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Mental State Exam - Form
Mental State Exam - Form
© 2000 Jeff Patrick. Those studying, researching or practicing psychology or psychiatry, and those organizations that support them may freely duplicate, modify, distribute, and use this form.
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© 2000 Jeff Patrick. Those studying, researching or practicing psychology or psychiatry, and those organizations that support them may freely duplicate, modify, distribute, and use this form.
Selected glossary Dereism. A loss of connection with reality and logic, where Nihilistic Delusion. The delusion of non-existence of the
thoughts become private and idiosyncratic (odd or pe- self, or part of the self.
Abstract thinking. Thinking characterised almost exclu- culiar). Noesis. The belief that one has a divine calling.
sively by cognitive abstractions, rather than immediate Dysarthria. Difficulty producing speech. Obsession. A recurrent and persistent thought, impulse, or
sensory experience. Dysphoric. Feeling unwell or unhappy. image.
Acrophobia. Fear of heights. Dysprosody. A speech impairment characterised by a loss Overvalued idea. An unreasonable and sustained belief
Affect. The pattern of observable behaviours which is the of control of intonation and rhythm. that is maintained with less than delusional intensity.
expression of a subjectively experienced feeling state Echolalia. The repetition or echoing of verbal utterances Paramnesia. False recollection of events that have never
(emotion) and is variable over time in response to made by another person. occurred.
changing emotional states. Echopraxia. Involuntarily imitation the movements of Perseveration. Mental operations carry on past the point
Agoraphobia. A fear of being in places or situations in another. Echopraxia is also known as echomotism. that they serve a function. E.g. What day is it? Mon-
which escape might be difficult or embarrassing, or in Ecstatic. A sensation of being carried away by overwhelm- day. What time is it? Monday.
which help may not be available should a panic attack ing delight. Poverty of Content. Speech that conveys little information
occur. Egomania. Preoccupation with oneself. because it is vague or baron.
Alexithymic. Relatively undifferentiated emotions (unable Eidetic images. The ability to retain an accurate, detailed Poverty of Speech. Less speech than normal.
to identify or express emotion), and thinking tends to visual image of a complex scene or pattern (some- Poverty of thought. Speech that conveys little information
dwell excessively on the mundane. Detached, and times popularly known as photographic memory). because of vagueness, empty repetitions, or stereo-
may seem to dissociate. Erotomania. Excessive sexual desire, or exaggerated typed or obscure phrases.
Anhedonic. An inability to enjoy anything, even things belief in one’s sexual conquests or ability. Prosopagnosia. The inability to recognise familiar faces,
once enjoyed. Euphoric. An exaggerated feeling of well-being or elation. although they react physiologically as if they do recog-
Anosognosia. Ignorance of the presence of disease, Euthymic. Mood in the normal range, neither depressed or nise the person.
specifically of paralysis. elevated. Pseudodementia. A severe form of depression in which
Astereognosia. The inability to recognise common objects Fausse reconnaissance. Delusional (false) recognition of cognitive changes mimic those of dementia.
by touch. persons or places. Pseudologia fantastica. Grossly exaggerating medical
Autistic thinking. An abnormal absorption with the self, Flight of ideas. Speech consists of a stream of acceler- symptoms or personal details.
marked by interpersonal communication difficulties, a ated thoughts with abrupt changes from topic to topic Psychomotor Agitation. Describes a morbid increase in
short attention span, and inability to treat others as and no central direction. action or movement presumed to result from psychic
people. Folie à deux. The sharing of a fantasy by two closely rather than physical (organic) disturbance.
Automatism. Automatism refers to activity performed associated friends. Reality testing. The lack of ability to evaluate the external
without conscious awareness and usually followed by Formal thought disorder. A disturbance in the form of world objectively and to differentiate adequately be-
complete amnesia. thinking rather than an abnormality of content. tween it and the internal world.
Autotopagnosia. A condition where one cannot identify or Fugue. A condition in which an individual suddenly aban- Referential Delusion. A delusion centred on the idea that
describe their own body parts. Individuals can dress dons a present activity or lifestyle and starts a new events, objects, or other persons in one's environment
themselves appropriately and use their body normally, and different one for a period of time. have a particular and unusual significance.
but they cannot talk about their bodies. Garrulous. Given to excessive and often trivial or rambling Retrospective falsification. Where the person changes
Bizarre Delusion. A delusion that involves a phenomenon talk; tiresomely talkative. the reporting of past events, or now has only selective
that the person's culture would regard as totally im- Global Aphasia. The loss of all ability to communicate. memory of what was more fully remembered previ-
plausible. Glossolalia. Fabricated, meaningless speech. ously.
Blocking. Repeated and abrupt halt to speech as a result Gustatory Hallucination. Hallucination of taste. Sensory Aphasia. A condition characterised by fluent but
of losing one's train of thought. Halitosis. Bad breath. meaningless speech and severe impairment of the
Catalepsy. A trancelike state with loss of voluntary motion Hallucinosis. A mental state in which the person has ability understand spoken or written words.
and failure to react to stimuli. continual hallucinations. Somatic Delusion. A delusion whose main content per-
Cataplexy. Sudden, dramatic decrement in muscle tone & Hypermnesia. Extreme power of memory. A capacity for tains to the appearance or functioning of one's own
loss of deep reflexes that leads to muscle weakness, immediate registration and precise recall of much body.
paralysis, or postural collapse. Usually caused by out- more detail than is thought possible under ordinary Somatic Hallucination. Hallucination involving the sensa-
burst of emotion: laughter, startle, or sudden physical circumstances. tion of being strangled, feeling that insects are crawl-
exercise; one of the symptoms of narcolepsy. Hypnagogic Hallucination. Threatening hallucinations at ing beneath the skin, or feelings of sexual stimulation.
Cerea Flexibilitas. Waxy flexibility in which a limb remains the moment of falling asleep. Somnolence. A very sleepy state.
where placed; often seen in catatonia. Hypnopompic Hallucination. Threatening hallucinations Synesthesia Hallucinations. The hallucination of a sense
Circumstantiality. Slowed thinking incorporating unneces- at the moment of waking from sleep. other than the one being stimulated. For example, a
sary trivial details. Eventually the goal of the thought is Hypochondria. Abnormal anxiety about one's health; the sound may evoke sensations of colour.
reached. persistent neurotic conviction that one is or is likely to Syntactical Aphasia. Difficult in arranging words in their
Clang association. Speech in which words are chosen become ill. correct sequence.
because of their sounds rather than their meanings. Hysterical anaesthesia. Sensory loss due to a mental Systematised Delusion. A single false belief with multiple
Claustrophobia. Fear of being trapped in confined state. elaborations or a group of false beliefs that the person
spaces. Infidelity Delusion. The belief that one’s partner is sexu- relates to a single event or theme.
Coma vigil. Awake, but without conscious awareness. In ally unfaithful. Taciturn. Habitually untalkative.
this vegetative state persons can open their eyelids Jamais vu. The experience of being unfamiliar with a Tactile Hallucination. Hallucination of touch.
occasionally and demonstrate sleep-wake cycles. person or situation that is actually very familiar. Tangentiality. Replying to a question in an oblique or
They also completely lack cognitive function. Jargon Aphasia. Incoherent, meaningless speech. irrelevant way.
Compulsion Catatonia. Muscular rigidity; a tendency to Labile. Repeated and rapid shifts from one extreme to Thought broadcasting. The belief that one's thoughts are
remain in a fixed stuporous state for long periods; the another. being broadcast out loud so that they can be per-
catatonia may give way to short periods of extreme Lilliputian Hallucination. Hallucination that people or ceived by others.
excitement. objects are smaller than they are. Thought insertion. The belief that certain of one's
Compulsion. Repetitive ritualistic behaviour or mental Loosening. Speech characterised by slipping from one thoughts are not one's own, but rather are inserted
activity. train of thought to another loosely related train of into one's mind.
Concrete thinking. Thinking characterised almost exclu- thought. Thought withdrawal. The belief that one would like to
sively by immediate sensory experience, rather than Macropsia. Seeing everything in the field of view as larger think a thought, but someone or something has re-
cognitive abstractions. than it really is. moved the thought.
Condensation. Speech in which two or more separate Magical thinking. The belief that one's thoughts, words, or Tic. Part of the body moves repeatedly, quickly, suddenly
concepts are not differentiated. actions will cause or prevent a specific outcome in and uncontrollably.
Confabulation. A plausible but imagined memory that fills some way that defies commonly understood laws of Trailing Hallucinations. Hallucination that moving objects
in gaps in what is remembered. nature. are seen as a series of discrete discontinuous images.
Control Delusion. The belief that one’s thoughts or Micropsia. Seeing everything in the field of view as smaller Trend of thought. Thinking with a tendency toward or
actions were under some outside control. than it really is. centring on a particular idea with a particular affect.
Déjà entendu. Subjectively inappropriate impression of Monomania. Preoccupation with a single object. Unio mystica. The belief that one has a unity or union by
familiarity of something just heard with an undefined Mood-congruent Hallucinations. Hallucination in which secret rites. More generally, the unity or union in the
memory of same. the content is mood appropriate. spirit of an individual with that of the Supreme Being or
Déjà pense. Subjectively inappropriate impression of Mood-incongruent Hallucinations. Hallucination in which some other superior or leader.
familiarity of something just thought with an undefined the content is not mood appropriate. Verbigerative. Involuntarily repeating of certain words
memory of same. Motor Aphasia. A condition in which expression by speech and/or phrases.
Déjà vu. Subjectively inappropriate impression of familiarity or writing is severely impaired. Visual agnosia. The inability to recognise common objects
of a present experience with an undefined past. Multiple personality. Two or more distinct personalities by sight.
Depersonalization. A loss of contact with one’s personal alternately prevail in the same person. Voluble. Dominates conversation with a ready flow of
reality. Detachment from self. Mutism. Unable or unwilling to speak. speech.
Derailment. A pattern of speech in which a person's ideas Negativism. Opposition or resistance, either covert or Word salad. Speech that is an incoherent and incompre-
slip off one track onto another that is completely unre- overt, to outside suggestions or advice. hensible mix of words and phrases.
lated. Neologism. The use of a newly made up word, or an Xenophobia. Fear of strangers or foreigners.
Derealization. Feelings of unreality or strangeness. everyday word used in an idiosyncratic way. Zoophobia. Fear of animals.