FACTORS IN MENTAL HEALTH AND ILLNESS 569 



in manic cases, but if anything more fatigable. It is much slower in 

 the depressed phase of the psychosis, and increases somewhat as it is 

 kept up, and the retardation is partially overcome by the continued 

 work* E. K. Strong has recently followed this and other functions 

 through different clinical stages of the disorder. Nothing particular 

 has appeared in the other psychoses, save that in terminal cases of 

 dementia precox a disorganization of control is sometimes seen, similar 

 to what appears, and would be expected, in coarse nervous lesions. W. 

 G. Smith found a rate averaging a little above the normal in epileptic 

 cases, owing to a notable persistence of speed. 



The most psychologically interesting observation of choice reactions 

 is that of Franz, in which the psychomotor retardation produces a longer 

 simple than choice reaction time, owing, apparently, to a greater over- 

 coming of retardation in the more complex process. A similar finding 

 is reported by Marie and Vaschide. 



The tremors of the " steadiness test " play no part in mental pathol- 

 ogy outside of the coarse nervous lesions. Defectiveness in the speech 

 movements, where it is a real defect and not a mannerism, is usually 

 also produced in this way. For the same considerations as apply with 

 the eye-movements, accurate registration should enhance their diag- 

 nostic significance. Something of the sort has already been reported 

 by Scripture in reference to epilepsy. 



A number of fairly definite motor phenomena of the psychoses ought 

 to be mentioned, though they have not been brought under experimental 

 control. Eetention of the limbs in positions where placed is most com- 

 mon in dementia prcecox states, but is also seen in extremely retarded 

 cases of the manic-depressive type, where it has been psychologically 

 interpreted as an extreme ideomotor perseveration. Closely allied to 

 this is the type of motor disorder in dementia proecox known as 

 " waxy," or flexibilitas cerea, in which the limbs are movable from one 

 position to another like those of a wax figure. On the other hand, the 

 resistiveness may be of the spring type, the member strongly resisting 

 displacement, and at once returning to its original position. Extreme 

 motor stupor combined with mental alertness is also met with in this 

 psychosis ; while the stereotypy and mannerisms of normal life are often 

 tremendously exaggerated in it. 



There is a good deal of ground for suspicion that these phenomena 

 are far from motor in the sense that they originate at the same levels 

 with tremors or reflexes. Thus in some cases the resistance to pressure 

 is begun in anticipation of the pressure, and, if, for example, a finger 

 nearly but not quite touching the forehead be slowly drawn away, the 

 patient, resisting the suggested pressure, may bend forward until equi- 

 librium is lost. There is more likely an ideational element in such 

 phenomena, and like their counterparts that we shall see among the 



vol. lxxxv.— 39. 



