Jean Marie Joseph Capgras (23 August 1873 – 27 January 1950) was a French

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

who is best known for the

Capgras delusion Capgras delusion or Capgras syndrome is a psychiatric disorder in which a person holds a delusion that a friend, spouse, parent, or other close family member (or pet) has been replaced by an identical impostor. It is named after Joseph Capgras (1 ...

, a disorder named after him. He received his medical degree in

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Par ...

, later working in several mental institutions in France. During the latter part of his career, he was associated with Hôpital Sainte-Anne. With his mentor,

Paul Sérieux Paul Sérieux (; 1864–1947) was a French psychiatrist who was a native of Paris. He practiced medicine in several French hospitals and asylums during his career, including the Asylum of Ville-Evrard and the hospital of Sainte-Anne. He also w ...

(1864–1947), he contributed on psychiatric publications such as ''Les Folies raisonnantes'' (1909) (“Reasoning madnesses. Misinterpretative delusional states”) and '' Les Psychoses à base d'interprétations délirantes''. With Sérieux, he described a type of non-schizophrenic, paranoid

psychosis Psychosis is a condition of the mind that results in difficulties determining what is real and what is not real. Symptoms may include delusions and hallucinations, among other features. Additional symptoms are incoherent speech and behavior ...

referred to as '' Délire d’interprétation de Sérieux et Capgras''.

was described in 1923 in a study published by Capgras and his intern Jean Reboul-Lachaux, titled ''L'illusion des "sosies" (the illusion of doubles') dans un délire systématisé chronique''. This disorder is defined as a delusion that a close relative or friend has been replaced by an impostor.Capgras' delusion
at

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Notes

References

* Postel J, Allen DF. Joseph Capgras (1873-1950). ''

Psychopathology Psychopathology is the study of abnormal cognition, behaviour, and experiences which differs according to social norms and rests upon a number of constructs that are deemed to be the social norm at any particular era. Biological psychopatholo ...

'' 1994;27:121–122, . * Sérieux P, Capgras J
''Les Folies rasonnantes''
J.-F. Alcan, 1909. French psychiatrists 1873 births 1950 deaths People from Tarn-et-Garonne {{France-scientist-stub