RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Jumping Frenchmen of Maine
JF Neurology
JO Neurology
FD Lippincott Williams & Wilkins
SP 1269
OP 1269
DO 10.1212/WNL.36.9.1269
VO 36
IS 9
A1 Marie-Hélène Saint-Hilaire
A1 Jean-Marc Saint-Hilaire
A1 Luc Granger
YR 1986
UL http://n.neurology.org/content/36/9/1269.abstract
AB The “Jumping Frenchmen of Maine” were described by George Beard in 1878. They had an excessive startle response, sometimes with echolalia, echopraxia, or forced obedience. In 1885, Gilles de la Tourette concluded that “jumping” was similar to the syndrome that now bears his name. Direct observations of jumpers have been scarce. We studied eight jumpers from the Beauce region of Quebec. In our opinion, this phenomenon is not a neurologic disease, but can be explained in psychological terms as operant conditioned behavior. Our cases were related to specific conditions in lumber camps in the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century.