Inappropriate Affect
Here's the psychiatric definition.
A person's affect is the expression of emotion or feelings displayed to others through facial expressions, hand gestures, voice tone, and other emotional signs such as laughter or tears. Individual affect fluctuates according to emotional state. What is considered a normal range of affect, called the broad affect, varies from culture to culture, and even within a culture. Certain individuals may gesture prolifically while talking, and display dramatic facial expressions in reaction to social situations or other stimuli. Others may show little outward response to social environments or interactions, expressing a narrow range of emotions to the outside world.
... When the outward display of emotion is out of context for the situation, such as laughter while describing pain or sadness, the affect is termed "inappropriate."
This seems to me classic inappropriate affect, all the news of the week considered.
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Nov '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
I get your point, Claire. There seemed an inappropriate underlying smirk on the President's face, especially around the mouth. And he looked either exhausted, hungover, or buzzed around the eyes. Strange.
Jul '11
Re: Inappropriate Affect
Isn't another, less clinical, but nevertheless useful, definition the following,
insanity - a condition marked by the constant repetition of the the same mistake under the illusion that it will somehow succeed
Isn't this the same old tired set of cliches and tropes that Obama has been spinning since his DNC speech in 2004? He's been pretending to be the adult, a man of the center, beyond parties (nay, above parties) since he took office. Can anybody point to an instance when this sort of hectoring has succeeded? Does he really think we want our president casting about aimlessly for new people to blame?
And forget the events of the past week. Given the past 24 hours, this speech seems bizarrely out of touch. His lack of self-awareness and his obliviousness to what is on the minds of millions of Americans is truly amazing.
Edited on Aug 6, 2011 at 2:58pmMay '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
Something went radically wrong during his childhood.
He's not normal.
May '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
Only for you Claire would I watch the prez' saturday address (well, most of it).
He seem absolutely disconnected from reality.
Dec '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
I already heard it. Let me see, he called for an extension of the Payroll Tax holiday, the only taxes paid by those that don't pay income taxes, paid into a system that is already at or near bankruptcy. He called for more tax dollars to go into unemployment compensation. And something else, but equally destructive.
He is not relevant.
Put your boots on and get to work.
Jul '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
There IS one new position being put forth - now, despite the fact that it's been him and the democrat party that have totally trashed the economy, it is now BOTH parties that are responsible for "fixing" it - and this with the dems digging in their heels about ANY meaningful improvement in the economic situaton vis a vis the government. Claire, you are being extremely polite in calling it "inappropriate affect". It is, in fact, either gross lying or complete incoherent thought.
Nov '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
This is the great orator?
Gag me with a spoon.
Sep '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
I have to agree with Stanley Kurtz that the guy wants the crisis to deepen.
Sep '10
Re: Inappropriate Affect
I have to agree with Stanley Kurtz that the guy wants the crisis to deepen.