Abstract
Progress in general medicine is brought about by clinical observation or carefully controlled experimental research. In psychiatry there is little opportunity for the latter approach. One of the few methods available at the present time is the use of intoxicating drugs. It was Kraepelin who first emphasized the importance of studying psychological changes produced by drugs. Following his lead many observers have tested their action on various psychic faculties. Copious data have been collected about such agents as alcohol, caffeine, hyoscine and cocaine. But the value of these observations in bringing about an understanding of the psycho-pathology of the major psychoses is limited, since it is rarely possible to produce the picture of a true psychosis without giving the drug in amounts sufficient to bring about dangerous or chronic intoxication.
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