symptom of a disease;
2) a person is completely convinced of the reliability of his erroneous ideas;
3) delirium cannot be corrected or dissuaded from the outside;
4) delusional beliefs are of extreme significance for the patient and in one way or another influence his behavior.

Obsessive states (obsessions) are these kinds of experiences when a person, against his will, has some thoughts, fears, desires, actions, doubts (for example, compulsive hand washing, fear of the number “3”, etc.)

According to the classification of thinking disorders by B.V. Zeigarnik, reasoning (along with diversity and fragmentation) belongs to the category of disorders of the motivational-personal component of thinking.

Uncriticality - loss of focus of thinking, superficiality, incompleteness of thinking; thinking ceases to be a regulator of human actions.

Which doctors should you contact if a thinking disorder occurs:

Have you noticed a disorder in your thinking? Do you want to know more detailed information or do you need an inspection? You can make an appointment with a doctor– clinic Eurolab always at your service! The best doctors will examine you, study external signs and help you identify the disease by symptoms, advise you and provide the necessary assistance. you also can call a doctor at home. Clinic Eurolab open for you around the clock.

How to contact the clinic:
Phone number of our clinic in Kyiv: (+38 044) 206-20-00 (multi-channel). The clinic secretary will select a convenient day and time for you to visit the doctor. Our coordinates and directions are indicated. Look in more detail about all the clinic’s services on it.

(+38 044) 206-20-00

If you have previously performed any research, Be sure to take their results to a doctor for consultation. If the studies have not been performed, we will do everything necessary in our clinic or with our colleagues in other clinics.

Is your thinking impaired? It is necessary to take a very careful approach to your overall health. People don't pay enough attention symptoms of diseases and do not realize that these diseases can be life-threatening. There are many diseases that at first do not manifest themselves in our body, but in the end it turns out that, unfortunately, it is too late to treat them. Each disease has its own specific signs, characteristic external manifestations - the so-called symptoms of the disease. Identifying symptoms is the first step in diagnosing diseases in general. To do this, you just need to do it several times a year. be examined by a doctor, in order not only to prevent a terrible disease, but also to maintain a healthy spirit in the body and the organism as a whole.

If you want to ask a doctor a question, use the online consultation section, perhaps you will find answers to your questions there and read self care tips. If you are interested in reviews about clinics and doctors, try to find the information you need on. Also register on the medical portal Eurolab to keep abreast of the latest news and information updates on the site, which will be automatically sent to you by email.

The symptom chart is for educational purposes only. Do not self-medicate; For all questions regarding the definition of the disease and methods of its treatment, consult your doctor. EUROLAB is not responsible for the consequences caused by the use of information posted on the portal.

If you are interested in any other symptoms of diseases and types of disorders, or you have any other questions or suggestions, write to us, we will definitely try to help you.

Improves our quality of life. Intelligence is the ability to achieve goals or cope with emerging difficulties. It is in the fight against problems, in solving new problems that affect our lives, that all the best people develop. From here we can make a division into a strong mind and a weak mind.

The mind is logical and intuitive. The logical mind builds logical chains flowing from one another. Strong thinking brings these chains to the end, that is, to the specific action that needs to be taken. Consider the following example of a logical chain:

• I need money.
• To have money, you need to work.
• To work, you need to find a job.
• This means you need to set aside time, make inquiries with friends, look at job advertisements, register with the labor exchange, and visit several enterprises. All this will allow me to pass an interview at some point and start working.

A strong mind will create one more, final link in this logical chain. In this case, it will be specific: who to call, who to talk to, where to go. And this will be with a clear indication of the time when these actions should be performed.

Weak thinking will stop the process of creating a logical chain somewhere in the middle. This kind of thinking is typical for most people who do not complete the thinking process. And completely in vain. Try to think differently, and you will have a completely different life result.

In addition to logical thinking, there is also intuitive thinking. If logical thinking consists mainly of verbal and conceptual constructions, then intuitive thinking works with images. Intuition involves a holistic perception of the world, and decision-making based on such perception. No parts, abstract structures or dogmas are isolated from the world. Intuition works directly with reality - with images and their changes over time.

For example, a boxer enters the ring. He was warned that his opponent liked to throw knockout blows with his left hand. The logical conclusion is that it is the left side that you are most afraid of. Intuition may suggest something completely different - watching how the opponent fights, the boxer may decide to be wary of a right-hand strike. In doing so, he will rely on the experience of his previous fights.

Sometimes intuition is right, sometimes logic is right. In any case, a person who is fluent in both types of thinking is able to respond competently to the situation. A strong intuitive mind requires experience. If you have no experience, intuition is unlikely to be able to suggest anything. In addition, strong intuition requires the ability to see key images and compare them with each other and with memories from the past. In order to develop intuition, you need to train your thinking, forcing it to work with images.

The ability to think in images is called intelligence. Intelligence differs from logical thinking in speed. Decisions that require thought and a balanced approach are best left to logic. Quick wits is the ability to find quick solutions, often non-obvious and non-standard ones.

Here are some questions to test your wits:

1. A glider belonging to Hungary fell on the border of Poland and the Czech Republic. Which country will get the motor from the glider?
2. The man turned off the light, went to bed and fell asleep before the room became dark. How did this happen if the person was alone in the room?
3. One driver did not take his driver's license with him. In addition, there was a “No Entry” sign. Why didn't the police stop him?
4. Who walks while sitting?
5. What question cannot be answered with “yes”?
6. What question cannot be answered with “no”?
7. You are in a running race and you have passed the runner in second position. What position did you take?

Write your answers in the comments.

To develop imaginative thinking, use visual images: diagrams, graphs, charts, mind maps, flowcharts. They will help you to grasp the whole matter, to understand what needs to be done, done, and improved.

Thus, it is most effective to use both logical and intuitive thinking to solve your problems. The algorithm is as follows:

• Formulate your desires and goals.
• By building a logical chain, arrive at what needs to be done. and write down specific tasks.
• Based on these tasks, make visual representations that will include all the required steps and the dependencies between them. This way you can embrace the entire problem and start working with it as a whole.

You can get more detailed information in the “All courses” and “Utilities” sections, which can be accessed through the top menu of the site. In these sections, articles are grouped by topic into blocks containing the most detailed (as far as possible) information on various topics.

You can also subscribe to the blog and learn about all new articles.
It does not take a lot of time. Just click on the link below: