Perseveration
Loose Associations aka derailment
Circumstantial thinking
Verbigeration
Tangential thinking
Flight of ideas
Ideas of reference
Hallucination
Clang associations
Word salad
Neologisms
Echolalia
Stilted language
Combination of jumbled words and phrases that are disconnected or incoherent and make no sense to the listener. Example: “Corn, potatoes, jump up, play games, grass, cupboard.”
Persistent adherence to a single idea or topic and verbal repetition of a sentence, phrase, or word, even when another person attempts to change the topic. Example: Nurse: “How have you been sleeping lately?” Client: “I think people have been following me.” Nurse: “Where do you live?” Client: “At my place people have been following me.”
Client’s inaccurate interpretation that general events are personally directed to him or her, such as hearing a speech on the news and believing the message had personal meaning. A person shopping in a store might see two strangers laughing and believe that they are laughing at him or her when in reality the other two people do not even notice the person.
Client’s imitation or repetition of what the nurse says. Example: Nurse: “Can you tell me how you’re feeling?” Client: “Can you tell me how you’re feeling, how you’re feeling?”
False perception involving one of the senses such as visions, sounds, or smells that seem real but are not. These things are created by the mind. Client hears voices telling him to hurt himself or client sees soldiers coming to take him away.
The client “circles back around” to answer the question, but only after giving substantial unnecessary details. Nurse: “How old was your mother when she died?” “That was such a horrible accident. They still talk about it to this day. You know, too many people die in accidents; it is a shame. The car pulled right out in front of her, she never saw it coming. She was only 52.
Disorganized thinking that jumps from one idea to another with little relation between thoughts. It gradually derails or rabbit holes away from the original topic. “The problem is insects. My brother used to collect insects. He’s now a man of 5 foot 10 inches. You know, 10 is my favorite number. I like numbers, they are logical and easy to work with; I am thinking about becoming an accountant.”
Wandering off the topic (going off on a tangent) and never providing the information requested. Nurse: “Tell me about the health of your father.” Client: “He smokes cigarettes. I warned him about that, in his apartment, I used drugs there once. I saw a hole in the carpeting, and thought bugs were coming out. Drugs can do bad things. People should not use drugs.”
Ideas that are related to one another based on sound or rhyming rather than meaning. Example: “I will take a pill if I go up the hill but not if my name is Jill, I don’t want to kill.”
Stereotyped repetition of words or phrases that may or may not have meaning to the listener. Example: “I want to go home, go home, go home, go home.”
Use of words or phrases that are flowery, excessive, and pompous. Example: “Would you be so kind, as a representative of Florence Nightingale, as to do me the honor of providing just a wee bit of refreshment, perhaps in the form of some clear spring water?”
Excessive amount and rate of speech composed of fragmented or unrelated ideas. "I am hungry. Does my dog need to go for a walk? I wonder what the weather will be tomorrow. What is the purpose of life? I should learn to play canasta. My mom should lose some weight. Wait, I forgot to pick my kids up from school."
Words invented by the client. Example: “I’m afraid of grittiz. If there are any grittiz here, I will have to leave. Are you a grittiz?”
