ss 



XATURE 



[October ,;■ miS 



had i" m devised, chief among them "lignite* 



id "i oumarone-resm, " the manufai 

 od which lias assumed considerable proportions 

 ■ \\ ar ( i 1,000 tons in [916). 

 Germa | bad accumulated large stocks ol rubber 

 prior to the outbreak ad war. In 1915 she placed 

 its sali ind use under stringent regulation. Vari- 

 ous substitutes, such .is "Ruttenlattich," the 

 exudation from Euphorbia paiustris, have been 

 employed. Kb a\ ei j proi esses have been largelj 

 developed, and foreign gums introduced into the 

 recovered material. It is known also thai syn- 

 thetic methods have been worked out, and arc 

 said to be in operation on a large scale. It has 

 been asserted, indeed, thai Germany has thereby 



made heisell independent ol foreign supplies. At 



the same time it is known thai her commercial 

 submarines broughl her upwards oi 800 tons "I 

 rubber in 1916. 



MM. Jaureguy, Froment, and Stephen conclude 

 their interesting a. .mint with an appreciativi re- 

 cognition of the services which German chemists 

 rendered to their country. It is largely ov ing 

 to their activity that the Central Powers have been 

 enabled to meet .the deficiency of maUriel which 

 the stringent blockade of the Entente has caused 

 them. 



THE WAR AND PSYCHOLOGY. 

 TPHF. ellec 1 oi the events of the last lew years 

 - 1 - upon any science may be regarded from 

 two points of view. hirst, it may be asked: In 

 what ways has the science rendered help in the 

 solution of the problems raised by the war? 

 Secondly: I low far has the' appearance of these 

 problems tended to change the outlook and the 

 future programme of work for the science itself? 

 With regard to psychology, it is now possible to 

 attempt an answer to these questions. We may 

 consider, first, the relation of psychology to 

 medical treatment. 



By this time there exist numerous publications 

 dealing with the nature and treatment of the pro- 

 malady which is inadequately termed "shell- 

 shock." The methods of treating this complex 

 of disorders are almost as numerous as the dis- 

 abilities themselves. It may fairly be said, how- 

 ever, thai these methods either are psychical in 

 nature, or, if accompanied by physical auxiliaries, 

 contain a relatively generous admixture of mental 

 treatment, I In - range from force majeure in one 

 direction to sympathetic persuasion in another, 

 and to subtle logical analysis and re- 



education in yel third. Let us 'ask our first 



question: In what has psychology helped in 



the alleviation of these conditions? 



A simple, straightforward exponent of "firm- 

 ness" methods might reply that no knowledge 

 of psychology at all I; b ..led, but meieh 



the will power and p. the physician. 



On examination, however, this answer would be 

 found to refer to his successes only. Not only a 



particular type ol physician, mi equally 



1. -2553, VOL. I02] 



specific variety ol patient and of malady are re- 

 quired lor tin achievement ol simple victories of 

 this kind. Such treatment is often strikingly suc- 

 cessful in the .lis- of case which presents obvious 

 objective disabilities, such as the various kinds 

 ol "functional" paralysis. Its value is definitely 

 less in ih. is. numerous cases the troubles of 

 which are entirely or mainly of a. subjective 

 nature. Such disorders as inability to concentrate 

 attention, loss of memory, insomnia, terrifying 

 dreams, emotional instability, and morbid an: 

 may on occasion yield to the "firmness" method. 

 Usually, however, if treated in this way, they 

 mere!) demonstrate the existence ol reciprocal 

 firmness on the pari of both physician and patient. 

 As a result ol experience, too, it is found that 

 sympathy alone will not suffice to cure many of 



these patients. A penetrating analysis of the 



tangle of causes which have led to their presenl 

 condition, followed by thorough "re-education," 

 is often necessary. In such treatment a know- 

 ledge both of psychological theory and of tech- 

 nique has proved to be indispensable. 



Moreover, the physician who is at the same 

 time a psychologist has found ample scope for 

 his activity in another direction, the reassuring 

 of his patient. To the ordinary man the idea -that 

 other people's minds may work in ways differ, n' 

 from his own is usually quite foreign. When, 

 therefore, a great shock causes his mind to 

 develop a new trick he is usually quite unpre- 

 pared for it, and frequently develops tin- fear of 

 impending or actual insanity : a fear which, for 

 many very cogent reasons, he keeps 1,, himself as 

 long as possible. This fear may be dispelled if 

 his medical officer is able to impart to him some 

 knowledge of the considerable transient and 

 normal variations in the mental happenings of 

 different individuals. 



It is important to point out here that, while a 

 knowledge of the "normal" psychology ex- 

 pounded in the ordinary English text-books has 

 been of no little use, especially in the direction 

 last described, much more help, has been obtained 

 from the writings of those workers in the sister 

 science, ps\ chopathology. As is well known, their 

 indefatigable industry and prolific speculation 

 have aroused considerable discussion in recent 

 years. Informed criticism of this work, however, 

 is at present very rare, and it is only fair to say 

 that little of it is to be found in English journals. 

 A change of attitude towards the psycho-analytic 

 movement is now clearly aotii eable among 

 psychologists. While at one time psychology 

 dealt merely with the description md classification 



of "slates" ,,l consciousness, there' is now uni- 

 versal acknowledgment of the fad that many of 

 our thoughts, beliefs, and actions are due wholly 

 or in pari to motives and causes of which we 

 ourselves may he parti) or wholly unconscious. 

 To correct such thoughts and beliefs necessitates 

 the discovery ol the factors which were originally 

 responsible for them. Hundreds of cases of 

 mental and net OUS disorders arising from war 



