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Clanging

Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

In psychology and psychiatry, clanging or clang association refers to a form of speech pattern where thinking is driven by word sounds. For example, rhyming or alliteration may lead to the appearance of logical connections where none in fact exists. It may also be mistaken for rapping, in which the rhyming may not make any sense. This, just one manifestation amongst a more general spectrum of thought disorders, is associated with the irregular thinking apparent in psychotic mental illnesses (e.g. schizophrenia).


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