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The FMSF Newsletter is published 10 times a year by the False
Memory Syndrome Foundation. A hard-copy subscription is in-
cluded in membership fees. Others may subscribe by sending a
check or money order, payable to FMS Foundation, to the ad-
dress above. 1994 subscription rates: USA: 1 year $20, Stu-
dent $10; Canada: $25 (in U.S. dollars); Foreign: $35; Single
issue price: $3. ISSN #1069-0484
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INSIDE:
Bodkin & Pope
James Simons
August Piper
Allen Feld
Douglas Mould
Robyn Dawes
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Dear Friends,
"Is the Ramona trial the first of its kind? What is the significance
of it? Are many other families planning to bring lawsuits?" These
were the most frequent questions from reporters this past month. We
answered as follows:
The Ramona case is the first third-party suit that we are aware of
that has gone to trial. This contrasts strikingly with the hundreds of
suits we have been following that were brought against parents based
only on evidence of "repressed memories" recovered in therapy.
The Ramona case is significant for two reasons. First it brings into
question the interpretation of 'duty of care' as being limited only to
the client. In accepting this case, the court has broadened the notion
of responsibility of a therapist to include a person who is not a
patient but who is affected by the results of the therapy.
Second, the case is significant because it focuses on the use of
techniques that have no scientific foundation. Newspaper reports
indicate that he accusing daughter, Holly, sought therapy for an
eating disorder and that it was suggested that the eating disorder was
caused by childhood sexual abuse that she had repressed. The reports
continue that she was told that if she recovered a memory of abuse
under the influence of sodium amytal that the memory would be
historically accurate. There is no evidence to support such a
statement. Indeed, it is known that sodium amytal, like hypnosis,
often results in confabu- lation. Memory is not like a videotape
recorder that can be replayed. People "fill in the blanks" when they
reconstruct a memory. There is no magic formula to get a perfect
memory, however much we may wish it were so. Are therapists
responsible for knowing the scientific facts about techniques they
employ and for informing their clients about these facts and the risks
of the therapy technique? Is therapy to be grounded in "belief" or
"science"?
We don't know whether the Ramona case will result in more third-
party suits. We can report an increase in questions about this issue
since the trial began. When parents contact us, they generally want
to find some way just to talk to their children and grandchildren.
Legal action may be the only option for some families.
"I am 88 years old and feel that it is unlikely that my injury and
pain will be assuaged. I look for a future in this regard not for me
personally but rather for an untold number of people who are or will
be subjected to this treatment."
"I only want to know that my child is getting better."
If any other medical product had more than 13, 000 complaints, it
would be taken off the market. Not only is there no way to take a
"therapy" off the market, there is no way for people affected by the
therapy to have their complaints considered.
Parents have asked professional organizations to set procedures and
standards for these situations. After two years, there are no
statements that specify what an accused person might do other than
take legal action. It should be no surprise, then, that some families
who love their children will proceed in this manner.
Parents have asked the mental-health community to reflect on its
assumptions and practices. They ask professionals to consider the
consequences of validating a belief that may be false. They ask
professionals to consider the consequences of using techniques that
have no scientific basis and that may lead to false beliefs. What
happens to the client? There are two paths once a false belief of
abuse is validated: either the client lives the rest of her (or his)
life believing that the people who most loved her were cruel monsters,
or the client lives the rest of her life with herself and with the
shame and guilt of hurting those she loved. Would any person want such
a choice for another human being?
PAMELA
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| International Conference MEMORY AND REALITY: RECONCILIATION |
| CoSponsored by The False Memory Syndrome Foundation |
| and The Johns Hopkins Continuing Education Program |
| Baltimore, MD December 9, 10,11, 1994 |
| Registration forms will be in June issue. |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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Last month we introduced COLIN ROSS, M.D., President of the
International Society for the Study of Multiple Personality &
Dissociation ISSMP&D). We told about his book on his theory that the
CIA caused a lot of our mental problems through its mind-control
programs. This month Dr. Ross shifted his attention. He begins his
lead article in the ISSMP&D News with:
"The most pressing issue for the ISSMP&D membership, early in 1994,
is that of false memories and the many lawsuits expected over the
next few years against therapists for allegedly implanting false
memories."
He says some things we only wish had been said a few years ago:
"...normal human memory is highly error-prone...it is a fact that
suggestible individuals can have memories elaborated within their
minds because of poor therapeutic technique...it is very difficult
to tell a false from a real memory clinically. There are undoubtedly
incompetent therapists who should be sued...What I have learned from
the false memory controversy is that false memories are profound,
subtle, and difficult problem in both therapy and research."
But somehow it turns out that therapists aren't really to be blamed:
"There is no need to be defensive about the fact that clients and
patients have false memories because everyone does. False memories
are biologically normal and, therefore, not necessarily the
therapist's fault...there undoubtedly are falsely accused
perpetrators, but such false memories are not necessarily the
therapist's fault."
To which one naturally asks: what are the therapist's fault? If not
false memories, what? Dr. Ross seems to suggest that therapists are no
more responsible than advertisers and politicians:
"No one launches suits against advertisers for creating false needs,
or against politicians for creating false votes, though this is no
less rational or plausible than a false memory suit against a
therapist..."
We would have thought that a psychiatrist would not want to make that
comparison. And indeed, Dr. Ross does not leave it there: it turns out
therapists are less responsible than advertisers and politicians
because their patients, after all, are prone to false memories.
"Juries need to be instructed in the difficulty of differentiating
true from false memories, and the subtle puzzle of whether the false
memory suit is based on a true or false account of therapy."
How many of our members wish that the psychotherapeutic community
would come forth to so instruct juries when it is parents instead of
therapists who are accused! The reason, Dr. Ross tells us, that so
many patients develop false memories is because of something called
"projective identification":
"During therapy, the client creates false memories of abuse to place
her father in the perpetrator role, and to receive secondary gain
from the therapist."
Alas, the same process, we are told, can then be turned against the
therapist:
"When the external contingencies shift, the father is switched to
the rescuer role and the therapist becomes the perpetrator, in order
to receive the inverse secondary gain."
All of which leads Dr. Ross to the wonderful deduction:
"Logically, the therapist should be able to sue the parents for
false memories of therapy, as much as the parents should be able to
sue the therapist, since both parties are pawns of projective
identification."
Not content with parents, Dr. Ross finds even more people to sue:
"Therefore, therapists should be able to launch false memory suits
against the parents, lawyers, and background organizations suing
them. I am considering doing so."
Just who, we wonder, are these "background organizations" suing
therapists? Last month we reported that the President of the American
Society of Clinical Hypnosis had written that the FMS Foundation
"continues to sue therapists involved in suits alleging recovered
memories of childhood sexual abuse." (We are involved in no suits.)
And this month the President of the ISSMP&D threatens to sue not just
one but all of the "background organizations" suing therapists. Which
organizations do you have in mind, Dr. Ross? Not content with those
suing him, Dr. Ross envisions even more suits:
"The media should also be liable for damaging professional
reputations through sensationalizing false memories of therapy,
thereby generating ratings, circulation and advertising revenue for
themselves."
It is ironic that in this piece Dr. Ross may have provided crucial
evidence against therapists in false memory suits. The issue is not,
as he seems to think, the charge that therapists implant false
memories but that they neglect to take the steps that a prudent
therapist should take. He tells us that:
"Juries need to be instructed in the difficulty of differentiating
true from false memories."
Indeed. And patients and clients need to be so instructed. In his
entire piece Dr. Ross neglects to mention the one crucial action that
a therapist should take to avoid being sued, to wit, informing his
patients and clients of this very difficulty. There is a hundred years
worth of experience on the part of prudent therapists that patients
and clients need to be warned about the nature of "memories" that
surface in therapy. Dr. Ross tells us:
"...it is very difficult to tell a false from a real memory
clinically..."
Indeed. What then are we to think of a therapist who gives out copies
of something like Courage to Heal with its advice that that if you
think you have been abused then you were? (No book is more recommended
by American therapists.) What are we to think of a therapist who
makes no effort to tell the false from the real? Who neglects to
acquire the patient's childhood medical records? Who refuses to meet
with the accused parents? Who nonetheless proceeds with a therapy
based on the reality of the memories?
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SCIENCE OR BELIEF?
Is our mental health system to be based on "beliefs" or is it to be
grounded in "science?" Will courts discriminate between expert
testimony based on belief or based on science? These questions are
part of the FMS discussion. The national media continues to help
explain this complex issue. 60 Minutes on (April 17, 1994) documented
the striking divergence within the profession between therapy based on
belief or science.
Interview with Morley Safer and Sue Blume
SAFER [as a preface to the dialogue]: Few psychiatrists would disagree
with Dr. McHugh on that. [Re the unreliability of memories at six
months, or three years or even up to ages four or five.] But there are
a number who do believe in repressed and recovered
memory. Complicating things are a slew of therapists with questionable
credentials. In at least 28 states and the District of Columbia, no
license is required. And there are the self-help and how-to books.
One of the bibles of repressed memory is Secret Survivors by E. Sue
Blume, a licensed New York social worker. Her book provides a handy
check list of 34 symptoms. Her critics say the checklist is a grab bag
of physical and emotional ailments that could apply to most anyone.
She says, if you have a majority of these symptoms you're likely to be
an incest survivor.
SAFER: Therapy and psychiatry in this country has a long history of
embracing and rejecting fads.
BLUME: It also has a long history of embracing and denying the
possibility of incest.
SAFER: But to what extent is your kind of therapy, therapy du jour, I
wonder?
BLUME: I help people to clarify what they feel. I help people to
clarify their inner truth and their life experience.
SAFER: But you help them to clarify this with a very, very strong
mindset of your own going in.
BLUME: Yes, that incest exists. That's my mindset. That a particular
person, even if I'm totally in my heart...
SAFER: It's even likely.
BLUME: Oh, Okay, you want to call that bias: That I think incest is
likely? Okay. I'm biased. If you want to tell me I'm biased because I
think incest is likely, and if you want to overlook all of the
research that says how common it is, okay, I'm biased.
SAFER: Sometimes recovered memories, memories that are recovered in
therapy, involve satanic abuse....
BLUME: That's correct. That is correct.
SAFER:..Which involves, according to some memories, eating of babies.
BLUME: That's correct. And drinking of blood.
SAFER: And you believe it?
BLUME: Yes, I believe it.
...
SAFER [cutting away from the Blume dialogue]: Dr. McHugh says before
believing anything, a therapist must check out everything he can about
a patient's past.
MC HUGH: I believe that it's crucial that the evaluation precede the
therapy and that part of the process of supporting the patient is to
find out what actually happened.
...
SAFER: Do you ever believe that what they're telling you isn't the
truth?
BLUME: In terms of whether incest happened and the content of the
truth of their experience, I never believe it's not the truth. Can
memories be confused? Can you compress four incidents into one?
Certainly. But people, what people really do, is they fight against
this truth. This is not a welcomed truth.
SAFER: To what lengths do you go to corroborate...?
BLUME: I'm not a detective; I'm a psychotherapist. It would be
inappropriate for me to act like a detective. I'm there to help my
client heal.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "No matter how compelling seems the need to validate every |
| traumatic memory in the service of promoting a healing experience, |
| it must be kept in mind that the patient has on the deepest level, |
| deeper than the transference wish to be believed, protected, and |
| nurtured, entered into a therapeutic alliance with the good faith |
| and expectation that the therapist always will remain firmly |
| grounded in reality, and will help the patient carefully sift |
| through the mixture of fact, fantasy and illusion, eventually to |
| settle on what the patient must decide is his or her final truth." |
| George Ganaway, M.D. |
| Historical versus narrative truth: Clarifying the role of |
| exogenous trauma in the etiology of MPD |
| Dissociation, Vol II, No 4:December1989. |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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SCIENCE OF BELIEF?
Esquire Magazine in March featured a report by John Taylor called,
"The Lost Daughter" that was remarkably insightful and informing. The
steady destruction on the Smith family as a daughter came to believe
that she had multiple personalities caused by childhood abuse,
resulted not only in social services and police removing younger
children from the house in handcuffs, but later to legal action. The
parents were exonerated in court, and since the publication of "Lost
Daughter," we are very happy to report, the Smith family has
reconciled.
The Taylor article provides a historical perspective to popular
"check lists." Taylor contrasts some of the commonly used survivor
checklists (e.g., Fredrickson, Bass and Davis, Littauer, and Blume),
with the checklists for identifying witches that are so carefully
listed in the Malleus Maleficarum (aprox 1486). The similarities are
frightening: the lists of "symptoms" so common that one might say they
reliably differentiate the living from the dead.
It is a puzzle that so many credentialed therapists use such
checklists since professional codes of ethics require the use of
scientifically based treatment approaches. Any check list that has not
been subject to the standard processes of test construction to confirm
its validity and reliability is not scientific. Evidence of test
validity and reliability undergo peer review before use.
OTHER ARTICLES: If you need to update your glasses prescription, do
it quickly. Educating ourselves about the FMS phenomenon is our
responsibility and a steady stream of excellent books and articles
will flow for the rest of the year to help us understand what has
happened We urge people to read all perspectives. On the other hand,
there is no point in reading the same thing over and over. Several
articles highly negative to FMSF appeared this month. Therapists
writing for Z Magazine and Santa Barbara News Press, for example,
chose to make personal attacks rather than to make a contribution to
the issues. Such articles continue to cite the Briere and Conte(1989),
Herman and Schatzow (1987), and Williams (1994) studies as evidence
that repression exists, apparently unaware that these three studies
show only that people forget (or don't want to talk about) all kinds
of things, even sexual abuse. Such articles add nothing to
understanding and only serve to further divide.
RECOMMENDED:
"Flights of memory," (Discover, May 1994) by Minouche Kandel, an
attorney with the Support Network for Battered Women, and her father,
Eric Kandel, recipient of the National Medal of Science and many other
awards argues for the biological foundation for recovered memories.
The material presented in this article is hypothetical. It is
speculative. The authors note that when there are improvements in
brain imaging, "We may then be able to see whether sexual abuse leads
to physical changes in the amygdala that reflect a person's memories
of the event..."
Because we do not have a technical background in neurobiology, we
requested permission of Harvard psychiatrists Alexander Bodkin, M.D.
and Harrison Pope, M.D. to print a letter they wrote to Discover in
response to the Kandels' article:
In the May issue of Discover, Minouche and Eric Kandel argue that
"repression" of childhood traumatic memories may have a biological
basis. Specifically, these authors suggest that traumatic experiences
are encoded only dimly in explicit (verbal) memory, but strongly in
implicit (motor, affective) memory. They argue that psychotherapy and
other key experiences can cause implicit memories to reawaken the
explicit memory of traumatic events. They suggest that explicit memory
of sexual abuse may be blunted by the release of endogenous opiates at
the time of trauma, then reactivated and made conscious by
noradrenalin release under stress at a later date. Do the data support
these speculations?
First, explicit and implicit memory are not equivalent to the
psychoanalytic concepts of conscious and unconscious memory. They are
closer to the concepts of "verbal" and "performance" memory. There is
no good evidence that implicit memory lurks in a hidden form, secretly
influencing thought, feeling, and behavior to manifest as clinical
psychopathology, as is claimed for "repressed" memories.
Second, if endogenous opiates can dim traumatic memories, why do
most survivors remember their trauma clearly? Survivors of fires,
kidapings, and war atrocities -- whether children or adults -- often
have painfully detailed memories of their experiences, in contrast to
what the opiate hypothesis would predict.
The Kandels' next hypothesis -- that previously repressed memories
are "released" as vivid flashbacks by endogenous noradrenalin -- is
also questionable: many forms of psychopathology, including symptoms
that may be mistakenly interpreted as flashbacks, from panic attacks
to exacerbations of psychosis, are known to be associated with
noradrenergic activation.
Finally, there is no methodologically sound scientific evidence that
repression actually occurs. In a recent review, David Holmes noted
that 60 years of laboratory studies have failed to provide
experimental evidence of repression. And outside the laboratory, only
four clinical investigations have specifically tested whether the
memory of adverse sexual experiences can be repressed. All four have
sufficient methodologic limitations that none can exhibit a single
unequivocal case of documented amnesia for documented trauma. For
example, the Williams study, cited in the Kandels' article
demonstrates only that many women will not report abuse experiences
when interviewed by a stranger years later. It was not ascertained
whether these women actually remembered the abuse, but simply chose
not to report it.
In short, while we commend Discover for frequently publishing
interesting speculative articles at the frontiers of research, we fear
that it is a disservice to publish material which may mislead the
reader into believing that science has sound evidence for
"repression."
J. Alexander BODKIN, M.D.
Instructor in Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
Harrison G. POPE, Jr., M.D.
Associate Professor of Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| The therapeutic community must police itself better. The |
| professions should require the same kind of informed consent on |
| risks and alternative treatments that patients normally give for |
| surgery. |
| Editorial, Los Angeles Times April 17, 1994 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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RECOMMENDED (continued):
"An ethical dilemma: Risk versus responsibility," by Sally
McDonald, RN in Journal of Psychosocial Nursing 1994, Vol 32, No 1 is
a chilling account of the efforts of nurses in a dissociative unit of
a private mental hospital in Texas to stop what they viewed as
unethical practice. Nurses who spoke out and tried to stop the use of
mechanical restraints and abreactive sessions were fired. Nurses who
complained about the treatment of children were fired. "The child was
said to have been involved in a satanic cult, but was "amnesic" to
events or abuse. She was a bright, articulate, preadolescent who was
an academic honor student, athlete, and musician. She did not
demonstrate any self-mutilating behavior, and the nurses were unable
to identify any self-destructive alters. Yet, this child was confined
to the central lobby for months at a time; she ate cold food from a
tray delivered from the cafeteria and slept on a mattress on the floor
under the lights of the central lobby. She was denied access to her
mother both by visitation and phone; her father lived in another
city."
"The reconstruction of early childhood trauma: Fantasy, reality,
and verification," by Michael I. Good, M.D., Journal of the American
Psychological Association 42/1. This article by a clinician describes
a patient who was absolutely certain that she had had a clitoridectomy
and that this was the cause of her many problems. The doctor wrote
that her description "evoked surprise and dismay that such a sadistic
'treatment' would have been performed." Encouraged to talk to her
gynecologist about this, she learned that her belief of decades was a
fabrication. "The belief that she had been 'castrated' had contributed
to her symptoms, and the realization of her intactness promoted her
improvement."
"Recovered childhood sexual memories: An overview," by Richard A.
Shadoan, M.D. in the California Psychiatric Association Newsletter,
March 1994. This short article was of interest because it is one of
the first to appear in a professional publication mentioning the FMS
Foundation in a positive manner. "In the early '70s, parents who had
been accused of causing schizophrenia in their children began to form
local organizations. This organization has grown into what is now
called the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and is considered
the most effective voice for better research and treatment of the
seriously mentally ill. Could the False Memory Syndrome Foundation
someday provide an effective voice for research and treatment of
sexually abused children as well?"
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GENERAL CLIMATE:
The number of former patients who tell us they have experienced
false memories is now over 150. In addition, more than 100 families
have said that a retraction has taken place. Several hundred families
tell of reconciliations with no discussion of the accusations yet. The
number of phone calls from professionals who call to request our help
in locating speakers to talk about False Memory Syndrome has
skyrocketed. (We could do with a speakers' bureau.)
Cartoonists have had "open season" on repressed memories in the past
few months. From Doonsbury to the New Yorker, they have poked fun at
recovered memories.
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UNINVITED:
Hope + Help Recovery Resource Center and Sierra Tucson presented the
"Second Hope + Help Conference for Survivors of Childhood Sexual
Abuse" on April 23-24 in Downtown Toronto. The conference brochure
noted that it was open to survivors and supporters and, according to a
preconference article in the Toronto Star (4/8/94), there would be
"roving therapists available throughout the conference to provide
support to participants." We receive many notices of similar
conferences. What made this one of note is that in early April we
were asked to participate in a panel on false memories. The organizer
with whom we spoke told us that there would be a moderator and from
this we inferred that we did not need to worry about a repeat of the
McGill fiasco in which Harold Lief was not given the opportunity to
speak.
An interesting development then occurred. We received an apologetic
call that we had been "uninvited" to participate in the conference.
The reason: Margo Rivera, one of the other people on the panel on
false memories, refused to sit at the same table with us. In Canada,
Margo Rivera is one of the chief trainers of other therapists in the
recognition and treatment of MPD. She was interviewed in the 5th
Estate program,"Mistaken Identities." According to a Canadian ISSM&D
newsletter, she has been concerned about a possible loss of government
funding as a result of that CBC documentary. We were to be replaced on
the panel by Sylvia Fraser, survivor and author.
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VAGARIES OF MEMORY:
We were naturally curious. What was the expertise of Fraser in the
area of false memories? In a recent article in Saturday Night
Magazine, "Freud's final seduction," March 1994, Ms. Fraser
thoroughly bashed the FMS Foundation. She also gave an account of the
genesis of her memories of incest. She wrote, "...no therapist can be
accused of misleading me, since none was involved in the initial
recovery. I read no books on incest...and had no conscious interest in
this subject..." Apparently Fraser had forgotten what she had earlier
written in her book, My Father's House. In that work, she noted that
for ten years after her father died, "...I felt drawn to read about,
and to experiment with, various psychological disciplines. Through
Freudian and Jungian analysis, I learned how to interpret dreams as
messages from my unconscious. Through primal and massage therapy,
rolfing, bioenergetics, yoga, meditation, I grew more in touch with my
body and my emotions...Unbeknownst to me, I was approaching time when
I would remember. The obsession of a lifetime was drawing to a
close. My path of revelation was to be the path of dreams." Later she
consulted a Toronto hypnotherapist to whom she said "...So far, most
of my regurgitated memories are physical and emotional rather than
verbal or visual...I ask myself: did this really happen? And later,
under hypnosis: "...After several false starts I begin: 'I am a child
in my father's house. My father sits on the bed in his underwear...'"
Then: "...On subsequent visits, I produce other childhood memories in
which I express a growing sense of panic..." (My Father's House pp
211, 12, 225-228, 1988.)
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "Ramona's case highlights the crying need to define more clearly |
| whether evidence that is ferreted out -- or fabricated -- during |
| therapy should be allowed as evidence in trials." |
| Editorial,San Diego Union Tribune April 17, 1994 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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FINANCES:
The financial year for the FMS Foundation ends in March. In April,
we prepared tables and charts all of the records for the past year and
in May the external auditors will examine these records and then
prepare a report. As soon as that is completed, we will publish the
information in the newsletter.
The Foundation is not the "rich, media-savvy" organization that our
critics describe. The Foundation depends on the dues and contributions
of people who contact us in order to survive, and we have struggled.
The staff involved in the day-to-day work of the Foundation are all
from the field of education and there is no public relations firm or
advertising firm or even any PR budget. The success of the FMS
Foundation is due to the fact that families and professionals across
the country have developed trust and have worked together.
The priority for the past two years has been to educate the public
and professionals about the crisis. In doing this, we have surveyed,
interviewed, collected material and documented the situation. We have
tried to present the most accurate and up-to-date information on
memory and on what is happening and how people feel.
Now that the FMS crisis is generally recognized, it is time to focus
our efforts on working with professionals to help families out of this
nightmare. We hope that the "Memory and Reality: Reconciliation"
conference in December will provide leadership to set constructive
paths toward reconciliation of therapy issues, legal issues and family
issues.
The Foundation needs your ongoing and generous support to continue.
Families have asked for a Legal Advisory Panel that they can call with
questions. This means raising money to pay for such a
service. Families ask for materials to be sent to professionals. This
costs money. Families ask us to give talks and to prepare written
materials. This takes time and money.
What has happened to families is not right and it is not fair. But
until such time as the professionals assume their fair share of
responsibility for what has taken place, families will have to
"bootstrap" themselves out of this morass.
Finding ways to help our children back to reality and to help fam-
ilies reunite is the most important thing in our lives. Please support
the FMS Foundation with the financial support it needs to do this.
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LEGAL CORNER
If you have questions or concerns to be answered in the Newsletter,
please send them to Legal Corner, care of James Simons at FMSF.
THIRD PARTY VS. THERAPIST
Interpreting Illinois Law
JAMES SIMONS, J. D., Practicing Attorney
with comments from FMSF Staff
Parents (third-parties) who are considering suits against their
child's therapist often say that they do so in the hope that the court
will provide an avenue for redress and for allowing the facts to be
heard by the child in a respected forum. The ultimate hope of the
parents is that the child will come to understand that she/he may have
been misled by the therapist and reconciliation with the family will
occur. As an alternative, complaints to state regulatory bodies
regarding the therapist's actions may not produce satisfactory results
because of the difficulty in getting records or information without
the cooperation of the patient. Parents who choose the route through
the courts have difficult hurdles to overcome. To be allowed standing
to even bring the lawsuit, parents must get by the questions of: 1)
does a therapist owe a duty of care to a third party (someone other
than the client/patient)? and 2) under what conditions and for what
grounds can a mental health care worker be held accountable to a third
party for their actions?
As this writing, the first third-party suit to actually go to trial
is still underway in California. This case was brought against the
accuser's therapist by a parent accused of sexual abuse on the basis
of his daughter's recovered repressed memory. (See page one, Ramona
case.)
While it has not yet gone to trial, some important issues were
recently decided in an opinion dated February 28, 1994 by Judge James
A. Zagel in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of
Illinois (applying Illinois law). [1994 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 2297,1994 WL
65662]. The ruling addressed issues of standing and duty in the
context of a defendant/therapist's motion for summary judgment seeking
dismissal of a suit brought against him by the parents of a woman who
claimed to have recovered memories while under hypnosis administered
by her unlicensed therapist, Dr. __ (hereafter "Unlicensed
Therapist"). The recovered memories were of sexual abuse by an older
sibling. Summary judgment is a means of getting a case decided without
a trial, but is available only if the party seeking summary judgment
demonstrates there are no disputed issues of material fact.
The daughter entered therapy in September, 1990, at age 23. The
following month, she and Dr. __ confronted her parents with
accusations against a sibling. The sibling denied the accusations and
no corroboration could be found among the other children, the
household staff, or the records of the children's doctors. In
November, 1990, the father wrote to his daughter threatening to take
action against Unlicensed Therapist for damages he was inflicting on
the daughter and other members of the family. On January 2, 1991, the
father made a written complaint against Unlicensed Therapist to the
Illinois Department of Professional Regulation.
The lawsuit was filed on January 6, 1993. The claim contained five
counts: I. (Malpractice), II (Intentional Infliction of Emotional
Distress), III q(Negligence), IV (Loss of Society and Companionship)
and V (Public Nuisance). In Illinois, personal injury claims must be
filed within 2 years of the date of injury. As one might expect,
Unlicensed Therapist sought summary judgment on the basis of the
statute of limitations having expired. It should be noted at this
point that Illinois law provides for two kinds of injuries, one for
physical injuries, which has a two-year statute of limitations, and
one for intangible injuries, which has a five year statute of
limitations. After some discussion regarding when the injury was
"discovered," the court found that Counts II and III were clearly
personal injury claims and were subject to the two-year statute of
limitations.
With regard to Count I (Malpractice), the court found that the
injuries of the parents were intangible (and subject to the longer
statute of limitations) and that a jury could find the Unlicensed
Therapist "specifically directed his actions, in part, against the
parents and their interests, that he imposed a false memory in [the
daughter], instructed her to break contact with her parents if they
dissented from her memory and prevented the parents from taking some
reasonable steps to inquire into the validity of the memory." The
court also held that the state statute governing malpractice by the
licensed practitioners (with a two-year after discovery and four-years
after event statute of limitations) did not apply because the
daughter's therapist was not licensed.
Unlicensed Therapist contended that the claims were unprovable. In
refusing to dismiss the claims of malpractice, the Judge relied on an
affidavit by a psychiatrist who evaluated the parents' account of
their daughter's treatment by Unlicensed Therapist and the resulting
confrontation and alienation. Unlicensed Therapist's defense was that
both he and his patient denied that he had implanted any false
memories. The Judge noted, "[W]hen there are only two witnesses to an
event and both swear to the same version of the event, it is often
difficult to refute that version. But it is not impossible, even when
the refutation must be proved beyond a reasonable doubt." Judge Zagel
recognized that the parents had -- and could only have -- nothing but
circumstantial evidence to offer and held that upon examining the
events and statement which were known to be true, a trier of fact
could reasonable "lay at [Dr. ___'s door" responsibility for the
negative family relationship suffered by the parents and siblings with
the daughter. "From these facts, a jury could infer that the memories
were false and intentionally or recklessly implanted by [Dr. ___.]"
As to Count IV (Loss of Society and Companionship), the court held
that "the injury is the excision of their daughter from their family."
In a prior case addressing malpractice which causes damage to a pa-
rent-child relationship (in cases where the child lives) the Supreme
Court of Illinois had ruled that the parent could not sue for loss of
filial society that occurs as a consequence of malpractice, but had
split on the question whether the rule would apply to acts
"intentionally and directly interfering with the parent-child
relationship," Dralle v. Ruder 529 N.E.2d 209-214. A later decision,
in federal court, held that it was not actionable. However, Judge
Zagel found that the reasoning of the later decision would not affect
the facts of this case in that two of three reasons given by the judge
for not allowing an action on intentional torts were missing in the
present case: that the child will sue and the possibility that the
claims would be multiplied. Judge Zagel ruled that the availability of
a tort remedy to the child would not apply because "the gravamen of
this particular sort of claim is that the damage inflicted by the
defendant causes the inability of the child to sue." Judge Zagel
noted, "[P]rior to [Dr. ___'s] hypnosis, [the daughter] never made
similar statements. Finally, there is the statement by [the daughter]
while being treated by Dr. ___... that she would decline all family
contacts unless family members admitted the statements were true...
[T]here is no question that after the statements were made by [the
daughter] her relations with her parents and siblings changed for the
worse. It would be hard to doubt that the family relationship would be
seriously and negatively affected in this situation."
Count V (Public Nuisance) was based on [Dr. ___'s] status as an
unlicensed clinical psychologist whose practice resulted in an injury.
The Illinois Clinical Psychologist Licensing Act (CPLA) implies a
private right of action for persons injured by one who practices
clinical psychology without a license. The approved form of action is
public nuisance. The CPLA does not specify a statute of limitations
period for bringing such an action, thus the court held that the
five-year "catch all" period for statutory actions would apply.
Dr.___ argued that he did not "represent" himself as being licensed.
However, the court found that a jury could conclude that Unlicensed
Therapist did represent himself in some manner as a psychologist able
to practice clinical psychology. Since he represented that he was a
"Clinical Psychotherapist," and his office literature might well lead
members of the public to conclude that he was a clinical psychologist,
a jury could find that he violated the CPLA.
Although the court did not reach Counts II and III because of the
application of the two-year statute of limitations, the court did
comment that Count III was purely a negligence claim and could not be
pursued by anyone other than the client/patient herself. Had the court
been able to rule on Count II, the straightforward intentional
infliction of emotional distress, the court's rational supporting the
claim could have crossed state lines. The case will go to trial on the
parents' claims of malpractice, loss of society and companionship and
public nuisance (injury by an unlicensed therapist).
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "If a therapist is incompetent or grossly negligent in treating a |
| client, the Board can investigate the particulars of that |
| situation. However, it is virtually impossible for the Board to |
| conduct such an investigation without the consent and cooperation |
| of the actual client. The confidentiality of psychotherapeutic |
| communication is protected by law and therapeutic treatment |
| records cannot be obtained without a written release from the |
| client, if the client is an adult." |
| California Board of Behavioral Science Examiners |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
DAUGHTER RECANTS INCEST ACCUSATIONS
Reprinted from Rocky Mountain News, March 10, 1994, Bill Scanlon
Jane Brennan hugged her parents last month; for the first time in
three years. It was three years of hell, says the Denver children's
clothing store owner, years in which she falsely accused her father of
vile sexual abuse when she was a child. Now the family is back
together and she no longer believes her father sexually abused her, or
that her mother let it happen.
"I'll never get the past three years back," she said. She's angry
enough at her therapist -- who she says convinced her that the root of
her problems was incest -- to consider filing a lawsuit. She won't
name the therapist, but she has obtained a lawyer.
Brennan says her problem began after the birth of her twins, when
she was feeling depressed and having trouble with premenstrual
syndrome. She saw a therapist, who told Brennan she believes that at
least one in three women is sexually abused as a child.
"From the minute I walked in her door, her agenda was sexual abuse
by my father," Brennan said. "That's all we talked about. I remember
saying to her, 'I was never sexually abused by my father,' But she
just kept at it."
Meanwhile, Brennan's panic attacks and depression worsened. 'I
started to buy into it. She gave me a pamphlet for a support group
called 'Wings.'
"'But," Brennan said she told her therapist, 'I'll have to admit
I've been sexually abused by my father."
"Yes, you need to admit that," Brennan said her therapist replied.
"'So..I did... " ...She was hypnotized and put on anti-depressants.
Everything fell apart for Brennan. She was unable to take care of her
children, hired a nanny, almost lost her business, drove her husband
to the verge of leaving home.
At her therapist's insistence, she wrote a letter to her parents
laying out the charges and saying they couldn't see her or the
grandkids again. Her father had a stroke after reading the letter. "My
therapists said, 'That's a ploy. That's what they all do.'"
Last May, her husband began substituting fiber pills for her daily
anti-depressant, she said. After she told her therapist she was
feeling much better, her husband told her what he'd been doing. Only
when she stopped seeing the therapist altogether did she begin to feel
better. She called her brother, who had stopped speaking to her, and
eventually, she called her parents.
She said she is suing because she wants to be compensated for the
past three years. "We almost went bankrupt. I had to sell all my
furniture. The hospital and therapy bills were just enormous. No one
can imagine the hell we went through, the toll it took on our lives."
**********************************************************************
SUGGESTIONS FOR ACCUSED PARENTS:
A PROPOSAL AND AN ANALYSIS
August Piper Jr., M.D.
Could the FMSF do more to help families? That question surfaced
after I received several letters and calls from Foundation members
whose children had accused them of long-ago abuse. A telephone
conversation with Dr. Freyd followed, during which we developed an
idea: to compile and publish suggestions for families whose members
have been accused of abuse.
We hope these suggestions will flow from two sources. First, and
most important, we want you, our members, to tell each other what you
have learned. Do you have suggestions for other parents who have been
similarly accused? What helped you contend with this affliction? If
the family ever reunited, what helped bring this about? When parents
are confronted with these accusations, is there anything you'd advise
them not to do?
Being condemned to repeat history is the unhappy fate of those who
fail to learn from the past. We hope to avoid this
punishment. Therefore, the second source of information for the
suggestions will be the thoughts of people who have previously
wrestled with and written about the questions that occupy us today. I
have begun to review the literature on these subjects to obtain this
information.
If you wish to contribute to this effort, please send your comments
and thoughts to me, in care of the FMSF.
One important question is frequently asked of the Foundation: how
can parents encourage their children to renounce unfounded abuse
accusations? The following analysis may be useful.
About twenty years ago, several cults sprang up in the United
States. I believe the practices of those groups resembled today's
methods of treating multiple personality disorder and satanic ritual
abuse, and of performing recovered-memory therapy. Therefore,
examining the history of cults should teach some ways that today's
families and parents might usefully respond to the problems caused by
these three therapies. (Though I am a little uncomfortable with the
word "cult, " because of its connotations, it should be pointed out
that no disrespect is meant to either religion or to spirituality, and
that 'cult" is not used pejoratively. Also, I am not saying that all
practitioners who perform these three treatments are members of
cults.)
What characteristics do recovered-memory therapy, treatment for MPD,
and therapy for satanic ritual abuse have in common with the cults of
two decades ago?
Let's start with a definition. The term "cult" does not have a
precise scientific meaning, but as used here, it refers to a group
with a "devoted or extreme attachment to or extravagant admiration for
a thing or ideal, especially as manifested by a body of admirers; any
system for treating human sickness that employs methods regarded as
unorthodox or unscientific" (Webster's Unabridged Dictionary; Random
House Unabridged Dictionary). According to various references, it is
the excessive or extreme attachment formed by members of these groups
that is key. This behavior disrupts the lives of involved followers,
and therefore causes concern to families and friends of these
individuals.
Cults typically are established by strong or charismatic leaders who
control power hierarchies and material resources. Cults possess some
revealed "word" in the form of a book or doctrine. Also, they confine
their membership in various ways -- for example, by bringing people
into controlled environments where they are bombarded with strange new
ideas (Streiker, Mindbending; Kaplan, Freedman, and Sadock,
Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry). Group membership is contingent
on accepting the doctrines and dogma of the leader. Joining the group
brings two powerful reinforcements into play. First, rather than being
encouraged to discover their own responses to the complexities of
modern life, cult members learn a seemingly coherent system of ideas
providing simple, "cookie-cutter" answers. For example, many in to-
day's cult-like groups are told that past sexual abuse is responsible
for all their current problems. Second, members develop a sense of
being part of a group that shares their feelings and aspirations.
These two forces produce a third vital effect -- a significant
increase in self-esteem (Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 24:593-602,
1979).
Above all, cults employ systematic forms of consciousness-altering
practices (chanting, spending long hours reciting memorized material);
they encourage their members to remove themselves from greater society
so as to devote more time to the cult; they discourage critical
thinking and suppress alternative views of social reality; and they
strongly encourage members to cut off communication with families,
often by inducing fears and phobias -- "Your father raped you when you
were a helpless child," (Pavlos, The Cult Experience; Streiker).
To a greater or lesser extent, the three kinds of treatments under
discussion here share these characteristics. For example, in my
experience, many patients who become involved with these therapies do
so excessively. Treatment becomes the focus of their lives. They spend
tens of hours each week in therapy and therapy-related activities. One
teenager I evaluated was seeing her therapist at least six or seven
hours a week for months. In addition, the therapist encouraged her to
devote several hours each day to writing down ever-more-fantastic
"memories" of rapes by her father and episodes of satanic abuse by her
parents and grandparents.
Mainstream clinicians and scholars regard the theories supporting
these three treatments as unorthodox and unscientific. For example,
the idea of "repressing" a whole series of memories, and then
accurately recovering them after years or decades, is now considered
to be without foundation.
Science encourages critical evaluation of ideas. Cults, on the other
hand, tend to regard books like The Courage to Heal as exactly and
timelessly true. Because such texts rest on faith, rather than on the
strength of supporting evidence, they admit of no doubt, require no
proof.
Controlled environments? Bombarding people with strange ideas? These
phrases exactly describe hospitals where patients are encouraged to
search for "buried memories" of sex abuse and for "hidden alter
personalities." The facilities often employ systematic forms of
consciousness-altering practices, like hypnosis and Amytal interviews,
in such quests. Influential clinicians encourage patients to remain in
these hospitals for weeks or months. during this time patients
withdraw from the larger world in order to undergo the inward-directed
rituals of recovered-memory or satanic-abuse treatment.
It should be acknowledged that almost all the above characteristics
of cults could be applied to both legitimate psychotherapies and to
mainstream religions. However, two of them cannot be: no
conventionally oriented western religion, nor any standard
psychotherapy, isolates the bulk of its adherents from the outside
world, or urges general severance of family contacts.
I have set out, perhaps at immoderate length, the analysis. Does it
help those asking for advice on how to heal their families, and how to
talk to accusing children? I believe it does. Some advice that follows
from the analysis:
First, each family's situation is obviously different; there is no
one "procedure" that works for all.
Second, I have recently heard of parents who are considering
kidnaping their children and "deprogramming" them, just as was done
two decades ago. The literature of the time indicates that such
drastic methods worked poorly then; they would probably fare no better
now. In addition, they are almost certainly legally and ethically
indefensible, because they violate freedoms guaranteed by the Bill of
Rights. Finally, techniques of coercive persuasion strengthen the
hand of cult-like groups: these procedures show cult members that
parents and friends are not to be trusted. Thus, not only does
"deprogramming" anger those on whom it is attempted, but it also risks
driving other members deeper into the cult (American Journal of
Psychiatry 136: 279-282, 1979).
Third, families should remain optimistic about the likelihood that
loved ones will renounce their accusations. Several literature sources
claim that about nine of ten members of cults eventually leave them.
Do any Foundation members have figures on the present rate of
recantations of accusations?
The key word in the previous paragraph is "eventually": healing from
accusations should be considered a marathon run, not a sprint. One
father and mother to whom I recently spoke had just been accused of
years-ago sexual abuse by their grown son (whose therapist had
apparently "discovered' the abuse); after accusing them, he had
refused to even talk to them. Nonetheless, these devastated and
panicked parents were set to take a two-thousand-mile airplane trip to
try to talk him into retracting his allegations. I wondered if they
might better avoid reacting when the adrenalin was pumping, and take a
little time to make a reasoned response. (They canceled the trip.)
The older literature advises against trying to argue accusers out of
their beliefs. One modern commentator echoed this. If the accusations
really are untrue, "Family members should deny, deny, deny -- but
arguing with the accuser is a waste of time." The theory behind this,
of course, is that it truly is difficult for just one person to have a
successful argument. Instead of debating, parents might simply
continue quietly saying, "We'll always be your parents, and we'll
always be ready to welcome you back," or something to that effect. In
such a way, the children hear every day a still, small voice of their
own, asking if they really know what they are doing. Parents might
remember: "The drop maketh a hole in the stone, not by violence, but
by oft falling."
If the child insists on talking about the alleged abuse, parents may
have to be firm and simply refuse to discuss the matter, to change the
subject, or use other tactics to avoid entering into a debate about
truth or falsity of the accusations. These tactics force accusing
children to examine their own consciences, to listen to the inner
voice that asks if they really know what they are doing.
What about arguing with therapists? The FMSF working paper, Meeting
your Accusing Child's Therapist, offers good thoughts.
Streiker advises that friends of the family, and non-accused
siblings, have important roles to play. Their task is to make
consistent efforts to establish and maintain contact with the accusing
child, to develop his or her trust, and to create opportunities for
dialogue. Obviously, they too should avoid arguing with the estranged
family member.
Equally obviously, guilt-tripping ("Do you know what you're doing to
us? How can you do this to us?") and insults ("How can you be so
stupid?") seldom lead to reconciliation.
The papers warn parents against developing an obsession with the
cult and the apparent loss of their child. The importance of parents
carrying on with other aspects of their lives and those of their other
children is also stressed. A support group or formal counseling might
help. Halperin's book, Psychodynamic Perspectives on Religion, Sect,
and Cult, has some interesting comments on these points.
Several writers urge families to look honestly at the accumulated
misunderstandings, poor communications, and hostilities that have
contributed to the present difficulties: neither accepting an
excessive amount of blame for the problems, nor minimizing
responsibility for them.
The literature warns; no matter how attractive the ideas of "mind-
control" or "brainwashing" are, these notions are oversimplified and
almost certainly inaccurate as well. See Cults, Converts, and
Charisma: The Sociology of New Religious Movements by Robbins.
I found interesting the articles that talk of difficulties
experienced by people who leave cults. They are beset with guilt and
shame: for turning their backs on their belief system, for letting
down or deserting their friends in the cult, and, of course, for
hurting their families in the first place. For weeks or months,
recanters may be disoriented, isolated, angry, embarrassed, and
depressed, or may have 'dissociative" experiences. They will need
understanding and nurturing and support -- at exactly the time when
the family's own reserves may be depleted. Several writers make what I
consider a good case for a brief course of professional counseling at
the time of reentry to the family. It hardly seems necessary to say --
but I will -- that the chosen therapist should not be one who will
practice what one commentator called "hokum therapy": no alters, no
rooting around for buried abuse. The goal of the counseling should be
simply to help the family and the child rejoin.
Finally, parents may have to face and accept the terrible truth;
they may, after all, be powerless to stop the child from worshiping
false gods.
Let us know your thoughts!
August Piper Jr. M.D. a psychiatrist in private practice in
Seattle, is a member of the FMSF Scientific and Professional Advisory
Board.
**********************************************************************
A CORNERSTONE FOR RESPONSIBLE PSYCHOTHERAPY
A Review by ALLEN FELD
HOUSE OF CARDS: PSYCHOLOGY AND PSYCHOTHERAPY BUILT ON MYTH by Robyn
Dawes (338 pages. Free Press $22.95) could easily (and perhaps
justifiably) be regarded as a book that criticizes psychotherapy and
psychologists; in reality, it is about improving the helping
professions and the services they provide to society. I see the
central theme of Robyn Dawes' book as simultaneously profound and
simple: there is an abundance of appropriate research studies, and
these studies should be the foundation of psychotherapy and should
override intuition, clinical experience, political posturing and
personal bias. While he writes from the perspective of a psychologist
and from the discipline of psychology, he targets his message to all
who offer themselves as therapists (psychiatrists, social workers and
counselors).
Like other authors who have raised questions about psychotherapy and
therapists, Dawes uses his personal experience and philosophy to
support his positions. While he never hesitates to let the reader
know his stance, each of his strongly held opinions is supported by
scientific evidence. In his book, he models the behavior that he asks
therapists to assume. He cites over 300 empirical investigations and
summaries of investigation to buttress his arguments. It is the
manner in which he uses the scientific material available that makes
his book so potentially valuable for therapists. In non-technical
language, Dawes explains the important statistical concepts that
readers must understand, and he uses examples that are readily
understandable to non-researchers. It is rare to find this kind of
reader-accessibility in a book which is scientifically based. As a
result, non-research professionals and college students should find
this book very readable.
The concern that non-scientific intuition is replacing critical
thinking is a recurring theme in this book. Dawes points out that
court decisions are impacted by "clinical judgment " and laws are
passed on the basis of unproved theories, resulting in gross
injustices and poor social policy. His unhappiness with the
diminishing part that research plays in his profession is evident by
his concern for the harm done from the belief in various myths. He
cites scientific evidence that dispels a number of these myths:
greater length of clinical experience does not increase the competence
of therapists; projective tests which require specialized training,
such as the Rorschach, are unreliable; and therapists with little
experience and training are often as effective as better-credentialed
and higher-priced therapists.
His suggestions about licensing and the pricing of psychotherapy are
equally provocative. Licensing, Dawes argues, is more important for
those staff who provide more direct and/or custodial care, and who
spend more time with clients. He claims it is a myth that the public
is protected by the current licensing process. Contained in his
suggestions about licensing is the requirement that therapists
demonstrate the use of scientific knowledge in their therapy, not
merely obtaining degrees and other credentials. His approach to
paying for therapy would also require social policy changes. He is
virtually libertarian in his views concerning individuals who don't
need society's protection and are paying therapists directly at an
exchange determined by the therapists and clients. However, when
therapists receive common funds, whether through third-party or tax
funds, only therapists who are licensed on the basis of knowledge
should be paid with licensed therapists receiving the same rate.
Since he has demonstrated by careful analysis of the research that
greater credentials do not necessarily lead to greater expertise, the
rate of payment therapists would receive should be the rate given to
private-practice social workers. No doubt some psychotherapists will
be uncomfortable with these kinds of suggestions.
He also uses his analysis of the research to challenge a variety of
other widely held clinical assumptions. Some of what is often
commonly believed fails to hold up under the scrutiny of available
research. Two such examples of myths he attempts to debunk: self-
esteem as an essential prerequisite to being productive people and
early childhood as a determinant of how we function as adults.
Robyn M. Dawes combines the skills of a researcher, teacher, writer,
and keenly perceptive observer of contemporary society with his strong
personal ethical standards and commitment to persons who seek therapy
and social justice. He has written a book which should be required
reading for those in the helping professions.
Allen Feld, ACSW, LSW is an Associate Professor at Marywood College,
School of Social Work, Scranton, PA. This review was written while he
was on sabbatical as a Research Associate with the False Memory
Syndrome Foundation.
**********************************************************************
MAGAZINE & NEWSPAPER ARTICLES:
__292a "Real or Imagined?" by David McKay Wilson.
The Reporter Dispatch, October 20, 1993. [$1.00]
__298 "Family gets blamed for everything," by Kathleen
Parker. Orlando Sentinel, December 31, 1993. [$1.00]
__298a "Pandora's Memory," by Sarah Jones.
The Monthly, March 1994. [$1.00]
__299 "The Lost Daughter," by John Taylor.
Esquire, March 1994. [$3.00]
__301 "Dark Memories," by Paul Wood. The News-Gazette,
March 6, 1994. [$3.00]
__302 "Are Secrets Locked Inside?" and "Military controls
my mind, woman says," by Carol Gentry.
St. Petersburg Times, March 6, 1994. [$3.00]
___ FMSF Newsletters 1992 [$8.00]
___ FMSF Newsletters 1993 [$15.00]
Checks only for orders less than $25.00
One Daughter to Another Audio tape formed from the life experience of
retractor, Janet Puhr. The approach is designed to lead a daughter
down a situational path of reality. 50 min. Cost $30 (includes
shipping. Make checks payable to Janet Puhr, PO Box 293, Chicago
Ridge, Il 60415 Enclose name and phone number.
**********************************************************************
The False Memory Syndrome Foundation is a qualified 501(c)3
corporation with its principal offices in Philadelphia and governed by
its Board of Directors. While it encourages participation by its
members in its activities, it must be understood that the Foundation
has no affiliates and that no other organization or person is
authorized to speak for the Foundation without the prior written
approval of the Executive Director. All membership dues and
contributions to the Foundation must be forwarded to the Foundation
for its disposition.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| Shame and guilt answer to no time constraints. They are a 24 hour |
| fact that blends into a retractor's "recovered" life. |
| from The Heart of a Retractor by Susan M. Catalano |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
FROM OUR READERS
The following letter was sent to the Practice Directorate of the
American Psychological Association in response to a recent article
about FMS. The author is director of clinical services for Preferred
Mental Health management, Inc., a managed mental health care
organization owned and operated by Ph.D. clinical psychologists.
Approximately 750,000 individuals fall within their domain of
coverage.
"...From this vantage point, I can assure you that false memory
syndrome is real and that many, many patients are being damaged by
mostly well-meaning therapists using inappropriate techniques. The
similarities among the cases are striking, and it is almost always the
same therapists who 'discover' heretofore unknown sexual abuse.
Virtually all of these therapists believe that the only way to address
sexual abuse is through abreaction and they also almost always utilize
images, journaling and 'body-memory' techniques. The sequence of
events is predictable. The clients begin with generalized unhappiness,
depression, relationship problems and the like. The therapist suggests
to the patient the possibility of having been sexually abused and
almost always has them read one of the popular books on the issue,
most frequently The Courage to Heal. Then as imagery and body memory
techniques are used, the client begins to get vague images of people
and situations. As therapy progresses these images become clear. We
have dealt with one case wherein the individual recovered
recollections of having murdered her baby in the context of ritual
satanic abuse. Even though there was no evidence that in fact she had
ever given birth to a child in that time frame, the psychologist
accepted at face value the recollection and focussed therapy on her
need to forgive herself...
Of course, not all are so dramatic and bizarre. At the same time the
similarity in the process of the 'uncovered' recollections is
unmistakable. Another very predictable aspect of the therapy is that
these clients almost always get worse rather than better and almost
always go through an acute phase of being suicidal, often requiring
multiple hospitalizations. If you raise an issue with these therapists
as to why the client is getting worse rather than better, the
universal answer is that it is a normal and expected part of the
healing process! I have been treating depressed and sexually abused
individuals for twenty years, and I have yet to have to hospitalize
someone. We even have psychologists who have requested inpatient
treatment in order to use abreaction because they were concerned that
the 'therapeutic' process would cause decompensation to the point that
the individual would have difficulty functioning for a few days
outside of the hospital. It seems to me common sense that if a
'therapeutic' technique is going to cause an individual to
decompensate such that they cannot function, even for a few days, it
is a technique that should not be employed. We have seen such
counter-productive results that we cannot in good conscience provide
insurance coverage for individuals who fall under our domain of care
undergoing this sort of treatment; we do offer alternative treatment
with psychologists and clinical social workers in our panel who
address these issues in ways that do not promote decompensation.
I should add here that a very large portion of the individuals who
'recover' recollections carry with them an axis II diagnosis of
borderline personality. This is explained away as the borderline
personality being the result of sexual abuse. I do not believe there
is any evidence in the literature outside of psychoanalytic anecdotes
and theory that supports this notion. It is, in my opinion, much more
parsimonious to see the phenomena as one of borderline personalities
meeting the preconceived notions of their therapists; I believe false
memory syndrome is far more widespread than is currently being
recognized by psychologists. i also believe that those therapists who
are using these techniques are a very high risk for malpractice as the
facts concerning false memory syndrome continue to emerge.
This brings me full circle back to false memories and the False
Memory Syndrome Foundation. It seems to me that the FMS Foundation is
one of the few organizations having had the courage to take the
politically incorrect view that scientific data and the facts as we
know them about memory should be the cornerstone of thought and
therapy rather than politics and anecdote. Indeed, the FMS Foundation
has partially corrected an imbalance in how these issues are viewed.
DOUGLAS E. MOULD, Ph.D.
Director of Clinical Services Preferred
Mental Health Management Wichita, Kansas
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| Dear Daughter, |
| Your father died today taking your accusations to his grave. |
| He was not in the least afraid of death as he believed that he |
| will live again in Glory with the Lord, and that He knows the |
| truth. You were never molested by your father. He loved his |
| firstborn more than life. |
| I only regret that now you can never reunite with your father on |
| this earth when you finally realize that your recovered memories |
| were not real. |
| Mom |
\____________________________________________________________________/
"I have been going through the process of terminating the employment
of a young woman who worked for me for four years. About 18 months ago
she began remembering having been sexually abused as a child. She had
been in therapy for some time prior to these memories because of
difficulties she had in adjusting to divorce. I accepted her memories
as real and was extremely patient and sympathetic. I made no job
demands on her at all for six months.
"She is an educated and experienced professional. Her performance
prior to these memories had been outstanding. But afterward, both the
quality and quantity of her work deteriorated to totally unacceptable
levels. She seemed unable to apply the technical knowledge she had.
And, she seemed not fully aware of the extent of this deterioration.
She became hostile and defiant. In the final phase of her employment
she accused me of mental abuse. She believes that she was no longer
able to perform her job because of me.
"I do not know if her childhood memories are of actual events or
not, but I want to know more about this phenomenon."
A Professional
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| Our fathers claimed, by obvious madness moved, |
| Man's innocent until his guilt is proved. |
| They would have known, had they not been confused, |
| He's innocent until he is accused. |
| Ogden Nash |
| I Wouldn't Have Missed It: Selected Poems |
| Boston: Little, Brown & Company 1975. |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
MAKING EXTORTION LEGAL
"I received my M.S. in Counseling and Mental Health. I became
interested in the field when my own experiences in therapy turned my
life around. I had an enormously difficult childhood. While I always
knew there were inappropriate sexual behaviors on my father's part, I
would never have used the word incest. At least not until recently
when the definition of incest became clear did I realize what incest
really was. Suddenly I had become first a victim of and finally a
survivor of incest. What I have to say deserves some background.
"When I was attending college, I volunteered to be a subject for a
demonstration in body work. This was my first real introduction to
repressed memory. My experience with the demonstration left me feeling
clear of negative emotions which I believed at that time were
repressed. I saw other clients recover very traumatic memories and
become quite emotional. They too appeared to feel better and look
better after thee sessions. I planned on making this my life's work.
"During my training I witnessed a demonstration in which a young
woman was crying and telling us how bad her childhood had been. I was
completely caught up in the demonstration when the instructor stopped
her cold saying, "That's a nice story but it's not the truth." The
woman began laughing and stopped her drama abruptly. This was my first
experience with false memory. I began to wonder how one person could
uncover real events and work through them, while another could create
an event. Perhaps the therapy created expectations. The entire class
had taken the theory of repressed memory as fact. it seemed that mere
suggestion was enough to make everyone in the class produce the
expected results.
"In 1991, my own son confronted me in a restaurant with his
recovered memories of being molested by me which he had discovered in
therapy. I was shocked nearly speechless. All I could say was, "What
makes you think it was me?" He told me, "Because I see your face above
me." He asked me some questions about where I changed his diapers and
what the room looked like. I answered him as honestly as I could. That
was the last time I saw my son. His next communication was through his
attorney accusing me of molesting him as an infant. That began an
eighteen month nightmare. On the advice of our attorney we settled out
of court for $100,000. I was told that my innocence was irrelevant and
that it would cost as much to prove my case as to settle out of court.
My doctor put me on anti-depressants in September when I became so
depressed I couldn't get out of bed.
"I've read the arguments for and against false memories. In my own
experience and work I have seen the phenomenon. I know it is extremely
difficult to tell the difference between a false and a real memory. I
also know the subject has become a great controversy. In my own
therapy, I never considered making my parents responsible for my
pain. My father was deceased when I went through my therapy, perhaps
that had an influence. I don't really know. My mother, whom I
approached with my discovery of a single repressed memory was
wonderful in corroborating my suspicions and in resolving her own. She
was an intimate part of my healing process. Today I have a wonderful
relationship with my Mom which I never had as a child. This single
repressed memory was not my only memory of being molested. I remember
several very traumatic sexual events that were too painful ever to
forget. My personal expectations of therapy are to heal and
forgive. I've had plenty of time to review the differences in my
therapeutic journey and my son's. They are radically different.
"Instead of being able to support my son through his therapeutic
process, I have been cut out of his life. I know he was molested by my
second husband and I knew one day he would need to go into therapy. I
thought I would be there for him. Instead I have been attacked by a
combination of abuse therapist and abuse attorney. These specialists
in abuse cases isolate their clients.
"I've collected articles and tapes and read most of your literature.
I believe I have studied the subject thoroughly and I'm going to work
to stop what I feel is a great injustice. When my attorney warned me
away from proving my innocence due to the vigilante state surrounding
the highly charged issue of sexual molestation and child abuse, I
begrudgingly opted to settle out of court. I also thought that a court
battle would destroy any chance for reconciliation in the future. I
became aware of the extortion that was made possible by the system. I
believe the innocent are going down with the guilty. I know I never
copulated with my infant son while he was still in diapers as i have
been accused. I don't even believe it is possible to have sexual
intercourse with an infant. His conclusions are based solely on
recovered memories and on my description of the location of his
bathinette in our home. That bathinette held a maximum of 60 pounds
and would have broken beneath our combined weight. Not to mention the
fact there is no way he could have seen my face above him at that age.
He would be staring at an adults mid-section and feel as if he were
suffocating. The charges are ludicrous. And yet the risks of going to
court are too high.
"We have all lost when we settled out of court. The greater loss is
my family. My son is gone. I've lost health because of the severe
stress and grief. I've lost trust. I would have given my son money if
he had asked for it.
"I hope that I can contribute in some small way to changing the
system that has made extortion legal. "
A Professional, A Mom
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "Therapists should interview the family and review medical and |
| school records before boldly affixing blame. Patients should not |
| rush to sue or tell all to Oprah if there is doubt, and there may |
| always be doubt. Therapy should seek to give a person a future, |
| not foster an obsession with the past." |
| Editorial Boston Globe April 17, 1994 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
"I want to first thank you from the bottom of my heart! Thank you
for your support to my parents. In October of 1993 I was finally
reunited with them after three horrible years of being involved with a
"bad" counselor and learning first hand what the false memory syndrome
was all about. Today I am very thankful to God to be back together
with my family!!! I have friends that I was in a SRA/MPD group with
that are still in the same boat I was in and they will no longer speak
to me since I am now the 'enemy." My parents have been so forgiving
and i am so thankful that we have been reunited. My deepest thanks to
FMSF for sharing with my parents that they were not alone and for
providing them with much encouragement. I can't ever thank you enough.
Well, I'm sure my story is pretty much the same as all the ones you
have heard. Currently, I'm looking into seeing an attorney about the
possibility of a law suit. That's my next step, just to see what that
would entail. My husband doesn't want us to be all consumed with my
former therapist. She already ripped away three years of our lives and
we don't want to give her any more. I'm praying that the Lord will
guide us in our decision about what to do next. I do want her
stopped!!!! I would hate for anyone else to have to endure all that my
husband, my family and I have endured these last three years. I'm sure
as I go on, that you can tell that I'm continuing to work out all my
"stuff" that I experienced these last three years and the anger that
is there.
If you know of any retractors.. I'd love to communicate with them.
Please let me know.
A Loving Daughter
**********************************************************************
ATTENTION READERS
Special Issue of SKEPTIC MAGAZINE on False Memory Syndrome
-Dr John Hochman on the Problem of Recovered Memory Therapy
-Dr Gina Green on Facilitated Communication
-Dr Carol Tavris on the Illusion of Science in Psychiatry
-Dr. Thomas Szaz on A Skepticl Analysis of Psychiatry
-Dr Michael Shermer on the Similarity of FMS to the Witch Crazes
Send $6.-- + $2.00 s/h to:
Skeptics Society
2761 N. Marengo Ave
Altadena, CA 91001 Also available: Dr. John Hochman's Caltech
lecture on FMS for the Skeptics, considered the best lecture of the
year.
Send $19.95 + $2.00 s/h to Skeptics, or call 818-794-3119
**********************************************************************
TALK WITH A RETRACTOR
"Last week I had my first telephone call from a retractor. At first
I was excited. Here was my opportunity to learn all about the other
side. I was not prepared for what I heard. First of all -- the fear.
The fear of her parents because she had been convinced they would hurt
her, maybe even kill her. The pain -- obvious in her voice -- how much
she had missed her parents, and how much she had wanted a mother while
she was going through all this, especially at Christmas. And now the
pain and guilt and sorrow that comes with realizing the pain she had
inflicted on her parents. The self doubt. Why did I believe this? How
could this happen? And the anger -- at her therapists for what they
had done to her. The questions -- what could she do to stop this so
others don't go through this? How to pick up the pieces and go on? And
how to let go of her psychiatrist since she still needed him because
she is addicted to the medication he's been giving her. How to get off
the medication? The relief she felt talking to me, "I feel like the
world has been lifted off my shoulders. Now I know I don't ever have
to believe them again." And finally the determination, "Never again
will I let anyone tell me what to believe." And the reassurance she
needed not to be so hard on herself.
"Talking to her taught me many things. Mostly it helped me realize
just how excruciating it the pain and anguish that this therapy
inflicts on our accusing children, perhaps even more than that felt by
parents if that's possible. It's important for us as parents to be
patient and understanding and compassionate towards the children who
hurt us so deeply when they take their first fearful steps back to
us. We, the parents, have one advantage. We know we are innocent and
if we educate ourselves about this terrible cruelty happening in the
mental health field, we can at least bring the understanding that we
are all -- parents and children -- caught in something much bigger
than any of us. We can stop blaming each other and together hold those
who are responsible for this atrocity accountable for the damage they
have done to innocent families."
A Mom
**********************************************************************
FMSF MEETINGS.
FAMILIES & PROFESSIONALS WORKING TOGETHER
MIDWEST REGIONAL MEETING
May 21-22, 1994
Michigan State University
Lansing, MI
APA
American Psychiatric Association
ANNUAL MEETING
Doubletree Hotel
Philadelphia, PA
Wednesday, May 25, 1994
2-5:00 pm Seminar Speakers:
Drs. Green, Lief, McHugh, Singer
CSICOP
Committee for the Scientific Investigation of
Claims of the Paranormal
The Psychology of Belief
June 23-26, 1994
Seattle, WA
Carl Sagan, Robert Baker, Richard Ofshe,
Elizabeth Loftus, Stephen Ceci
UNITED STATES
Call person listed for meeting time & location.
key: (MO) = monthly; (bi-MO) = bi-monthly
ARKANSAS - Area code 501
Little Rock
Al & Lela 363-4368
CALIFORNIA
Central Coast
Carole (805) 967-8058
North County Escondido
Joe & Marlene (619)745-5518
Orange County (as of May 1st)
Chris & Alan (714) 733-2925
1st Sunday (MO) - 10:00 am
Jerry & Eileen (714) 494-9704
3rd Sunday (MO) - 6:00 pm
Rancho Cucamonga Group
Marilyn (909) 985-7980
1st Monday, (MO) - 7:30 pm
Sacramento/Central Valley
Charles & Mary Kay (916) 961-8257
San Francisco & Bay Area - bi-monthly
east bay area
Judy (510) 254-2605
san francisco & north bay
Gideon (415) 389-0254
Charles (415) 984-6626 (day); 435-9618 (eve)
south bay area
Jack & Pat (408) 425-1430
Last Saturday, (Bi-MO)
Burbank (formerly Valencia)
Jane & Mark (805) 947-4376
4th Saturday (MO)10:00 am
West Orange County
Carole (310) 596-8048
2nd Saturday (MO)
COLORADO
Denver
Roy (303) 221-4816
4th Saturday, (MO)1:00 pm
CONNECTICUT - Area code 203
New Haven area
George 243-2740
Sunday, June 19, 1994 (bi-MO) 1:00 pm
FLORIDA
Dade-Broward Area
Madeline (305) 966-4FMS
Delray Beach PRT
Esther (407) 364-8290
2nd & 4th Thursday [MO] 1:00 pm
GEORGIA - neighboring states welcome
Atlanta Meeting
Call for information: Jean (404) 840-7097,
Nancy (404) 922-7486 or Lee (404) 442-0482
Sunday, May 22, 1994, 2:00 pm
IILLINOIS
Chicago metro area (South of the Eisenhower)
Roger (708) 366-3717
2nd Sunday [MO] 2:00 pm
INDIANA
Indianapolis area (150 mile radius)
Gene (317) 861-4720 or 861-5832
Helen (219) 753-2779
Nickie (317) 471-0922 (phone & fax)
IOWA
Des Moines
Betty/Gayle (515) 270-6976
KANSAS
Kansas City
Pat (913) 238-2447 or Jan (816) 276-8964
2nd Sunday (MO)
KENTUCKY
Lexington
Dixie (606) 356-9309
Louisville
Bob (502) 957-2378
Last Sunday (MO) 2:00 pm
MAINE - Area code 207
Freeport
Wally 865-4044
3rd Sunday (MO)
MARYLAND
Ellicot City area
Margie (410) 750-8694
Sunday, June 5, 3:00 pm
MASSACHUSETTS / NEW ENGLAND
Chelmsford
Jean (508) 250-1055
*
MICHIGAN
Grand Rapids Area - Jenison
Catharine (616) 363-1354
2nd Monday (MO)
MINNESOTA
St. Paul
Terry & Collette (507) 642-3630
Saturday, June 18, 9 am - 3 pm
MISSOURI
St. Louis
Mae (314) 837-1976 & Karen (314) 432-8789
3rd Wednesday [MO]
NEW JERSEY (South) - See PENNSYLVANIA (Wayne)
OHIO
Cincinnati
Bob (513) 541-5272
OKLAHOMA - Area code 405
Oklahoma City
Len 364-4063 Dee 942-0531
HJ 755-3816 Rosemary 439-2459
PENNSYLVANIA
Harrisburg area
Paul & Betty (707) 761-3364
Pittsburgh
Rick & Renee (412) 563-5616
Wayne (includes So. Jersey)
Jim & Joanne (610) 783-0396
Saturday, May 14, 1994, 1:00 pm
Saturday, June 4, 1994, 9:30 am - 1:00 pm
TEXAS
Central Texas
Nancy & Jim (512) 478-8395
Dallas/Ft. Worth
Lee & Jean (214) 279-0250
Houston
Jo or Beverly (713) 464-8970
VERMONT & Upstate New York
Burlington
Elaine (518) 399-5749
Monday, May 9, 7:00 pm
VIRGINIA, West Virginia, Washington DC
Charlottesville - area meeting
Nina (703) 342-4760
Maryanne (703) 869-3226
Saturday, July 9, 1994, 1:00-8:00 pm
WASHINGTON, DC - See Virginia
WEST VIRGINIA - See Virginia
WISCONSIN
Katie & Leo (414) 476-0285
BRITISH COLUMBIA
Vancouver & Mainland
Ruth (604) 925-1539
Last Saturday (MO) 1:00-4:00 pm
Victoria & Vancouver Island
John (604) 721-3219
3rd Tuesday (MO) 7:30 pm
MANITOBA
Winnipeg
Joan (204) 257-9444
1st Sunday (MO)
ONTARIO
Ottawa
Eileen (613) 592-4714
Toronto
Pat (416) 445-1995
AUSTRALIA
Ken & June, P O Box 363, Unley, SA 5061
NEW ZEALAND
Dr. Goodyear-Smith
tel 0-9-415-8095
fax 0-9-415-8471
UNITED KINGDOM
The British False Memory Society
Roger Scotford (0) 225-868682
To list a meeting: Mail or fax info to Nancy 2-3 months before meeting
date, (ex., for July/August newsletter, send by May 25th). Standing
meetings will continue to be listed unless notified otherwise by state
contact or group leader.
For information about local newsletters -- formerly listed on this
page -- call state contact or group leader.
**********************************************************************
WHY I AM A BOARD MEMBER OF FMSF
Robyn Dawes, University Professor
Department of Social and Decision Sciences,
Carnegie Mellon University
There are a few principles in psychology and psychiatry that can be
termed "scientific." They are not as plentiful as principles of
physics, engineering, and medicine, and they are of a more
probabilistic nature than are most principles in these "hard
sciences." But they are there. They are, moreover, supported by
evidence that has been subjected to skeptical examination, just as any
other accepted scientific principle has had to survive the challenge
of "show me."
In the present context of "recovered repressed memories," the
relevant principles concern memory (reconstructive in nature),
inference (which can systematically deviate from mathematical
rationality), and group influence (which can lead to behaviors,
judgments, and even perceptions that are radically different from
those obtained without it). The courts, the public ( and even --
perhaps especially -- psychotherapists) should be aware of these
principles and their potential applications. We should educate.
The opposing idea is that people with a special status "just know"
the nature of reality on the basis of "experience" pure and simple.
General principles are claimed to be at best irrelevant to "this
particular problem," and at worst, quite remarkably, to lead
unerringly to the wrong conclusions. ("Q. Is it your position that
repression can only be addressed by clinicians and not by researchers?
A. The kind of researchers that are bringing this to question,
sociology researchers, researchers who are doing cognitive psychology
experiments, are not the ones who can make a value judgment on
repression. It is the clinicians who can" -- Lenore Terr, M.D., Akiki
Trial Testimony.) We should also educate the courts and the public
(and psychotherapists) that true expertise -- even that involving a
large dose of intuition -- involves working within the bounds of what
is known, not outside these bounds on the basis of one's "own
reality," or someone else's.
An airplane built without regard to principles of physics and
engineering would surely crash, if it were ever able to get off the
ground in the first place. If we were to fund the development of such
an airplane, we would be funding wreckage. Acceptance of -- and
payment for -- a claimed expertise in psychology and psychiatry that
ignores general principles has the same (predictable) result:
Wreckage, in this context human wreckage.
December 20, 1993
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| Do you have access to e-mail? Send a message to |
| pjf@cis.upenn.edu |
| if you wish to receive electronic versions of this newsletter and |
| notices of radio and television broadcasts about FMS. All the |
| message need say is "add to the FMS list". It would be useful, but |
| not necessary, if you add your full name (all addresses and names |
| will remain strictly confidential). |
\____________________________________________________________________/
FMSF Scientific and Professional Advisory Board April 2, 1993:
TERENCE W. CAMPBELL, Ph.D., Clinical and Forensic Psychology, Sterling
Heights, MI; ROSALIND CARTWRIGHT, Rush Presbyterian St. Lukes Medical
Center, Chicago, IL; JEAN CHAPMAN, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin,
Madison, WI; LOREN CHAPMAN, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison,
WI; ROBYN M. DAWES, Ph.D., Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA;
DAVID F. DINGES, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania, The Institute of
Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadelphia, PA; FRED FRANKEL, M.B.Ch.B.,
D.P.M., Beth Israel Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA;
GEORGE K. GANAWAY, M.D., Emory University of Medicine, Atlanta, GA;
MARTIN GARDNER, Author, Hendersonville, NC; ROCHEL GELMAN, Ph.D.,
University of California, Los Angeles, CA; HENRY GLEITMAN, Ph.D.,
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; LILA GLEITMAN, Ph.D.,
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; RICHARD GREEN, M.D.,
J.D., UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA; DAVID A. HALPERIN,
M.D., Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY; ERNEST HILGARD,
Ph.D., Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA; JOHN HOCHMAN, M.D., UCLA
Medical School, Los Angeles, CA; DAVID S. HOLMES, Ph.D., University of
Kansas, Lawrence, KS; PHILIP S. HOLZMAN, Ph.D., Harvard University,
Cambridge, MA; JOHN KIHLSTROM, Ph.D., University of Arizona, Tucson,
AZ; HAROLD LIEF, M.D., University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA;
ELIZABETH LOFTUS, Ph.D., University of Washington, Seattle, WA; PAUL
McHUGH, M.D., Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD; HAROLD MERSKEY,
D.M., University of Western Ontario, London, Canada; ULRIC NEISSER,
Ph.D., Emory University, Atlanta, GA; RICHARD OFSHE, Ph.D., University
of California, Berkeley, CA; MARTIN ORNE, M.D., Ph.D., University of
Pennsylvania, The Institute of Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadelphia,
PA; LOREN PANKRATZ, Ph.D., Oregon Health Sciences University,
Portland, OR; CAMPBELL PERRY, Ph.D., Concordia University, Montreal,
Canada; MICHAEL A. PERSINGER, Ph.D., Laurentian University, Ontario,
Canada; AUGUST T. PIPER, Jr., M.D., Seattle, WA; HARRISON POPE, Jr.,
M.D., Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA; JAMES RANDI, Author and
Magician, Plantation, FL; CAROLYN SAARI, Ph.D., Loyola University,
Chicago, IL; THEODORE SARBIN, Ph.D., University of California, Santa
Cruz, CA; THOMAS A. SEBEOK, Ph.D., Indiana Univeristy, Bloomington,
IN; LOUISE SHOEMAKER, Ph.D., University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia,
PA; MARGARET SINGER, Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley, CA;
RALPH SLOVENKO, J.D., Ph.D., Wayne State University Law School,
Detroit, MI; DONALD SPENCE, Ph.D., Robert Wood Johnson Medical Center,
Piscataway, NJ; JEFFREY VICTOR, Ph.D., Jamestown Community College,
Jamestown, NY; HOLLIDA WAKEFIELD, M.A., Institute of Psychological
Therapies, Northfield, MN; LOUIS JOLYON WEST, M.D., UCLA School of
Medicine, Los Angeles, CA.