Walter Freeman coined the term "surgically induced childhood" and used it constantly to refer to the results of lobotomy. The operation left people with an "infantile personality"; a period of maturation would then, according to Freeman, lead to recovery. In an unpublished memoir, he described how the "personality of the patient was changed in some way in the hope of rendering him more amenable to the social pressures under which he is supposed to exist." He described one 29-year-old woman as being, following lobotomy, a "smiling, lazy and satisfactory patient with the personality of an oyster" who could not remember Freeman's name and endlessly poured coffee from an empty pot. When her parents had difficulty dealing with her behavior, Freeman advised a system of rewards (ice cream) and punishment (smacks).
Walter Freeman coined the term "surgically induced childhood" and used it constantly to refer to the results of lobotomy The operation left people with an "infantile personality"; a period of maturation would then according to Freeman lead to recovery In an unpublished memoir he described how the "personality of the patient was changed in some way in the hope of rendering him more amenable to the social pressures under which he is supposed to exist" He described one 29-year-old woman as being following lobotomy a "smiling lazy and satisfactory patient with the personality of an oyster" who could not remember Freeman's name and endlessly poured coffee from an empty pot When her parents had difficulty dealing with her behavior Freeman advised a system of rewards (ice cream) and punishment (smacks)