Automatism

Automatism may refer to:

• Automatic behavior, spontaneous verbal or motor behavior; an act performed unconsciously. Defendants have been found not guilty due to an automatism defense (e.g., homicide while sleepwalking).
• Automatism (law), a defense to liability. See also Automatism (case law).
• Automatism (toxicology), when an individual repeatedly takes a medication because the individual forgets previous doses, potentially leading to a drug overdose.
• Automatic writing, the process, or product, of writing material that does not come from the conscious thoughts of the writer.
• Automatism Artistic Movement
• Surrealist automatism, an art technique.
• Automatism (medicine), repetitive unconscious gestures such as lip smacking, chewing, or swallowing in certain types of epilepsy.

Unconscious muscular movements often attributed to the supernatural through physical guidance, especially artistic activity (i.e. writing, drawing, painting, playing musical instruments, composing, dancing, and singing). Automatism was often attributed to spirits and the divine since ancient times when inspired activity was considered to be the gift of the gods. The prevailing contemporary view is that most automatisms are the product of secondary personalities who produce knowledge or information the person has learned and repressed or forgotten. The most common forms of automatism are automatic writing and automatic painting. In automatic painting, individuals who have little or no artistic training suddenly feel overcome by the desire to draw or paint in distinctive professional styles. They may feel guided by a spirit, or that an invisible hand is pushing theirs. In some cases, the style is recognizable as that of a deceased artist. Other types of motor automatisms include impulsive hebavior, sudden inhibitions and sudden physical incapacities. Problems associated with automatisms include compulsion, obsession, and a feeling of possession. Sensory automatisms, those produced by an inner voice or vision, can include apparitions of the living, inspirations, hallucinations, and dreams.