free association
noun /ˌfriː əˌsəʊsiˈeɪʃn/, /ˌfriː əˌsəʊʃiˈeɪʃn/
/ˌfriː əˌsəʊsiˈeɪʃn/, /ˌfriː əˌsəʊʃiˈeɪʃn/
[uncountable]- the mental process by which one word or image may suggest another without any obvious connection
- Many of the images seem to have been arrived at by means of free association.
- a method of treating a patient by asking them to use the mental process of free association
- Freud insisted on free association as the mainspring of analysis.