Controlled neuropsychological investigation of patients with neurotic excoriations.

On the basis of preliminary empirical findings and the pertinent neuropsychological literature the following hypothese are put forward: (1) Because of a certain amount of abreaction (scratching), patients with neurotic excoriations will obtain higher scores in tests of verbal learning and long-term memory than "common' neurotics but probably lower scores in such tests than a group of "normal' subjects. (2) Visual long-term memory is relatively impaired both in patients with neurotic excoriations and in "common' neurotics compared to a "normal' group. (3) Performances IQ for both patient groups mentioned will be relatively low compared to verbal IQ. - The first and second of these suppositions were confirmed but not the third.