The Psychopathology of Language and Cognition

Abstract

Originally published by Plenum press, New York in 1995Softcovcr reprint of the hardcover 1st edition 1995 10 987654321 All rights reservedNo part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, microfilming, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the Publisher Preface A quarter century ago, one of the authors undertook the task of surveying research and theory in an area that, for lack of a more precise designation, was called "language behavior and psychopathology." The book published under the same title addressed those precincts of language behavior wherein the interests of the psychologist, psychiatrist, linguist, and speech pathologist showed some tendencies toward convergence. The principal focus was on aspects of language and paralanguage-variously, and on the whole, indifferently referred to as "deviation," "anomalies," "aberrations," or "disturbances" -that occur with sufficient frequency in relation to certain categories of personality disorders that they have long occupied a prominent (and coritroversial) place in the psychodiagnostic process.Language Behavior and Psychopathology (1969) made clear to the reader that it did not deal with such primary patterns of language disturbance as aphasia and stuttering. This was not to deny the relevance of psychopathological considerations in such language disorders. The importance of emotional conflict in the pathogenesis of stuttering had been amply documented, and there was abundant clinical evidence that aphasic patients might react adversely to their lowered or altered capacities'in symbolizing and communicating, even to the extent of exhibiting what Kurt Goldstein called a "catastrophic reaction." Regardless, however, of any psychopathological factors that may be present in aphasia or stuttering, both are essentially linguistic disorders. Their principal symptoms are manifested in vocal speech, and their treatment requires some or a great deal of speech therapy and retraining.On the other hand, as the book sought to emphasize, the linguistic and v vi Preface paralinguistic phenomena that occur as concomitants to conventional psychiatric syndromes might be characterized more accurately as language symptoms than as language disturbances. Clinical descriptions of personality disorders prominently feature descriptions of language and paralinguistic behavior. Anyone questioning this statement need only try to imagine the difficulties presented by the psychodiagnostic assessment of a patient bereft of speech. Much, if not most, diagnostic test behavior is language behavior, and among the chief criteria for gauging therapeutic progress is change in language behavior.If there was a common orientation toward language and communication behavior in the psychopathological context, it expressed itself in two objectives. The first was an attempt to arrive at a precise description of the way or ways that individuals diagnosed as belonging to a particular nos...

Bilingualism and neuropsychiatric disorders

“…They are particularly interested in the unconscious assumptions about the world that are associated with each different language of a bilingual speaker, to the extent that belief systems and cultural attitudes are relevant to an accurate diagnosis and to the therapeutic process (Amati-Mehler, Argentieri, & Canestri, 1993;Baxter & Cheng, 1996;Clauss, 1998;Hong, Chiu, & Kung, 1997;Hong, Morris, Chiu, & BenetMartı´nez, 2000;Javier, 1989Javier, , 2007Marcos, 1976b;Marcos, Eisma, & Guimon, 1977;Marrero, 1983;Pe´rez Foster, 1996;Ramı´rez-Esparza, Gosling, Benet-Martı´nez, Potter, & Pennebaker, 2006;Rieber & Vetter, 1995;Torrey, 1986). Language differences in cognitive organization may have an impact on symptom expression (Pe´rez Foster, 2001).…”

“…The possession of more than one language may imply the possession of more than one Weltanschauung. The language spoken in a given community will affect this community's way of looking at and analyzing the world; second-language learners have, in addition to their first language, a given social personality, social attitudes, customs, traditions, and an ethical or moral code of sorts, a behavior code, all of which relate to their native language and background (Rieber & Vetter, 1995). Culture and language are intimately interdependent (Schrauf, 2000).…”

The Dark Side of Organizational Paradoxes: The Dynamics of Disempowerment

“…We propose (Table 2) where an actor receiving a contradictory request is not "able to escape the message by either metacommunicating (commenting) about it or by withdrawing physically from the scene" (Tracy 2004, p. 122). Unfortunately, the conceptual distinction between pragmatic paradox and double bind is not always well-defined in the literature (Rieber & Vetter 1995). To clarify the terminology, we propose the use of 'double bind' to indicate a specific type of organizational pragmatic paradox in which the agency of actors facing contradictions is constrained by the direct exercise of power in the form of coercion.…”

“…For example, pragmatic paradoxes can be structured in a manner whereby the victim's reaction becomes constitutive of their paralysis, manipulating their perception regarding their own ability to cope with the request. Such is the case with "paradoxical predictions" (Watzlawick 1965, p. 369)contradictions derived from the clash of reason and trust (Rieber & Vetter 1995). A typical exemplification is the case of a teacher announcing there will be an unexpected exam during the week: reflection on these conditions leads students to logically determine that such an exam cannot take place on Friday (since come Thursday it would no longer be unexpected).…”

Engaging Students in Proving: A Double Bind on the Teacher

“…Bateson defines a double bind as a condition imposed on one of two persons by contradictory requests made by the other in a situation from which the first (called the victim) cannot withdraw. The idea of a double bind has been used in various branches of psychology and beyond-not necessarily referring to twoperson relationships but, more generally, to situations involving communication between components of a system (Bateson, 1991;Rieber & Vetter, 1995;Sluzki & Ransom, 1976).…”