The analysis of verbal or written communication using units longer than a sentence.

The study of the part the UNCONSCIOUS plays in human behaviour.

See also DYNAMIC PSYCHOLOGY.

Skills and achievements that are considered necessary for children to attain at certain ages to ensure their psychological well-being, e.g. walking, talking, reading.

British psychologist Basil Bernstein’s term for an articulate style of communication in which whole phrases are used to convey a precise and complex range of ideas and in which emotional and intellectual aspects are clearly differentiated. Said to be typical of the way middle-class parents interact with their children.

Contrasted with RESTRICTED CODE.

In PSYCHOLOGY, this is simply the ability to perceive differences between two sensory stimuli.

In a social or political context,’difference’ often comes to signify something to be feared and rejected, i.e. to discriminate against.

The AWARENESS of how distant objects are from the eye and the ability to perceive the world as three dimensional, i.e. as having depth as well as height and width.

The ability of an individual to maintain the EGO in its function of avoiding emotional disturbance and maladjustment.

An instrument used by psychologists for probing the nature of a mental or emotional difficulty.

See PROJECTIVE TECHNIQUES.

Thinking along conventional lines in an attempt to find the best single answer to a problem. Compare with DIVERGENT THINKING.

The PHILOSOPHY that nothing happens without a cause and everything that happens is the necessary result of previous conditions. Given complete knowledge of previous conditions, one would fully understand any given behaviour.