Dixon A K
Schweiz Arch Neurol Psychiatr (1985). 1986;137(5):151-63.
Studies of non-verbal behaviour with respect to mentally ill patients is a relatively neglected aspect of psychiatry. Probably the main reason for this has been the lack of relevant methods. In recent years ethological techniques have emerged enabling the facial expressions, body postures and gestures of animals and humans to be objectively measured so that the functional importance is laid open for analysis. This article discusses the way ethological ideas and techniques can contribute to an understanding of the behaviour of the mentally ill. Examples are drawn from studies of flight behaviour which encompass those behavioural strategies associated with withdrawal or avoidance of a source of danger or harm. It is argued that much of the non-verbal behaviour in psychotic patients reflects blocked escape and that this is one of the reasons why such individuals are socially withdrawn. The application of ethology to the psychiatric assessment of patients is also demonstrated on the basis of ethological profiles from some selected patients. It is concluded that psychiatrists and ethologists should cooperate in the future evaluation of therapeutic measures including new drugs developed on the basis of ethological tests.
关于精神病患者的非言语行为研究是精神病学中一个相对被忽视的方面。造成这种情况的主要原因可能是缺乏相关方法。近年来，出现了一些行为学技术，能够客观地测量动物和人类的面部表情、身体姿势和手势，从而揭示其功能重要性以便进行分析。本文讨论了行为学思想和技术有助于理解精神病患者行为的方式。例子取自逃跑行为的研究，这些研究涵盖了与躲避或避开危险或伤害源相关的行为策略。有人认为，精神病患者的许多非言语行为反映了逃跑受阻，这也是此类个体社交退缩的原因之一。基于一些选定患者的行为学特征，还展示了行为学在患者精神病评估中的应用。得出的结论是，精神病医生和行为学家在未来评估包括基于行为学测试开发的新药在内的治疗措施时应开展合作。
