Skip to main content
View expanded cover

Psychopathology and Philosophy pp 128–142Cite as

Karl Jaspers, Mental States, and Delusional Beliefs: A Redefinition and Its Implications

  • Chapter

Abstract

No other subject within the field of psychiatry is so central and simultaneously so little understood as delusional beliefs, and a history of psychiatry is always a history of changing ideas about delusions as well. Although clinicians daily diagnose delusions opinion is unanimous in the literature that no-one can specify what a delusion really is. As Huber (1981, p. 172) puts it, “there exists no satisfactory general definition of delusion”.

Keywords

  • Mental State
  • False Statement
  • Delusional Disorder
  • Formal Thought Disorder
  • Delusional Belief

These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-74133-3_10
  • Chapter length: 15 pages
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
eBook
USD   109.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • ISBN: 978-3-642-74133-3
  • Instant PDF download
  • Readable on all devices
  • Own it forever
  • Exclusive offer for individuals only
  • Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout
Softcover Book
USD   139.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
Learn about institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • American Psychiatric Association (1987): Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (3rd ed., Revised) (DSM-III-R). American Psychiatric Association, Washington, DC.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berner, P. (1975): Zum heutigen Stand der Wahnforschung [On the current state of research in the field of delusions]. Psychiatria Clin.8, pp. 1–13.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Berze, J. (1903): Das Primärsymptom der Paranoia. Marhold, Halle.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bleuler, E. (1906): Affektivität, Suggestibilität und Paranoia. Marhold, Halle.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bleuler, E. (1911): Dementia praecox. Deuticke, Leipzig, Wien.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freud, S. (1911/1978): Über einen autobiographisch beschriebenen Fall von Dementia Paranoides. Werke VIII, pp. 239–320, S. Fischer, Frankfurt.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freud, S. (1927/1976): Die Zukunft einer Illusion. Werke XIV, pp. 323–380, S. Fischer, Frankfurt.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gruhle, H.W. (1951): Über den Wahn. Nervenarzt 22, pp. 125–126.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hagen, F.W.(1870): Studien auf dem Gebiete der ärztlichen Seelenheilkunde. Besold, Erlangen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heimann, H.(1961): Religion und Psychiatrie. In: Gruhle, H.W., Jung, R., Mayer-gross, W., Müller, M. (eds.): Psychiatrie der Gegenwart, Bd. III, pp. 471–493. Springer, Berlin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heise, D.R. (1988): Delusions and the construction of reality. In: Oltmanns, T.S., Maher, B.A. (eds.): Delusional beliefs, pp. 259–272. Wiley, New York, Chichester, Brisbane, Toronto, Singapore.

    Google Scholar 

  • Huber, G. (1981): Psychiatrie. Systematischer Lehrtext für Studenten und Ärzte. Schattauer Verlag. Stuttgart, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jaspers, K.(1973): Allgemeine Psychopathologie. Springer, Berlin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kahn, E. (1929): Über Wahnbildung. Archiv f. Psychiatrie 88, pp. 435–454.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lenz, H. (1973): Glaube und Wahn. Fortschr. Neurol. Psychiat. 41 , pp. 341–359.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Magaro, P.A. (1980): Cognition in schizophrenia and paranoia. Lawrence Erlbaum, Hillsdale, New Jersey.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maher, B.A.(1974): Delusional thinking and perceptual disorder. Journal of Individual Psychology 30, pp. 98–113.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Maher, B.A. (1988): Anomalous experience and delusional thinking: The logic of explanations. In: Oltmanns, T.S., Maher, B.A. (eds.): Delusional beliefs, pp. 15–33. Wiley, New York, Chichester, Brisbane, Toronto, Singapore.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maher, B.A., Ross, J.S. (1984): Delusions. In: Adam H.E., Sutker P.B. (eds): Comprehensive Handbook of Psychopathology, pp. 383–409. Plenum Press, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Murphy, H.B.M. (1967): Cultural aspects of delusion. Studium Generale 20, pp. 684–692.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Oepen, G., Fünfgeld, M.,Höll, T.,Zimmermann, P., Landis, T., Regart, M. (1988): Schizophrenia — an emotional hypersensitivity of the right cerebral hemisphere. Internat. J. of Psychophysiol. 5, pp. 261–264.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Oltmanns, T.S. (1988): Approaches to the definition and study of delusions. In: Oltmanns, T.S., Mäher, B.A. (eds.): Delusional beliefs, pp. 3–11. Wiley, New York, Chichester, Brisbane, Toronto, Singapore.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rinieris, P., Markianos, M., Hatzimanolis, J., Stefanis, C. (1985): A psychoendocrine study in male paranoid schizophrenics with delusional ideas of homosexual content. Acta psychiatr. scand. 72, pp. 309–314 .

    PubMed  CrossRef  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Saties, H. (1948): Über Wahnbildung ohne Ichbeziehung. Archiv f. Psychiatrie 181, pp. 110–135.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, K.(1928): Zur Einführung in die Religionspsychopathologie. Mohr, Tübingen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, K. (1949): Zum Begriff des Wahns. Fortschr. Neurol. Psychiatr. 17, pp. 26–31.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spitzer, M. (1985): Allgemeine Subjektivität und Psychopathologie. Haag und Herchen, Frankfurt a.M.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spitzer, M.(1986): Erfahrung — Aspekte einer Begriffsklärung. Nervenarzt 57, pp. 342–348.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Spitzer, M. (1987): Symptom and criterion in medicine and psychiatry. In: Weingartner, P., Schurz, G. (eds.): Logic, Philosophy of Science and Epistemology (Proceedings of the llth international Wittgenstein-Symposium), pp. 183–185.

    Google Scholar 

  • Spitzer, M. (1988): Untersuchungen zum Wahnproblem. Ein Beitrag zur allgemeinen und klinischen Psychopathologie. In print (see also for further references).

    Google Scholar 

  • Spitzer, M., Degkwitz, R. (1986): Zur Diagnose des DSM-III. Nervenarzt 57, pp. 698–704.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Strauss, J.S. (1969): Hallucinations and Delusions as Points on Continua Function. Arch. Gen. Psychiat. 21, pp. 581–586.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Weinschenk, C. (1965): Üer die Wirksamkeit der pathologischen Affektivität bei der Wahnentstehung der endogenen Psychose. Schweizer Archiv f. Neurol. Neurochirurg. u. Psychiat. 95, pp. 91–119.

    Google Scholar 

  • Winters, ICC., Neale, J.M. (1983): Delusions and delusional thinking in psychotics: a review of the literature. Clinical Psychology Review 3, pp. 227–253.

    CrossRef  Google Scholar 

  • Wittgenstein, L. (1979): Über Gewißheit. Suhrkamp, Frankfurt.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zimbardo, P.G., Andersen, S.M., Kabat, L.G. (1981): Induced hearing deficit generates experimental paranoia. Science 212, pp. 1529–1531.

    PubMed  CrossRef  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Authors
  1. M. Spitzer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Abtl. für Allgem. Psychiatrie mit Poliklinik, Klinikum der Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Hauptstraße 5, D-7800, Freiburg i. Br., Germany

    Dr. med. Dr. phil. Manfred Spitzer & Priv.-Doz. Dr. Godehard Oepen & 

  2. Philosophisches Seminar II, Albert-Ludwigs-Universität, Wertmannplatz, D-7800, Freiburg i. Br., Germany

    Professor Dr. Friedrich A. Uehlein

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

Copyright information

© 1988 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Spitzer, M. (1988). Karl Jaspers, Mental States, and Delusional Beliefs: A Redefinition and Its Implications. In: Spitzer, M., Uehlein, F.A., Oepen, G. (eds) Psychopathology and Philosophy. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-74133-3_10

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-74133-3_10

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-50357-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-74133-3

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive