Psychiatric disorders in handwriting: A review
Psychiatric disorders in handwriting: A review

Summary/Abstract: Handwriting is a complex process that involves multiple regions of the brain andmotor functions at its functional core. Throughout these neurobiological functions, psy-chological, cognitive, and emotional processes are engaged, making handwriting a uniquetrait of the individual, much like their personality. This is the reason why handwriting issuch important scientific evidence in forensic investigations, however, its role could gobeyond that and deeper into medical practice, as recent literature suggests. Although thebasic patterns of handwriting remain fundamentally the same, the mental and emotionalstate of an individual might change some aspects and content of his or her writing. In somecases, traits might be proportionally linked to certain psychiatric disorders.This paper proposes a review of the physiological and psychological alterationsthat affect handwriting and analyses the possibility of using handwriting as a tool inclinical practice, diagnosis, and follow-up of patients, as well as an instrument thatobjectifies forensic psychiatric diagnostics.

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