Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Dromomania


 * The following discussion is an archived debate of the proposed deletion of the article below. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review).  No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was keep. Whether or not it is currently accepted in credible Physiological circles, it has been convincingly demonstrated that the topic has been widely discussed for more than a century. This close in no way indicates that the current state of the article is balanced or comprehensive. 78.26 (spin me / revolutions) 15:01, 9 August 2018 (UTC)

Dromomania

 * – ( View AfD View log  Stats )

Spent a bit doing some research on this and so far as I can tell, this is a pseudo-science fringe-theory type nonsense article. The alternate name "clinical travel addiction" brings up even less than "Dromomania" and scholarly papers give zilch (aside from a footnote in one paper.) Google results in multiple languages bring up a lot of nonsense and circular references and despite several claims that this is in the DSM, after looking for it myself, I can find no evidence that Dromomania or it's various names is a notable or real affliction and it certainly isn't in the DSM. This appears to be more like a sensational Buzzfeed-esque headline than anything encyclopedic. CHRISSY MAD ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  20:08, 14 July 2018 (UTC)


 * Delete My edits were what prompted the deletion in the first place. I can confirm dromomania is not in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual. The term was popularized by Mad Travelers (2000), which is a biography and not a scientific work. I suppose it's not forever? I'm still kind of rooting for dromomania because it's so bizarre :) Maybe the article can be reintroduced if the term becomes so popular to be included in dictionaries. Contains Sulfites (talk) 22:03, 14 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Sources exist a long time before that. The case mentioned (from the 19th century) appears to be more like dissociative fugue, which is still recognised for now, but the definition encompasses both that and wanderlust; could it be that it was once recognised as a disorder but is now not? I don't think it's an exact match for either so redirect would be misleading, and notability is not temporary. Peter James (talk) 22:12, 14 July 2018 (UTC) Also the nominator had just redirected Jean-Albert Dadas to it, with a summary including "covered by actual RS in the target" - if that is true, it shouldn't be deleted. Peter James (talk) 22:13, 14 July 2018 (UTC)
 * And that was my mistake but I was also restoring an existing redirect. I stand by my AfD. CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  22:38, 14 July 2018 (UTC)


 * Keep or Merge. This is a real thing and has been called that for centuries. CNN calls it "dromomania, an uncontrollable psychological urge to wander"  Is it in any psychiatry textbooks? Dictionaries include it.    D r e a m Focus  22:42, 14 July 2018 (UTC)
 * That is based entirely off of one book, which is both misleading and WP:FRINGE. CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
 * https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/dromomania says its defined in Medical Dictionary, © 2009 Farlex and Partners. 32 Wikipedia articles reference Farlex Partner Medical Dictionary, but it doesn't have an article.  Is it a reliable publication?   D r e a m Focus  22:58, 14 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Its defined also in The American Heritage Stedman’s Medical Dictionary, referenced in 59 Wikipedia articles, and other medical dictionaries as well. If there is a list somewhere showing what medical dictionaries are considered reliable, and which ones let you search them online, that'd be useful.    D r e a m Focus  23:01, 14 July 2018 (UTC)
 * And they're all mostly circular (specifically Wikipedia) and based on the fact that this poorly sourced article exists. CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  23:04, 14 July 2018 (UTC)
 * No they are not. From when they were written it's possible that they were based on Mad Travelers but not from any Wikipedia article, but older books could just be not as easy to find online because Google book search has less coverage of them, with the exception of 19th century books for which copyright has expired. Peter James (talk) 23:55, 14 July 2018 (UTC)
 * I was referring specifically to the wikipedia links. Thanks. CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  00:59, 15 July 2018 (UTC)


 * Delete - This is clearly a fringe theory and fails WP:GNG. --  Dane talk  01:04, 15 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Note: This discussion has been included in the list of Behavioural science-related deletion discussions. ~  Amory  (u • t • c) 01:28, 15 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Note: This discussion has been included in the list of Psychology-related deletion discussions. ~  Amory  (u • t • c) 01:28, 15 July 2018 (UTC)


 * Keep as a sufficiently notable topic historically, but adjust tone to reflect this, and (briefly) distinguish it from (facetious/colloquial) modern usage... or Merge to Wanderlust (?) or Fugue state (?). Coverage in American journal of psychiatry (1910),  Peculiarities of Behavior co-written by Wilhelm Stekel, Alix Joffroy cowrote a monograph on the topic, etc. ~Hydronium~Hydroxide~(Talk)~ 09:30, 15 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Keep based on historical usage. I see it mentioned (briefly) here in an article in the American Academy of Pediatrics from 1913 as one cause of runaway children. I can't see the article, but it's actually in the title of this much more recent case. Here is another book reference, "Travelling in Different Skins", which is a lit crit book but mentions some further sources that could be potentially added. PohranicniStraze (talk) 16:35, 15 July 2018 (UTC)
 * The usage here is a letter submitted by a "T.E.C., Jr., M.D." and not a scientific paper. This is virtually impossible to locate, but I'll see what I can do. Nick (talk) 15:06, 18 July 2018 (UTC)

 Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus.

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks,  MBisanz  talk 02:56, 22 July 2018 (UTC)

 Relisted to generate a more thorough discussion and clearer consensus. Relisting comment: To give Daask some more time to improve the article, and to confirm whether evident consensus can change post that...
 * Keep - This is an important concept in the history of psychology. I am doing extensive research on this topic and will improve the article shortly. Please do not close this discussion until at least 27 July 2018. Daask (talk) 15:28, 24 July 2018 (UTC)

Please add new comments below this notice. Thanks, Lourdes  04:56, 29 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Keep A brief search yielded numerous mentions in scholarly articles -  and books - . The rationale for the AfD is puzzling. The term at the least was used historically, whether it is currently a recognized medical condition is neither here nor there since notability is not limited to only to what is in use currently.  Hzh (talk) 10:19, 29 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Keep. Notable subject. jonnycraig888 (talk) 22:15, 5 August 2018 (UTC)
 * Keep : The subject ("dromomania" or "vagabond disease") is a mental disorder listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. It is not "pseudo-science fringe-theory type nonsense" as denoted in the nomination. A quite strong case could be made for a Merge into "Wanderlust". -The Gnome (talk) 11:41, 8 August 2018 (UTC)
 * Where in the DSM is it listed? CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  11:48, 8 August 2018 (UTC)
 * Condé Nast Traveler, in this article, reports that “dromomania," sometimes called “vagabond neurosis,” was officially added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders as an “impulse-control disorder” and “psychiatric problem” in 2000. Also, I see Dizionario Oxford della medicina listing "dromomania." Real or not, the disorder was used to protect many a deserter in World War I, so characterizing  it as "fringe nonsense" misses many points. -The Gnome (talk) 17:59, 8 August 2018 (UTC)
 * The conde nast article is incorrect as I can find no evidence that it's actually listed in the DSM. CHRISSY MAD  ❯❯❯  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  18:10, 8 August 2018 (UTC)


 * Keep as a notable term, based on sources identified above and in the article, but I would like to see some balance - perhaps criticism of the concept being scientifically accepted as a legitimate medical condition? There's some recent coverage about this criticism in Adventure.com [], although that seems to be kind of like a blog and not as reliable a source as we'd like. It does speak to the popular acceptance of the term though. A simple search using "NY Times" pulls up a review from 1977 [] which mentions the term also, and a 1979 fashion article [], also showing earlier popular acceptance of the term. TimTempleton (talk) (cont)  18:20, 8 August 2018 (UTC)


 * The above discussion is preserved as an archive of the debate. Please do not modify it. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as the article's talk page or in a deletion review). No further edits should be made to this page.