An interpersonal approach to hysteria.

The author defines hysteria in terms of specific observable classes of interpersonal behaviors and examines the impact of these behaviors on the receiver. The hysteric communicates frailty and helplessness, thus structuring the interpersonal environment to ensure attention and inhibit aggression. The development of these roles is shown in histories of female hysterics, who were selectively reinforced for frailty, seductiveness, and passivity as children. The major classes of symptoms shown by adult hysterics--conversion symptoms and dissociative reactions--reflect these interpersonal roles. The author concludes that hysteria is a relatively specific interpersonal style that results from cultural, social, and interpersonal influences.