Attention in hysteria: A study of Janet's hypothesis by means of habituation and arousal measures

Abstract

Toward the end of the 19th century, Janet suggested that the fundamental disorder in hysteria was one of attention. The authors examined this idea in a study of habituation. Patients with a history of prolonged conversion symptoms (N = 11) showed a severe impairment in habituation when compared with patients with anxiety neuroses (N = 10). This finding cannot be explained in terms of arousal and suggests that selective inattention is deficient in hysterical individuals.