Month: August 2020
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Sibling
A full brother or sister. Genetically, brothers and sisters from the same parents. General term for brothers or sisters who share the same two parents, through birth or adoption. Siblings who share only one parent are called half-brothers and half-sisters; stepbrothers and stepsisters are those who have no relation through biology or adoption except that…
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Sexual disorders
A DSM-III-R term for psychosexual dysfunction.
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Serotonin
A neurotransmitter with an indole structure found both in peripheral ganglia and in the central nervous system. Its transmitter functions in the central nervous system are less clearly demonstrable than in the gastrointestinal tract. It is implicated indirectly in the psychobiology of depression. An important neurochemical whose effects upon the human brain include mood elevation.…
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Scotoma
A figurative blind spot in a person’s psychological awareness. Also, a neurological term indicating a visual defect. A blind or partially blind area in the field of vision. A small area in the field of vision where someone cannot see. A blind spot in the visual field due to a variety of causes such as…
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School phobia
A term used when a child, usually in the early elementary grades, unexpectedly and strenuously refuses to attend school because of some irrational fear. The underlying psychopathology is believed to be an intense separation anxiety rooted in unresolved dependency ties. May occur in childhood depression. An acute irrational dread of attending school, often accompanied by…
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Rush, Benjamin (1745-1813)
Early American physician, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and author of the first American book on psychiatry (1812). He is called the father of American psychiatry.
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Rogers, Carl R. (1902-1987)
Psychologist, a founder of humanistic psychology and known for developing a client-centered approach to psychotherapy, which permits the patient to take the lead in the focus, pace, and direction of therapy; coined the term “self-actualization” to describe self-discovery and personal growth.
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Reik, Theodor (1888-1969)
Psychoanalyst and early follower of Freud who made valuable contributions to psychoanalysis on the subjects of religion, masochism, and therapeutic technique.
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Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957)
German psychoanalyst who emigrated to the United States in 1939; noted for his emphasis on the necessity of free expression of sexual libido during orgasm (orgone) as a cure for neurosis. An Austrian physician and psychiatrist (an early associate of Sigmund Freud), who fled the Nazis, settling first in Norway, then from 1939 teaching at…
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Ray, Isaac (1807-1881)
A founder of the American Psychiatric Association whose “Treatise on the Medical Jurisprudence of Insanity” was the pioneer American work in forensic psychiatry.