DOTA - Dogmatism Text Analysis

DOTA (DOgmatism Text Analysis) is a content analyic procedure applied on oral or written speech production).

Closed-minded speakers/writers are expected to use A-words/phrases like always, never (frequency), all, each, every (quantity, amount), entirely, absolutely (degree, measure), doubtlessly, necessarily (certainty), only, either or (exclusion), must, cannot (necessity vs. possibility) in order to communicate exaggerated ideas.

Open-minded people, on the other hand, are expected to prefer B-words/phrases like (sometimes, occasionally, not all, some, partly, greatly, possibly, may be, also, as well, can, must not). DQ, the "dogmatism quotient" is based on this information (the dictionary covers roughly 450 words/phrases).

DOTA results have lead me to eventually re-interpret the validity of the procedure. "A-terms" indicate more prägnant cognitive patterns (good-gestalt patterns) while "B-terms" indicate less prägnant patterns (deviating from good gestalt). Texts containing high proprtions of A-terms may be produced by speakers/writers intending to maximize precision (as with texts iestablishing laws and juridicial prescriptions) and clarity (as with preliminary over-generalizations for educational purposes). Much variance of A/B term usage may thus be due to communicative purpose. Closed-vs. open-mindedness ("Dogmatism") may come in as an additional A- or B-inflating factor of personality or cognitive style.


DOTA research results are as follows: (1) In public speeches and written material, the extreme left and right of political parties of the Weimar Republic produced higher DQ's (i.e., they used more "closed-minded words/phrases") than democratic parties. (2) Linguistic indications of closed-mindedness are more frequent with utopian philosophers (Marxian, Hegelian, Romantic) than with critical philosophers of science (Popper, Albert, Lakatos). (3) Immanuel Kant's seminal works (esp. "Kritik der reinen Vernunft") were written with considerably more indications of "closed"-mindedness than works that Kant wrote earlier and later which result suggests to avoid associating DQ with evaluative connotation (4) In 1961, during the months before the Berlin Wall was built, words/phrases of closed-mindedness were used more frequently in "Neues Deutschland" , the GDR's official newspaper in which the regime's fear of "Republikflucht" (masses of East Germans went west) took various forms of protest. (5) Sudden DOTA-deviations of individual writers were noticed along time series of their work productions during periods of psychotic illness. Friedrich Hölderlin, Vincent van Gogh, and August Strindberg reached DOTA-peaks at periods when they suffered - according to medical documents - acute psychoses. (6) Successful treatment of seven neurotic patients (by client-centered therapy) was indicated by a continuous average decrease of DQ in the clients' speech productions. There was one case whose treatment was unsuccessful, the only one whose DQ-level increased during therapy.