Scale for the Assessment of Thought, Language, and Communication (TLC)

by Nancy C. Andreasen The following set of definitions was developed to improve the reliability of assessments of "formal thought disorder." In the past such assessments have been unreliable at least in part because clinicians and researchers have not agreed upon the meaning of the terms which they have used. It is hoped that the following definitions will provide a common and reliable stock of terms to describe the language and cognitive behaviors which can be observed in psychiatric patients.