Tangential thinking occurs when someone moves from thought to thought but never seems to get to the main point. Instead, the thoughts are somewhat connected but in a superficial or tangential way.
For example, when a therapist poses the question, “How was your week?” a person may respond with, “When I was five, my cat was killed.” When the therapist asks about the cat the person may then begin to discuss something completely different such as religious beliefs or previous illnesses.
Andreasen provided a contrast to tangentiality as well: 'Flight of ideas is a derailment that occurs rapidly in the context of pressured speech. Tangentiality has been defined herein as a different phenomenon in that it occurs as the immediate response to a question'.
Unlike in flight of ideas, circumstantiality contains tighter and more coherent associations that may be easier to follow or understand. Unlike tangential speakers, i.e., those who are circumstantial eventually arrive back at the main point of speech or the answer to a question.
n. a thought disturbance that is marked by oblique speech in which the person constantly digresses to irrelevant topics and fails to arrive at the main point. In extreme form, it is a manifestation of loosening of associations, a symptom frequently seen in schizophrenia or delirium.
Tangential Thinking
For example: "I really got mad as I was waiting in line at the grocery store. I cannot stand lines. Waiting and waiting. I waited for a long time to get my driver's license.
adjective. If you describe something as tangential, you mean that it has only a slight or indirect connection with the thing you are concerned with, and is therefore not worth considering seriously. [formal] Too much time was spent discussing tangential issues.
In addition to flight of ideas, other types of thought disorders can occur in bipolar disorder and other conditions. Some of these include: Tangential thinking: This involves having connected thoughts but straying far from the original topic and never coming back to the original idea or point.
Tangentiality: continuous diversion from the topic of focus with no return to it. Looseness of associations: continuing change of topic with only loose associations between topics. Derailment: a sequence of completely unrelated thoughts with change of frame of reference between sentences.
“When bipolar disorder mood symptoms are severe, a person may experience psychosis, or delusional and paranoid thinking which is out of touch with reality,” says Dr. Dudley. Howard says that bipolar psychosis is frightening because what he thinks is happening isn't actually happening.
Tangential speech or tangentiality is a communication disorder in which the train of thought of the speaker wanders and shows a lack of focus, never returning to the initial topic of the conversation.
Disorganization. Disorganization involves thought disorders and bizarre behavior: Thought disorder refers to disorganized thinking, which becomes apparent when speech is rambling or shifts from one topic to another. Speech may be mildly disorganized or completely incoherent and incomprehensible.
Tangential means something that goes off in one direction that way and doesn't return. People can feel tangential — as though they're inessential and not relevant to a larger group.
Going off on tangents occurs for two reasons: We think faster than we speak. We haven't structured our message (or we forget to stick to the structure)
Thus, patients with bipolar disorder, due to differences in functioning in prefrontal cortical regions may experience difficulty inhibiting and regulating emotion, just as they have difficulty inhibiting their persistent self-focus in response to positive or negative affect (that is, rumination).
It is a common sign in people with bipolar disorder, which is a psychiatric condition characterized by fluctuating manic and depressive episodes. When an individual experiences psychomotor agitation, they may pace around the room, pull at their clothes, wring their hands, fidget, and speak quickly.
Losing one's train of thought now and then is common and not usually anything to worry about. However, it can also be a symptom of a mental health condition such as psychosis. This condition can cause disorganized speech and thinking, as well as hallucinations and delusions, in some cases.
Narcissistic Personality Disorder: Compulsive talking may be a symptom of Narcissistic Personality Disorder. In this case, compulsive talking often manifests as a relentless need to self-promote or belittle others.
If you describe something as tangential, you mean that it has only a slight or indirect connection with the thing you are concerned with, and is therefore not worth considering seriously. [formal] Too much time was spent discussing tangential issues.
Definition of tangential stress. : a force acting in a generally horizontal direction. simply it is acting in parallel to surface .