What psychopathology does the term 'perseveration' describe?
Perseveration refers to inappropriate recurrence or continuance of a paicular behavior (in sucession). E.g. talk the same sentence many times and not able to move away from it. It is unintentional and the patient may or may not be aware of this disorder. Perseveration usually indicates an organic pathology like a brain injury, stroke etc. Ref: Linguistic Disorders and Pathologies: An International Handbook By Gerhard Blanken, page 230.; Medical-Legal and Forensic Aspects of Communication Disorders, By Dennis C. Tanner page 80.
Patient feeling very distressed
Characteristic feature of schizophrenia
Characteristic of obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
Persistent and inappropriate repetition of the same thoughts