What is ambitendency?

Appeared in: DSSSB 14 August 2024

Explanation

Ambitendency is a psychomotor disturbance characterized by a conflict between the impulse to perform an action and the impulse to inhibit it.
This internal conflict manifests as hesitant, indecisive, and incomplete movements.
For example, a patient might start to reach out for a handshake but then immediately pull their hand back, repeating this motion.
It is considered a feature of catatonia, which can occur in schizophrenia and other psychiatric or medical conditions.

Why Other Options Were Wrong

Option A: This option describes 'automatic obedience,' where a person follows all commands without question.
Option B: This option defines 'ambivalence,' which is a conflict of emotions or feelings (e.g., loving and hating someone simultaneously). Ambitendency is a conflict of motor actions.
Option D: This option describes 'echopraxia,' the pathological imitation of another person's movements.

Related Visual

Clinical Relevance

Nursing practice connection: This is primarily an exam-oriented knowledge point with limited direct bedside application, so retain Definition of Ambitendency as background academic context rather than a clinical decision trigger.
Recognizing signs like ambitendency, echopraxia, and automatic obedience is crucial for nurses in identifying catatonia, a serious but treatable syndrome.
Differentiating between ambitendency (a motor conflict) and ambivalence (an emotional conflict) is essential for accurate psychiatric assessment and documentation.
What if? If a patient verbally expresses both a desire to go for a walk and a fear of leaving their room, but shows no hesitant movements, this indicates ambivalence, not ambitendency. The intervention would focus on exploring feelings rather than addressing a motor block.

How to Approach the Question

Identify the core term in the question: 'ambitendency'.
Recall the definition of this psychiatric term. Note the prefix 'ambi-' suggests duality or conflict, and 'tendency' relates to an inclination to act.
Analyze each option to see which one matches the definition of a conflict in action or movement.
Option A describes obedience, not conflict.
Option B describes a conflict of feelings (ambivalence), not actions.
Option C describes a conflict 'to do or not to do,' which directly matches the motor hesitation of ambitendency.

Concept Tested & Keywords

Concept Tested: Definition of Ambitendency
Stem keywords: ambitendency
Lead-in keywords: What is
Negative lead-in flag: false

Question ID

QCQEtkK3spo60SXDWApWJe

Reference Book

E6 Robert Boland, Marcia L. Verduin - Kaplan and Sadock's Comprehensive Text of Psychiatry-Wolters Kluwer Health (2024) (pp 1-16525 of 16525) pp. 2344-2346, 2342-2344

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