title: [The concept of consciousness from the neuropsychiatric and interdisciplinary viewpoint].
abstract: In German neuropsychiatric literature there is an established tradition of viewing the disturbance of consciousness as a leading symptom of the acute, potentially reversible organic psychoses. Following the late H. H. Wieck acute organic psychoses which are characterized by a disturbance of wakefulness (syndromes of somnolence, sopor, coma), have to be distinguished from those with preserved wakefulness, which he called 'Durchgangssyndrom' (e.g. amnesic syndrome with affective lability). These two syndromes have found their way into textbooks and everyday language in medicine as 'disturbance of consciousness'. But neurology and psychiatry are developing in different directions. Furthermore classical phenomenological psychopathology is not a numerative science and consciousness is still under the persisting eliminative verdict of behaviorism. During the last decades consciousness and the psychopathology of acute organic psychoses have been subject to methodological reflection only with the aim of elaborating quantitative scales. In philosophy and psychology there has been a development towards a new impartiality about consciousness during the same time. The biological sciences have acquired more knowledge about cerebral functions with respect to conscious mental processes and between these sciences a fruitful cooperation has evolved from this. The different views of consciousness in relevant neighbouring sciences are looked at from two main points of view. Following classical descriptive tradition are: philosophy (Bunge, Seifert, Hastedt), philosophically oriented psychiatry (Jaspers, Ey), descriptive psychology (Deleay/Pichot), and the post-behaviorist psychology (Hilgard, Mandler, Natsoulas). On the other hand the neurobiologically oriented sciences: clinical neuropsychology (Mesulam, Kolb/Wishaw, Poeck, Stuss, Shallice), neurophysiology (Brain, Goldman-Rakic, Creutzfeldt, Roland), and neurophilosophy (Churchland, Oeser). These more recent developments can contribute to a more actual sight of psychopathology of consciousness in neurology and psychiatry.
authors.affiliation: Neurologische Universitätsklinik-Knappschaftskrankenhaus, Ruhr-Universität Bochum.
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Spittler
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000503:physiopathology; D003244:Consciousness Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008606:Mental Processes / Q000502:physiology; D019965:Neurocognitive Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010348:Patient Care Team; D010686:Philosophy, Medical
vernacular_title: Der Bewusstseinsbegriff aus neuropsychiatrischer und in interdisziplinärer Sicht.