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decontextualization

n.

1. the process of isolating a constituent from its normal or expected context. It may occur deliberately, as when visual artists isolate a familiar object from its everyday context by turning it upside down or vastly expanding its size to reveal a new perspective about it, or nonconsciously, as when one’s memory of a traumatic event becomes dissociated from the context in which the trauma occurred and acquires a quality of unreality.

2. in the study of perception, the process of making implicit stimulus features explicit and testable, as in the Ames room and many other perceptual demonstrations. —decontextualize vb.

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Psychology term of the day

January 30th 2025

electronarcosis

electronarcosis

n. a form of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in which the amount of electricity, the duration of the shock, or both is sufficient to generate the tonic phase of a seizure but either limits or prevents the clonic phase. Electronarcosis is a generally less effective alternative to standard ECT and is more likely to cause side effects. The technique has also been used to induce relaxation and sleep. See electrosleep therapy.