dissociation
/dɪˌsəʊʃɪˈeɪʃ(ə)n
/ /dɪˌsəʊsɪˈeɪʃ(ə)n/noun [mass noun]
1The action of disconnecting or separating or the state of being disconnected: we in the West honour a long-standing dissociation between church and state...
- For simplicity, the times separating association and dissociation events of the transcription factors are modeled as a random variable that follows a Poisson distribution.
- Single stomach smooth muscle cells were isolated by enzymatic dissociation with trypsin and collagenase as described previously.
- It is that dissociation that has so troubled us, so alienated us.
Synonyms
separation, disconnection, detachment, severance, divorce, uncoupling, split, setting apart;
segregation, distinction, division;
isolation, alienation, distancing
literary sundering
rare disseverment
1.1 Chemistry The splitting of a molecule into smaller molecules, atoms, or ions, especially by a reversible process.The energy required for a chemical reaction depends on the bond dissociation energy of the atoms comprising the molecules....
- In the case of diatomic molecules, the dissociation energy refers to the energy required to break the gaseous molecules into their constituent atoms.
- Wigner's thesis contains the first theory of the rates of association and dissociation of molecules.
1.2 Psychiatry Separation of normally related mental processes, resulting in one group functioning independently from the rest, leading in extreme cases to disorders such as multiple personality: [count noun]: the dissociations that one can observe in neuropsychological patients...
- Dissociative experiences are considered to range from the minor dissociations of everyday life to dissociative psychopathology, with higher scores on the DES indicating a greater degree of dissociation.
- Even when the corpus callosum is intact, striking dissociations of consciousness can be demonstrated.
- More recent thinking, again of researchers working with adults, has raised questions about the meaning of explicit-implicit dissociations in directed forgetting.