GRAPHOLOGY

inference of character from a person's handwriting. The theory underlying graphology is that handwriting is an expression of personality; hence a systematic analysis of the way words and letters are formed can reveal traits of personality. Graphologists note such elements as the size of individual letters and the degree and regularity of slanting, ornamentation, angularity, and curvature. Other basic considerations are the general appearance and impression of the writing, the pressure of upward and downward strokes, and the smoothness of the writing. Whereas intuitive graphologists are chiefly concerned with a total impression, analytic graphologists concentrate on specifics-for example, interpreting a large handwriting as a sign of ambition and a small one as a sign of pedantry. Graphologists have cautioned that the validity of handwriting analysis can be subverted by such considerations as myopia and the loss of motor control.