The present paper highlights the historical and methodological approaches of graphology and its usefulness in human knowledge in order to give a glimpse of the complexity of this discipline. Gradually it has been possible to ascertain on how many and such fields of studies the graphological approaches have been engaged comparing them with opinions and feedbacks from the academic and scientific world. Handwriting is an X-ray of the mind. On the other hand, the handwriting seems to contain within it a myriad of facets and a wealth of features that could be difficult to disconnect from the writers own type [40]. Kristeva J (1994) Soleil noir, quelques aspects de la dpression feminine. Bollati Boringhieri: Torino. Kao H, Zhu L, Chao AA, Chen HY, Liu IC et al. In the second half of the nineteenth century, between 1806 and 1881, in France, the Abb Jean-Hippolyte Michon coined the term graphology catalogued as a series of recurrent graphic signs and empirically linked to specific aspects of the character. His training depends on the personal history of the individual and varies from individual to individual. gy gra-fl--j plural graphologies : the study of handwriting especially for the purpose of character analysis graphological However, in our opinion seems trite and simplistic to attribute to graphology coarse inferences that link the size of the letters in the handwriting to a way to think big or not, or that the distance between the written words can defined exclusively and separately the dimension of writer proxemic attitude towards the other characterizing as well as distanced/detached or near/intrusive [54]. What is GRAPHOLOGY? Even Confucius, in the year 500 A. D. made reference to the action of writing as moved by the spirit of man in the same way in which a reed sways in the wind. The results showed an acceptable level of correspondence and reliability of the graphological instruments such as to constitute an additional element in decision making in psychiatry and internal medicine. Yanagita M, Willcox BJ, Masaki KH, Chen R, He Q et al. n. the study of the physical characteristics of handwriting, particularly as a means of inferring the writer's psychological state or personality characteristics. Everything presumably because it can be perceived as a focus or because it may have effects of meditation. According to Crystal's (1995: 194) definition, Graphology, in its linguistic sense, is the study of the systems of symbols that have been devised to communicate language in written form . In 2013, Gawda hypothesized to verify specific signs in handwriting referable to a major depressive disorder in a group of 30 patients who received this diagnosis compared to a control group of 60 healthy individuals and another group of 60 persons suffering from a bipolar disorder of which 30 in the depressive phase and other 30 in that manic phase [47]. Graphology developed in conjunction with psychiatry in Europe, not with popular psychology as it did here in the United States. Williams et al. The oldest interest towards graphology has been found in India and starting from the year 2000 B. C. it spreads in China, where the art of writing has been also carried out in order to understand the nature of man [4]. Murthy JV, Singh S, Shakila R, Shastri M (2013) Comparison of Graphoanalysis with House Method in Prediction of Complete Denture Patients Mental Attitude: A Prospective Comparative Study. correspond pursuant to the graphologists to specific personality traits, cognitive styles and emotional states. Among the best-known examples, the test of Inkblots of Rorschach is most fitting [16]. In 2019, Giannini and co-workers have tried to elaborate a handwriting analysis protocol in order to estimate severe major depressive disorder, achieving encouraging results [66]. MacMillan Co: New York. These hypotheses are linked to those of the so-called magical thinking [119]. Over time, the graphologist also noted that some aspects of affective disorders may be revealed in the writing style of some patients including those depressed showed a reduced size of the letters, keeping the line followed a sinuous or descending course, the pressure support appeared light, the letters showed an inclination reversed and the letters i and j were devoid of dots [41-43]. In this regard, Balestrino and co-workers found that in some way the graphological signs may identify persons not in possession of the full capacity of discernment or otherwise intellectually impaired [25]. Handwritings analysis of these persons has also allowed the identification of a capacity not yet developed, and to invest in the right direction [21, 38]. (2003) Anatomical correlates of dyslexia: frontal and cerebellar findings. The best-known pseudo psychologies all make the unfounded suggestion that various external events or characteristics can affect or determine personality. Graphology is the analysis of handwriting with attempt to determine someone's personality traits. (2007) Graphology for the diagnosis of suicide attempts: a blind proof of principle controlled study. . This process takes into account the conventions that are learned and draw on the wealth of individual experience, in a link between past and present and oriented in a prospective manner through the becoming process. The monitoring consisted in the measurement of respiratory rate, EMG signs and heart rate. To judge the validity of a disputed will is complex; however, a major problem is to estimate the state of the mental faculties of the testator at the time of the intentions expressed. Bertolino M, Steiner DD (2007) Fairness Reactions to Selection Methods: An Italian study. Fogassi L, Gallese V (2004) Action Binding as a Key to Multisensory Integration. and could be considered a graphemic area as referred by Sakurai and co-workers such as an area in which visuokinesthetic and sequential motor engrams for letters and words are stored [90-92]. graphology. Ward M (1985) Graphology Enhances education, part 1.10. Therefore, writing is a process that requires the integration of visual, proprioceptive (kinesthetic and haptic) and tactile functions for it to be completed [58]. Their findings indicated a left hemisphere ventral temporal region selectively tuned to abstract representations of letters as well as substrates tuned to modality-specific letter representations [96]. Graphology is the study of handwriting as a means of analyzing character. And it is an art because the graphologist has constantly to keep in mind the total context in which . Williams M, Berg Cross G, Berg Cross L (1977) Handwriting Characteristics and Their Relationship to Eysencks Extraversion-Introversion and Kagans Impulsivity-Relfectivity Dimensions. The handwriting process consists of hands stereotyped movements involving two basic motor components, that is, holding firmly a pen with fingers and moving hand and fingers to produce a text. Grace N, Johnson BP, Rinehart NJ, Enticott PG (2018) Are Motor Control and Regulation Problems Part of the ASD Motor Profile? Crpieux Jamin (1947) Lcriture et le caractre. The extension of the graphological methodology also in the field of dentistry in a survey of 2013 differentiated behaviours and psychological tendencies manifested during the application of the prosthesis in relation to the emotional state [56]. For Jung, the Person on a symbolic level represents a cover that does not coincide with the true reality of the individual, in fact it is opposed by that other side of ourselves, part of the Personal Unconscious, called Ombra the dark brother who, although invisible, is inseparable from us and is part of our totality [12]. Marianna Mazza, Regional Office Americas: Handwriting for graphology was and is still regarded as an expression of projective aspects of the self of the person in the same way psychology uses projective techniques. Trends in prevalence and incidence of graphology could provide important information about the development of this discipline over the time and in different countries across the world. However, in the evolutionary process of the person, handwriting also leads progressively to a maturation modulating and modeling itself over time. In 1991, a study conducted with the same intent did not seem to get anything of significant in the use of graphology on the evaluation of the aspects of personality [102]. considered, unlike projective tests, graphology as a test sufficiently structured inherent in the writing itself and the lack of consideration of the textual content constituted one of the elements being assessed in responses to projective tests [13]. Kindler: Munich. The perceptual stimulus of the spots, similar, in our opinion, to the phenomenon described by Jaspers of pareidolia, devoid of defined and recognizable formal connotations, this perceptive phenomenon evokes a subjective processing of apperception by the person who transfers something characteristic of his inner world to the image he analysed [17]. In immersing ourselves in the universe of graphology we became increasingly aware of how much work and dedication has been done. Graumann considered the use of the graphological tool in monitoring conducted on the progress of psychotherapy about the possibility of a developmental progression of personality in the course of treatment. Graphology is a technique that allows us to become knowledgeable of ourselves and also explore those who surround us. Lindeman M (1998) Motivation, cognition and pseudoscience. have examined the motion abnormalities in subjects at risk of psychosis by estimating the increased presence of displacing movements of the pen. Ania Teillard affirmed that the style of writing speaks directly to the observer, not unlike a smile or the shape of a hand; the graphic trace reflects the most spontaneous and authentic aspects of a person configuring in terms of a creative process [3]. It is primarily viewed as a pseudoscience and is controversial regarding its validity as a projective personality test. Through her contribution entitled The soul and handwriting new horizons have been opened for graphology combining in an original way the first and in particular the spatial symbolism of Pulver with the depth psychology and the Jungs theory of psychological types. found an activation of neurons of the parietal cortex around the left superior parietal area which is part of the writing centers as reported by Sugihara et al. On the other hand, the techniques of Eastern meditation such as Zen and yoga are traditionally an effective means for the psychological well-being, depressive disorders and generalized anxiety, substantiated by empirical evidence. Two empirical studies and some methodological ruminations. According to some investigation it turned out that in France 52% of assumptions had been made in this direction, to go down in the United Kingdom at 7%, in the Netherlands at 4%, in Germany and Norway at 2% [29]. He devoted himself to the study of the Unconscious throughout his entire psychological research, referring to the personal Unconscious as a set of all those things that have been forgotten and subliminally perceived and that do not reach consciousness to its inability to contain them all [10]. In two groups of 40 persons, the first composed by successful manager and the second by volunteers, graphics samples have been analysed by three graphologists that succeeded to identify with accuracy the handwritings respectively belonging to the group of professionals and those of the control group. For Aristotle, in fact, it was important to capture the expressiveness of the writing gesture considering it as an element of revelation of the way in which the soul is conceived. Fundamental element in the handwriting is the rhythm as an expression of the vital level; every graphological school recognizes in the rhythm a strongly indicative element of personality. Basic Measures. In accordance with this correlation, the author led to further investigations that identified aspects graphometrically identifiable on character traits of extroversion or similar to some inner conflict [53]. Bradley N (2002) The applications and prices of Graphology. Figure 1: The estimated number of graphologists according to Bradley, set in descending order on the basis of the percentage of graphologists in the active population (millions). Grafton ST, Fadiga L, Arbib MA, Rizzolatti G (1997) Premotor Cortex Activation during Observation and Naming of Familiar Tools. Responsibilities of Editor and Editorial Board. Handb multisensory Process Cambridge, Mass MIT Press. The use of the techniques of graphology was suggested by Graumann in monitoring of a psychotherapeutic process than a declining its application nature included in an arc that moves between the possibility of complementary aid in the phases of psychological and medical research, assessments relating to the progress of care processes and their use in the re-education writing [68]. 1. The intent of the present paper was to establish an initial approach to the discipline and to the points of view of graphology through the research of the state of the art over time, starting from its beginnings. For graphologists the handwriting is one of those non-verbal forms of expression that underlie mental mechanisms a more or less conscious to the individual. The usefulness of these parameters resides in assessing now, the will of the testators handwriting, by then, before his death, the mental condition of a deceased person. Domain specific cognitive impairments following focal damage in frontal cortex. Grace et al. This point of view was regarded with some favour by important psychologists such as Gordon Allport and Philip E. Vernon that refer to it in the Treaty Studies in Expressive Movement [39]. Eckert MA, Leonard CM, Richards TL, Aylward EH, Thomson J et al. Among these, the left frontal superior sulcus area, the left superior parietal area and the right anterior cerebellum represent the areas that have shown a reliable and repetitive activation during handwriting and it does suggest a possible important role played in writing processes in accordance with the perspective taken into account by Sugihara and colleagues that have defined the posterior end of the superior frontal gyrus and the anterior part of the left superior parietal area as writing centers [91]. The two have distinctive goals, training, and practices, but some psychologists integrate the two. denounced in graphology a poor reliability on the assessment of personality traits and the prediction of achievement success in the workplace [105]. (2019) Handwriting Features of Multiple Drawing Tests for Early Detection of Alzheimers Disease: A Preliminary Result. in: Calvert GA, Spence C be Stein (Eds.). Graphology is the scientific study and analysis of handwriting. have started from the hypothesis that depressed patients drew and wrote much more slowly than the control groups as already shown by other studies, and examined 37 depressed patients and 37 healthy individuals [59]. In psychosexual development, the passages are described by Freud as critical moments that do not always travel naturally towards each other to the arrival of conflicting conditions or, to use a term introduced by him, for not overcoming the complex or the trauma or of the shock occurred. For instance, generosity is reflected by wide spacing of words and large handwriting is associated with confidence. investigated the use of handwriting in the study of motor abnormalities in patients suffering from bipolar or psychotic disorders. From the neural perspective, Gimenez et al. Graphology finds possibility of application in various areas such as orientation to the study, personnel selection, calligraphic expertise, handwriting effect in conditions affecting the neuromuscular system. Graphemics deals with the customary ways we transcribe spoken language . A series of studies on depressive evidence through the use of graphology have occurred over time [47]. Returning to the source of the frontal writing centre hypothesis. Carl Gustav Jung (1996) Tipi psicologici. According to recent surveys, in Italy, Greece and the Netherlands 10% of companies employing graphology in selection, while in Switzerland the percentage stands at 15.8% [28, 33-36]. Although incidence and prevalence rates are difficult to establish, attention has been focused mostly on whether prevalence is increasing with time and on the relationship between the number of graphology and active working population (Figure 1) [2]. Graphology examines a writing in order to extract unfiltered information about innate temperament and subconscious nature of who has traced the letters. The discrepancy between dissimilar opinions constitutes a stimulus to deepen studies and verifications concerning the complementary use of graphology between the techniques of investigation into the psychological characteristics of the person. London. These psychic contents, inhabitants of the deepest layers of the human soul, gradually rise to an identical meaning for all the individuals of a particular stock, nation, religion, ethnicity. graphology definition: 1. the study of the way people write letters and words, especially in order to discover things. Furnham A (2000) The Perceived Efficacy of Various "Future-ologies" and Complementary Medicine. They pointed out twelve cortical and subcortical functional regions associated at different degrees with writing precesses. During its beginnings, Graphology tried to get to know the individual, analyzing the different characters of writing. In the accredited graphology courses, students learn to understand from the writing traits that are illustrated to them, the graphological characteristics based on the four phases theorized by Freud regarding the aspects of personality. Snyder CR, Shenkel RJ, Lowery CR (1977) Acceptance of personality interpretations: the Barnum Effect and beyond. Allport GW (1961) Pattern and growth in personality. Graphology based behavioural analysis is gaining popularity in the recent years due to widespread applications across diverse fields, such as psychology, education, medicine, criminal detection, marriage . The Shadow constitutes that set of removed dispositions integrated to the global personality in a guise of contraposition to the imposed predispositions present in the Person enclosing forever useful values to the conscience and to the completion of the personality, even if difficult to integrate in life. People who are into psychology and want to explore a . Satow R, Rector J (1995) Using Gestalt Graphology to Identify Entrepreneurial Leadership. Recent analyses of the cytoarchitecture and connectivity of neural areas have provided four key regions that appear to be important in categorizing the brains writing system [57, 71-73]. (1993) A clinical study of hypergraphia in epilepsy. To this process can be add items related to patterns and processes of thought, defensive and emotional aspects of the mind. A significant correlation was found between the graphological evidence of a will and neuropsychological assessment scales used as the Mini Mental State Examination and the Milan Overall Dementia Assessment scale. Klages founded at Monaco an institute for the study of characterological psychology [5]. Nevo B (1989) Validation of Graphology through use of a Matching Method Based on Ranking. On the other hand, Rothlein et al. Sakurai Y, Onuma Y, Nakazawa G, Ugawa Y, Momose T et al. It is a science because it measures the structure and movement of the written forms - slants, angles and spacing are accurately calculated and the pressure is observed in magnification and with precision. In parallel, Carl Gustav Jung represented and still represents one of the points of reference for scholars of graphology. Giannini M, Pellegrini P, Gori A, Loscalzo Y (2019) Is Graphology Useful in Assessing Major Depression? Panton and co-workers provide a quantitative review and synthesis of findings from functional neuroimaging studies [90]. Finally, Brewer has argued that, with respect to nursing care, graphology has been an aid to the understanding and possible hidden inner conflicts in students, nurses and other health professionals [38]. Through the study of letters called graphological analysis, it is possible to study patterns of writing that identify the psychological state of a person and to evaluate the characteristics of their personality. The findings from these studies, along with those mainly provided by clinical literature examining correlations between lesions and deficits, have promoted important insights into the neurobiology of writing activities. Graphology examines a writing in order to extract unfiltered information about innate temperament and subconscious nature of who has traced the letters. Results in this study showed that brain activity predominantly correlated with the right hemisphere indicating a greater neural efficiency positively modulated in the right hemisphere [57]. So, unlike psychology, which is "the science concerned with the mind and mental processes," Webster's does not regard graphology to be a "science." What, then, is Webster's definition of a "science"? He showed interest particularly in handwriting movement and dynamism. It is possible to monitor the handwriting in itinere, that is, at separate times, taking into account the variables that can act and intervene on the human soul. A Handwriting Study. Magic, art or science? [97]. On the other hand, it is also reported in the literature that numerous companies of significant size make use of the services of graphology for trace elements and information about personality based on the assumption that handwriting and personality differ from person to person; according to what it is believed, therefore, that in the handwriting emerge aspects and features relating to the person who writes [37]. The several schools born for the study of handwriting, using different methods and techniques, must be able to come to the same evidence, referring to certain theoretical assumptions which have been summarized by Bell [13, 14]. have focused on a group of 20 elderly people who had a diagnosis of major depressive disorder compared with a control group of the same number of people [48]. Allport GW, Vernon PE (1933) Studies in expressive movement. In the alteration of this mechanism the motor slowing, for example, represents an important aspect of depression, Mergl et al. New. Men such as Jung, Freud, and numerous other scientists were. (2008) Learning through Hand- or Typewriting Influences Visual Recognition of New Graphic Shapes: Behavioral and Functional Imaging Evidence. Rassegna di Neuropsichiatria. Vanini C, Bernard A (1986) La graphologie: manuel pratique. Graphology Definition And Examples. Between 1889 and 1978 the Estonian psychologist Ania Teillard before he dedicated herself to the study of Jung and later became a pupil of Klages and established contacts with Pulver, Saudek and Crpieux-Jamin. Pulver is considered one of the most important exponents of the science of graphology and spatial symbolism, even now an integral element of the evaluation system of handwriting. It has been reported significant evidence for positive characteristics related to persistence and attention. definition of GRAPHOLOGY (Psychology Dictionary) GRAPHOLOGY By N., Sam M.S. Treccani (2010) Dizionario Enciclopedico della Salute e della Medicina. Interpreting the features of people's handwriting is what graphology is all about, and it's a useful skill for anybody dealing with letters and notes that peers or co-workers have written as well as offering a fascinating insight into our own emotions and personalities. Some surveys indicate that it is rather rarely used outside of France, where estimates vary between 38% and 93% of organizations [31, 32]. In 1894, meanwhile, a French psychologist of the Sorbonne, professor of physiological psychology, Alfred Binet, dedicated himself to the study of handwriting to get the sex of the person who writes, in his essay Les rvlations de lcriture daprs un contrle scientifique. Graphology is the study of handwriting and handprints. In the results, the evidence concerning the first and second groups showed a reduction in heart rate and an increase in body temperature compared to the baseline measurements. Pulver, M (1972) Symbolik der Handschrift: ein Lehrbuch d. Graphologie. Bollati Boringhieri. On a psychological level this physiological characterization corresponds to the presence in both sexes of heterogeneous characteristics, the Animus and the Anima symbolize archetypal figures of the psyche, each of which is related to the opposite sex. In particular, empiricism denies the possibility of innate ideas, arguing that the mind at birth is like a blank sheet of paper (see tabula rasa ). According to the authors, therefore, the practice of writing Chinese calligraphy could be used to improve the mental and physical health through stress reduction. Anderson N, Witvliet C (2008) Fairness Reactions to Personnel Selection Methods: An international comparison between the Netherlands, the United States, France, Spain, Portugal, and Singapore. The assessment methodology could differently to refer to the same school membership of the graphologist. assessment center zur identifizierung von. We suppose that graphology and psychology could complement each other, and in this perspective, we explore the hypothesis of the existence of a bidirectional relationship between psychology, graphology and neuroscience which allows to gain insight into ourselves and others. According to graphologist John Beck, former chair of the British Institute of Graphologists, graphology is all about interpreting the symbols that appear in handwriting, in order to understand the psychological makeup of that person.. The medical dictionary defines graphology as a technique of personality investigation that assigns to the manual handwriting a revelatory significance of the writer attitudes and behaviours [1]. Teillard A (1968) Lme et lcriture. On the extreme side of depression, in cases of anti-conservative gestures, Mouly et al. Bangerter A, Knig CJ, Blatti S, Salvisberg A (2009) How Widespread is Graphology in Personnel Selection Practice? These findings were confirmed in manic-depressive handwriting from the studies of Stein-Lewinson who also pointed out the lack of rhythm [45, 46]. Already Teillard Ania in addition to the pressure of the tract had identified as characteristics of a mood inflection that the letters were presented through the acute form, garland, the letters were smaller in the middle zone of the handwriting and the diacritical mark in the letter t had a course oriented to the right [3]. The study may be focused on two or three handwriting samples produced in a period of about one or two months. After a long pause during the Middle Ages, graphological studies seemed to percolate since the seventeenth century, in particular in Bologna, a professor of logic and metaphysics, Camillo Baldi reported currently valid empirical and scientific observations, in the treatise entitled How from a missive letter, one may know the nature and qualities of the writer. In terms of micromovement, handwriting is described as a succession and combination of muscular elements, perceptual and motor hand-related, which apparently could be automated, as in handwriting it has been integrated sensory functions, such as cognitive and proprioceptive to be seen as a complex process [57, 58]. Okamura T, Fukai M, Yamadori A, Hidari M, Asaba H et al. For example Linderman explained that the graphologist can recognize marked managerial skills to three different people without considering that one of them could recognize himself relating him to his own organizational skills, and the other to those relating to the knowledge of his work and the third to his interpersonal skills [118]. i) The fusiform gyrus is most relevant to selectivity to letter, word stimuli and deriving word-form [74-78]. James KH, Gauthier I (2006) Letter processing automatically recruits a sensory-motor brain network. The observations derived from his studies revealed in some neurotic patients during the course of therapy, the progressive disappearance of specific graphic signs such as the size and density in the lower zone, the bizarre decorations in capital letters, the alterations in the flow of the rhythm. Platon et al. Fried LP, Storer DJ, King DE, Lodder F (1991) Diagnosis of illness presentation in the elderly.

Bm Quiet Moments In North Facing Room, The Prisoner Archetype Examples, The Disappearing Act Spoilers, List Of Banks In Massachusetts, Pillars Of Intimacy Theatre, Articles G