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Psychiatry Glossary

100 terms total — 24 showing — Last updated 15 Sep 2026

ACES ACES

Intermediate Technical IVT

Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale, a screening tool measuring childhood trauma exposure.

Showing 1–24 of 100

302 commitment

Professional Formal IVT

Pennsylvania's involuntary emergency psychiatric examination procedure allowing up to 120 hours of detention.

Legal Term Full entry →

abreaction

Professional Technical IVT

The emotional release and reliving of repressed traumatic memories during therapy.

Technical Term Full entry →

ACES

Intermediate Technical IVT

Adverse Childhood Experiences Scale, a screening tool measuring childhood trauma exposure.

Abbreviation Full entry →

affect

Intermediate Technical IVT

Observable emotional expression or mood as documented in psychiatric assessments, distinct from patient-reported mood.

Technical Term Full entry →

AIMS

Professional Technical IVT

A standardized rating scale used to monitor involuntary movement side effects from antipsychotic medications.

Technical Term Full entry →

akathisia

Advanced Technical IVT

A movement disorder characterized by restlessness and inability to remain still, often caused by psychiatric medications...

Technical Term Full entry →

akisthesia

Advanced Technical IVT

A variant spelling of akathisia, referring to motor restlessness caused by antipsychotic medications.

Technical Term Full entry →

alexithymia

Advanced Technical IVT

The inability to identify, understand, or express emotions in words.

Clinical Term Full entry →

alogia

Professional Technical IVT

Poverty of speech; a negative symptom of schizophrenia characterized by reduced speech output or content.

Technical Term Full entry →

anhedonia

Intermediate Technical IVT

The inability to experience pleasure in activities that were previously enjoyable, a core symptom of major depression.

Technical Term Full entry →

anosognosia

Professional Technical IVT

A neuropsychological condition where patients lack insight into or deny their mental illness or disability.

Technical Term Full entry →

avolition

Professional Technical IVT

Lack of motivation or drive to pursue goal-directed activities; a negative symptom of schizophrenia.

Technical Term Full entry →

Baker Act

Intermediate Formal IVT

Florida's involuntary psychiatric examination law allowing 72-hour holds for individuals deemed dangerous.

Legal Term Full entry →

blunted affect

Intermediate Technical IVT

Reduced emotional expression and responsiveness, appearing as diminished facial expressions and vocal inflection.

Technical Term Full entry →

BPAD

Intermediate Technical IVT

Bipolar Affective Disorder, a mood disorder characterized by alternating episodes of mania and depression.

Abbreviation Full entry →

BPRS

Professional Technical IVT

A brief psychiatric rating scale used to assess the severity of psychotic and mood symptoms in clinical and research set...

Assessment Tool Full entry →

CAGE questionnaire

Intermediate Technical IVT

A four-item screening tool for alcohol use disorders using questions about Cutting down, Annoyance, Guilt, and Eye-opene...

Abbreviation Full entry →

catatonia

Professional Technical IVT

A neuropsychiatric syndrome characterized by motor immobility, behavioral abnormalities, and often stupor or excessive m...

Technical Term Full entry →

circumstantiality

Advanced Technical IVT

A speech pattern characterized by excessive detail and tangential information before eventually reaching the intended po...

Technical Term Full entry →

CIWA-Ar

Professional Technical IVT

A standardized assessment tool used to monitor and quantify alcohol withdrawal symptoms and guide treatment protocols.

Technical Term Full entry →

clang associations

Intermediate Technical IVT

A thought disorder where words are connected based on similar sounds rather than logical meaning or semantic relationshi...

Technical Term Full entry →

clozapine

Professional Technical IVT

An atypical antipsychotic medication requiring regular blood monitoring due to risk of agranulocytosis.

Technical Term Full entry →

cognitive behavioral therapy

Intermediate Technical IVT

A structured psychotherapy approach focusing on identifying and changing negative thought patterns and behaviors.

Technical Term Full entry →

comorbidity

Intermediate Technical IVT

The simultaneous presence of two or more psychiatric or medical conditions in the same patient.

Technical Term Full entry →
Showing 1–24 of 100

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