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This address and the phone numbers have changed as of July 15, 2000
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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 $30, Stu-
dent $10; Canada: $35 (in U.S. dollars); Foreign: $40; Foreign
student $20; Single issue price: $3. ISSN #1069-0484
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INSIDE:
Frontline Reviews
Our Critics
McHugh
Satanic Update
Legal Corner
Weaver
From Our Readers
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"The timing couldn't have been better if planned. On the day the
first part of Ofra Bikel's documentary 'Divided Memories' aired on
PBS, an appellate court overturned the 1990 conviction of George
Franklin Sr. in a case based on the testimony of his daughter, who
said she had seen her father kill her friend Susan in 1969 but had
suppressed all memory of it for 20 years."
"Of the two blows to the 'repressed memory' industry, Bikel's is
the more devastating."
Cathy Young, Detroit News, April 11, 1995
Dear Friends,
Psychotherapy is an essential service and people who need that
service should be assured of quality care. The American public is
increasingly behaving as responsible consumers of that service. The
absurdities and logical inconsistencies of the recovered memory
therapy movement have received wide exposure this past month,
increasing skepticism about the wild claims of 'recovered memory' and
magical memory processes. Consumers know that there is agreement that
child abuse is a terrible problem and that the FMS controversy is
draining resources from helping children in the here-and-now. They
know that five professional organizations have stated that there is no
way to tell the truth of a memory unless there is external
corroboration. They do not know why this controversy continues.
Why do professional organizations continue to defend recovered
memory therapy? To consumers, it gives every appearance of a
disregard for the safety and well-being of the public. This month, for
example, in the April APA Monitor, Sara Martin noted that the Council
of the American Psychological Association allocated $18,500 "to
monitor the backlash faced by therapists, educators and researchers
who work on abuse issues." $750,000 was set aside "for a
comprehensive public-education campaign that will promote the value of
psychology." The APA Council passed a resolution opposing the
"so-called Mental Health Consumer Protection Act."
* No money was described as allocated for an outcome study of
recovered memory therapy or any other therapy.
* No concern was expressed about how the profession could have
failed in its responsibility to so many thousands of clients and
families.
* No discussion was described about how the APA could improve
monitoring within the profession.
* No mention was made of any initiative by the APA to introduce
their own suggested legislation that would help to curtail some of the
terrible excesses currently taking place.
According to a report by Alex Beam on April 12, 1995 in The Boston
Globe, Harvard University has begun an investigation of psychiatrist
John Mack, MD, famous because his patients recover memories of space
alien abduction and abuse. According to the article, the Harvard
University committee "has already drafted a preliminary report that
criticizes Mack's research, and finds him 'in violation of the
standards of conduct expected of a member of the faculty of Harvard
University.'" Consumers might justifiably wonder why the American
Psychiatric Association did not take the lead in such an investigation
since the safety and well-being of patients is involved. Consumers
might justifiably wonder why the American Psychiatric Association has
not yet issued any statements about the value of space alien abduction
therapy, past life therapy, satanic cult therapy, screaming therapy,
reparenting therapy, and a host of other questionable
techniques. Where is even the appearance of concern for the safety and
well-being of clients?
Like the American Psychological Association, the American
Psychiatric Association also opposes the legislative efforts. In the
April 7, 1995 issue of Psychiatric News, American Psychiatric
Association Medical Director Melvin Sabshin, MD noted that "The
proposed federal legislation also ignores the fact that psychiatrist
physicians -- and nonphysical mental health providers -- are already
licensed and extensively regulated at the state level, and are also
directly answerable to their peers and to state licensing and review
boards for allegations of unethical and unprofessional conduct."
Unfortunately, thousands of families will testify to Dr. Sabshin that
the system he described has failed.
This month, we take a look at the current perception of recovered
memory therapy. We examine the opinions of people who have no
affiliation with the FMSF by looking at the reviews of the PBS
documentary 'Divided Memories.' We look at the tactics our critics use
to avoid dealing with the scientific issues, and we consider the
overturning of the Franklin case and some of the comments that have
appeared in other legal cases in the news.
The rate of returners and retractors is increasing..We suspect that
this phenomenon is going be be over for many families before the
profession understands what has happened. We worry that many fine
mental health professionals will be harmed because they have not
separated from the recovered memory movement.
$18,500 to study the 'backlash' rather than produce an outcome study
of the effectiveness of recovered memory therapy. We are a long way
from the end of this problem.
PAMELA
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "It's a senseless, dumb war," Ofra Bikel, |
| San Diego Union-Tribune, Mark Sauer, April 11, 1995 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "There's a backlash all right! |
| It's a backlash against science." |
| Alan Gold, Barrister, Toronto, April 22, 1995 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| Video copies of 'Divided Memories' are available for $133.50. |
| ($155.00 abroad). Transcripts are available for $10.00 each. |
| |
| Journal Graphics |
| 800-825-5746 or 303-831-9000 |
| 1535 Grant Street, Denver, CO 80203 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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REVIEWS OF FRONTLINE'S DIVIDED MEMORIES
The airing of 'Divided Memories,' the four-hour documentary by Ofra
Bikel and Karen O'Connor shown on PBS on April 4 and 11, provided a
unique opportunity to examine the opinion and understanding of
recovered/repressed memory therapy in a relatively systematic manner
in a population that has no involvement with the Foundation. We
collected approximately 30 reviews of 'Divided Memory' available on a
computer database and added another 10 that were mailed to us. The
titles of these reviews tell their own story.
WHEN THERAPY IS THE DISEASE
(The Vancouver Sun)
REPRESSED MEMORY THEORISTS SELF-DESTRUCT
(Detroit News)
A TALE OF MANIPULATED MEMORIES
(The Indianapolis Star)
FRIGHTENING LOOK AT REGRESSION THERAPY
(The Washington Post)
GROWTH INDUSTRY: HELPING RECALL SEXUAL ABUSE
(The New York Times)
We examined each review to note the points mentioned by the
reviewers. Many of the reviews noted that the program offered equal
opportunity to both sides. No review even hinted that there was any
unfairness in this program.
"Bikel wants you to make up your own mind about this controversial
subject and both sides are allowed plenty of time to make their
cases." The Seattle Times, April 3, 1995, John Voorhees
"There is no need to editorialize in her documentary because simply
by turning on the camera in these 'therapy' sessions viewers can
judge for themselves." Globe and Mail, April 4, 1995, John Haslett
Cuff
"Her film can be called even-handed in that both critics and
champions of recovered memory get equal time -- enough for the
latter to self-destruct." Detroit News, April 11, 1995, Cathy Young
"It is a straightforward and even-handed documentary, but casts a
suitably skeptical eye on the pseudoscience of a looking-glass world
where the sheer extravagance of a patient's claim can become the
primary support for it and outside disbelief is transformed into the
evidence of "denial." The Plain Dealer, April 4, 1995, Tom Feran
One issue dominated the comments: the therapists' notion of "truth."
Some reviewers specifically noted the logical inconsistency of
therapists who said that it was not their job to be a detective to
determine the "truth" while at the same time saying that they should
"validate" their patients' memories of abuse.
"And yet the therapists she interviews, while stating they believe
their patients, insist it is absolutely not their job to try to
corroborate whether a father actually raped his daughter before
accusing him of the crime." San Diego Union Tribune, April 11, Mark
Sauer
"In her new 'Frontline' documentary, 'Divided Memories,' Ofra Bikel
takes on the issue of repressed memory and what's come to be known
as the 'recovery movement' generally. For the therapy schools in
question, this is most certainly not good news...Here are
psychologists confidently explaining that whether the patients'
'recovered' memories of abuse are factual or not is irrelevant --
for there is no such thing as truth -- and, after all, the most
important goal of therapy is to make the patient feel powerful."
Wall Street Journal, April 3, 1995, Dorothy Rabinowitz
"They're not detectives or fact-finders, they say, neither judge nor
jury. What they often appear is arrogant, dangerously enabling
vulnerable patients' delusions to take a life of their own...At
times, you feel you've stumbled into an absurdest episode of The
X-Files, as in a hypnosis session where a woman recalls being abused
by her baby sitter. Then she flashes back to a former life where she
says she abused the baby sitter, who was then her servantIIt would
be funny if it weren't so scary. Divided Memories is one long
shudder of the national soul." USA Today, April 4, 1995, Matt Roush
"The casualness of some therapists about whether or not such
memories are objectively factual can be breathtaking." The Fresno
Bee, April 4, 1995, Kirk Nicewonger
"And she uses repressed-memory therapists' own comments to discredit
them. They admit, for example, that they regard the truth of patient
claims of abuse as irrelevant to treatment, despite the awful
consequences of such assertions." New York Daily News, April 4,
1995, Eric Mink
The absurd extremes of recovered memory therapy such as space alien
abduction, past lives and intergenerational satanic cult beliefs are
in danger of undermining all mental health treatment. Some comments in
the 'Divided Memories' reviews support an observation of increasing
public distrust of mental health treatment.
"The healing profession seems to be filled with strange new
therapies, which would play well on the Shrinkovision network
...'Divided Memories' is a dysfunctional family festival that
does for psychotherapy what the Whitney Biennial does for art. And
the most fascinating thing of all about the repressed-memory debate
is that anybody who finds some of these people and their theories a
little hard to take is, as they say, in denial. Newsday, April 9,
1995, Marvin Kitman
"In the end you have to wonder about certain of the 225,000 licensed
psychotherapists who practice shrinking techniques ranging from the
old-fashioned talking cure to past-life regressions. Some of the
play-acting mumbo jumbo is distinctly creepy." The Denver Post,
April 4, 1995, Joanne Ostrow
"'Divided Memories' becomes one of television's most extraordinary
investigations into the legitimacy of psychotherapy itself -- its
pseudo-religious aspects, its penchant for launching pop movements
that soon fizzle, its preference for feelings over reason. The
children of Freud are now at an unprecedented crisis point." Los
Angeles Times, April 4, 1995, Robert Koehler
"'Divided Memories' has to be viewed as a landmark program in the
way it skewers psychobabble and displays the tragic human fallout of
an overtherapized nation...And while remaining admirab unbiased on
the issue, Bikel nonetheless leaves the impression that at least
some of the instances are attributable directly to the power of
suggestion (i.e. brainwashing) during psychotherapy sessions. This
is, of course, a serious breach of professional ethics..." Santa
Cruz County, April 4, 1995, Ray Richmond
"At issue is whether recollections of abuse culled through therapy
constitute credible evidence of wrongdoing or whether they are
unconscious responses to suggestions by therapists who have a vested
interest in finding abuse and a cavalier attitude toward truth."
The Baltimore Sun, April 5, 1995, Editorial
"Ofra Bikel's documentary carefully uncovers the agony of the
process and the devastation of the allegations that spring from
it. It also lays bare the irresponsible, unethical and mercenary
behavior of some therapists...The controversy will continue. The
August installment of a newsletter called the 'Psychologist's Legal
Update' quotes a legal expert as estimating that court costs in
repressed-memory cases will run about $25 million annually in coming
years. The legal newsletter seeks to help therapists financially.
Frontline, by demonstrating the dreadful human consequences of a
cavalier approach to repressed memory, may help them morally."
Philadelphia Inquirer, April 4, 1995, Jonathan Storm
"The controversy around repressed memory has the psychoanalytic
establishment worried about spillover -- that it will cast
psychotherapy per se in a dubious light. And in fact, the number of
patients seeking therapy has declined in the past few years,
although the likely cause is the economic pinch on the middle class
(to say nothing of managed care) rather than the fear that one is
going to be brainwashed into denouncing one's parents as satanic
child abusers...It's also possible, given their deficient deductive
ability, that recovered memory adherents will find support for their
theories and practices in Divided Memories." The Village Voice, April
11, 1995, Amy Taubin
Frontline reviews to be continued in June.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| A daughter and her therapist can make a new kind of lynching party |
| today, the documentary shows. Why would anybody make up such |
| stories, it is argued. They are so odious. Yes, but isn't that |
| what mental illness is? It defies reason. |
| Newsday, April 9, 1995, Marvin Kitman |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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THE HARSHEST REVIEW OF ALL
"I cannot believe they are adults, like you mother. What are they,
faking it? When little children play doctor, they know they are
playing."
10th Grade student's reaction to Divided Memories, Pt.1
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| The events of the past several years suggest that the price of not |
| waiting for scientific knowledge may be disastrously high. It is |
| imperative that all involved in this debate work hard to ensure |
| that the standards of science, not rhetoric or pseudoscience, |
| constitute the framework for future discussion. |
| Daniel L. Schacter |
| Scientific American, April, 1995 |
| Review of Making Monsters |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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OUR CRITICS
NAME CALLING
(We apologize if the language in this section offends readers.)
Many of our critics have now resorted to name calling. A reasonable
assumption is that people resort to name calling when they have no
scientific or logical arguments.
_________
Example 1
Following is a passage from the Miami Herald, April 3, 1995, "Sexual
abuse and memory: A status check" by Fred Tasker.
"Delaney Nickerson, of the American Coalition for Abuse Awareness,
voices that pain, angrily referring to the False Memory Syndrome
Foundation as "The F---ing Molesters' Society.'"
The American Coalition for Abuse Awareness (ACAA) is a lobbying group
headed by lawyer Sherry Quirk, a partner of the firm Verner, Liipfert,
Berhhard, McPherson and Hand in Washington, DC which supports ACAA on
a pro bono basis. (In a recent talk, Ms Quirk made a point of noting
that former Senator Lloyd Bentsen and former Governor Ann Richardson
were members of the firm.) The Coalition for Accuracy About Abuse
started by Ellen Bass and Rene Fredrickson recently merged with ACAA.
_________
Example 2
The material distributed at the "Stone Angels" satanic ritual abuse
conference in Thunder Bay in February is being examined as "hate
literature." The following was contained in the handouts at this
conference which received _financial_support_from_the_Ontario_
_government_.
FMS
FMS
FMS this, FMS...
which stands for
FULL OF MOSTLY SHIT.
And their slogan is,
FOR MORE SADISM
And they advocate for
FELONS, MURDERERS, SCUMBALLS
And they receive funding from
FREQUENT MOLESTERS SYNDICATE
And I want them to know that they aren't
FOOLING MANY SURVIVORS
FMS THIS, FMS.
_________
Example 3
At the opening of the Women's Law Project and the Penn Women's
Center program on "Sexual Abuse Memory & the Law," on April 21, 1995,
the FMSF was compared to Operation Rescue. On the Internet, several
posts have compared FMSF to Operation Rescue. This comparison rests on
the picketing of one person, Chuck Noah, in Seattle, Washington.
Chuck Noah does not, nor does he claim to speak or act for the
Foundation. Chuck is a retired construction worker and picketing is a
part of his experience for making change. Chuck has said that
picketing is something he just has to do even though he knows that it
is not something that the FMS Foundation supports.
Some people write. Some people have become involved in trying to
change the laws that govern mental health. One person in the entire
nation, Chuck Noah, has found that picketing is a way for him to
express the anger that he feels for the harm done to his daughter, for
the grief that he feels over the loss of his daughter, for the outrage
that he feels at the injustice of being called a child molester by
people who refuse to talk to him, and for the frustration that he
feels because there is no monitoring of the mental health system in
this country. Chuck Noah must be having a profound effect if he is
being equated with Operation Rescue.
_____________________________
IN PROFESSIONAL PUBLICATIONS:
_________
Example 1
Alice Phillips, M.D., in Washington wrote that "Some of us who have
educated ourselves in the treatment of dissociative disorders refer to
the False Memory Syndrome Foundation folks as 'the falsies...'" in the
March 1995 issue of Clinical Psychiatry News.
_________
Example 2
Family Therapy Networker,March/April '95. In "Caught in the Cross
Fire" Katy Butler writes that in direct contradiction to statements by
FMSF that the claims are rarely corraborated, other therapists have
reported "fathers who admit, and apologize for things their daughters
recall after years of forgetting." (comment: Ms Butler has mixed
"apples and oranges." Families who call the FMS Foundation tell us
that no attempt is made to corroborate their children's memories. That
is a fact. Using a different population to make a counterpoint to
Foundation data moves the debate from the scientific to the
political.) _________
Example 3
California Therapist March April 1995. Anne Hart, survivor of incest
and ritual abuse and a peer counselor, notes in the "Great Debate"
that there is not a diagnosis of FMS. "It is a term created for
maximum media impact, serving those who have the most to lose if the
truth is revealed." "The denial of child abuse is as old as child
abuse itself; the perpetrators continue to shrill their innocence."
_________
Example 4
"Dissociative identity disorder and the trauma paradigm" in
Dissociative Identity Disorder: Theoretical and Treatment
Controversies, 1995, L. Cohen, J. Berzoff & M Elin (Eds.). Denise
Gelinas states, "The FMSF actively enlists other accused parents and
coaches them in ways to attack their children's credibility." "Their
most striking innovations include the fabrication of a hypothetical
disorder -- the 'false memory syndrome' -- and their intentional
manipulation of a willing press." "Clinicians are beginning to defend
themselves from these attacks in a number of ways. One form of defense
is to examine the motivations of the attackers, particularly those
individuals within the FMSF, since the Foundation has been so central
to these attacks. Rockwell (1994) writes that "the False Memory
Syndrome' is a sham invented by pedophiles and sexual abusers for the
media." This book was published by Jason Aronson.
_________
Example 5
Last month we mentioned that the Conference at Kansas University
Medical Center seemed to end in personal attack. We did not elaborate
and as a consequence have received several questions about that
session which was titled, "Science, Memory, the Courts, and Practice:
What Do We Know and How Do We Know It?". While the speaker, Kenneth
Pope, Ph.D. began with a presentation of important data about the
difficulties of monitoring the profession of psychology, the talk
moved into another area. Several people associated with FMSF who had
nothing to do with the conference were singled out and the audience
was asked to feel empathy for them. Issues were not discussed.
Dr. Pope went on to describe the work of several professionals on
the FMSF Advisory Board. Because this session was not taped, it is
difficult to be specific in most instances. In one case, however, a
transcript quoting Paul McHugh was read. (Dr. McHugh was no longer
present to respond.) What was read made it sound as though Dr. McHugh
personally practiced the memory-recovery techniques of hypnosis and
sodium amytal about which he has publicly urged caution. We obtained a
copy of the transcript that was read, and we contacted Dr. McHugh for
his response.
PAUL MCHUGH, M.D.: "The transcript is of my interview on Nightline
where I was asked by Dr. Richard Berendzen to join him in discussing
how his (unforgotten) experience of sexual abuse as a child may have
played a role in his adult deviant behavior. I described several ways
that we attempted to challenge his account of sexual abuse. A counter
opinion was that he was fraudulently claiming this abuse so as to
blunt criticism and escape some punishment for his actions.
"One of the methods we employed was an interview under amytal
sedation. It was not our aim to use this sedated state to explore his
memory for other experiences in his history. We did, and still do,
consider an amytal sedated patient to be vulnerable to influence that
can create artifactual memories. Our effort was devoted to observing
whether he would admit, under amytal sedation, that he had concocted a
child abuse story and might then deny it. Dr. Berendzen held to his
memories despite the sedation. We then launched other efforts to
confirm or dismiss them. When all our investigations were completed
we, as noted in the transcript, concluded that he had been sexually
abused and was not untruthful in this matter.
"Notice that at the start, our diagnostic opinion was not settled by
the patient's report. Rather efforts were directed towards verifying
or rejecting his account of events that had happened years before. We
believed and still believe that we were ultimately acting in the
patient's interest by retaining an initial skepticism towards his
claims and in launching a good faith effort to confirm or reject
them. We encourage similar efforts -- not necessarily of an identical
kind -- to challenge childhood memories when subsequent treatment and
management will depend upon their accuracy."
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| JUDITH HERMAN, M.D., Psychiatrist: If we take seriously our duty |
| to our patients, then we are allies when they're healing and we |
| are helping them to become more powerful, to become freer, to |
| become more assertive and to be in a psychological condition where |
| they can, in fact, hold perpetrators accountable, where they're |
| not intimidated and they're not afraid to tell the truth. |
| |
| Dr. JUDITH HERMAN: As a therapist, your job is not to be a |
| detective. Your job is not to be a fact finder. Your job is not |
| to be a judge or a jury and your job is also not to make the |
| family feel better. Your job is to help the patient make sense out |
| of her life, make sense out of her symptoms, cope better with her |
| symptoms and make meaning out of her experience. That's your job. |
| |
| "Divided Memories" April 4, 1995 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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RECOMMENDED READING
Admissibility of hypnotic evidence in U.S. courts. Giannelli,
P. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis, Vol
XLIII, No 2, April 1995, 212-233.
Necessity of memory experts for the defense in prosecutions for child
sexual abuse based upon repressed memories. American Criminal Law
Review, Vol 32 No 49 (1994) 69-75.
Repressed memories and statutes of limitations: Examining the data and
weighing the consequences. Campbell, T., American Journal of Forensic
Psychiatry, Vol 16, #2, (1995), 25-51.
Some additional light on the childhood sexual abuse-psychopathology
axis. Levitt, E. & Pinnell, C. International Journal of Clinical and
Experimental Hypnosis, Vol XLIII, No 2, April 1995, 145-162.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "THE VAN DER KOLK GOOD NOVEL THEORY" |
| for determining the truth of a patient's report |
| Frontline, "Divided Memories" April 4, 1995 |
| |
| BESSEL VAN DER KOLK, M.D., Harvard Medical School: Every time |
| people tell a story, it's basically a story that is looking for |
| somebody to believe you, to- to be convinced. Of vital importance |
| for a person's well-being, own well-being, is to make a narrative |
| of their own life that makes sense to them. And for people's own |
| well-being, the accuracy of one's own story about oneself is not |
| critical. We all tell tales about ourselves. We all have images of |
| ourselves that are not entirely in keeping with the reality of |
| one's life, but we need to have a coherent version of ourselves. |
| |
| INTERVIEWER: So what do you do? How do you ever know what the |
| patient is saying actually happened? |
| |
| Dr. BESSEL VAN DER KOLK: It's like reading a novel. You read a bad |
| novelist, after a while, you put the book down because the story |
| doesn't cohere. The story doesn't make sense. People don't talk |
| this way and people don't interact this way and the book is lousy. |
| If you read a great book and the characters are true to life, |
| that's how people really feel and interact with each other. And |
| eventually, when you do clinical work with people, the internal |
| coherence of the story, how it all hangs together, is not very |
| different from what the great novelists do. |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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SATANIC PANIC IS SWEEPING THROUGH ONTARIO
By a Parent from Ontario
Something strange is happening in Ontario. Since November 1994, five
satanic ritual abuse conferences or workshops were held in various
cities across the province. The one in Toronto was held under the
title "Fighting the 'false memory syndrome' backlash," was for women
only, and participants were instructed not to wear black, white or red
dresses, stripes, and black combat boots, in order to be sensitive to
ritual abuse survivors. Then there was a two-part conference in
Thunder Bay called, "Making up for lost time: A community responds to
satanic cults, child sexual assault and Masonic ritual torture." The
conference was organized by 'local ritual abuse survivors' group
called "Stone Angels." The first part, in November, did not draw much
attention. The second part, held in January, was exposed by Donna
Laframboise in the Toronto Star in two articles. In late February and
in early March, "An educational two-day workshop by Gayle Woodsum on
ritual and cult-related abuse" was held first in Ottawa and a week
later in Bellville. All of these conferences and workshops were funded
by various Ontario government agencies, such as Ministry of Health,
Ministry of Community and Social Services, Women's Directorate, and
Ministry of Northern Development and Mines.
The Thunder Bay conference, understandably, drew attention of the
local Masonic lodge. We were informed that the local police at the
request of the Masons are now examining the materials from this
conference as "hate literature."
Complaints about the Thunder Bay (Stone Angels) conference were sent
to the funding agencies and to the premier of Ontario, Bob Rae, a
former Rhodes scholar. Premier Rae stated, "...The Stone Angels is
(sic) well-respected in Thunder Bay area...This funding will promote
healing and support for survivors of ritual abuse...Our government is
concerned about the prevention of all forms of violence against women
and supports activities which promote public education. This grant is
one step in achieving this objective..."
There have been three thorough studies that refuted the existence of
organized intergenerational satanic cults: the FBI (K. Lanning) report
(1992), the National Centre on Child Abuse and Neglect report (1994)
and the British report by J. LaFontaine (1994). There is, however,
another aspect of this issue. If there are no intergenerational
satanic cults, where do all the survivors who claim to have been
abused in them come from? If there is no intergenerational satanic
conspiracy, then alleged survivors must suffer from false memories.
There is now documented evidence from retractors about the origin of
pseudomemories of satanic abuse. Canadian families must bring this
information to the attention of politicians who finance these
workshops. The public needs to be educated, but in a very different
way than the Ontario government has funded so far.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "Claims about satanic cult ritual child abuse (SRA) arise from the |
| convergence of two different moral panics: the child sexual abuse |
| scare and the satanic cult scare. Social scientists use the term |
| "moral panic" to refer to a social condition in which a great many |
| people in a society over-react to a newly perceived threat to |
| their well-being from social deviants, even though the actual |
| threat is either non-existent or greatly exaggerated. Unlike an |
| episodic panic, such as the "War of the Worlds" panic of 1938, a |
| moral panic is long-lasting and gives rise to organizations, laws |
| and procedures to combat the perceived threat. Moral panics are |
| usually accompanied by moral crusades against the social deviants |
| and their perceived "evil" influences in society. Examples of past |
| moral panics include the European witch-hunt, outbreaks of anti- |
| Semitic persecutions, the white slavery scare and the 1950s Red |
| Scare in the U.S." |
| Jeffrey Victor |
| Satanic Panic Update |
| Skeptic, June, 1995 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
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"THERE MAY BE RITUAL ABUSE IN UTAH, BUT PROBERS CAN'T PROVE IT"
Salt Lake Tribune, April 26, 1995
After two years of looking at the cost of $250,000, the state
released the findings of its satanic abuse probe in a 59 page report.
"I'm not sure we disproved it is taking place -- I'm sure we didn't,"
top Deputy Atty. Gen. Reed Richards said. The best investigators could
do was "support the thought" that individuals are committing satanic
crimes.
"The problem Utah investigators encountered -- as have counterparts
nationwide -- is that the allegations come from 'recovered memories'
of people suffering from a mental illness diagnosed as multiple
personality disorder. Often the memories are revealed during therapy,
many years after the alleged crimes. This makes it virtually
impossible to determine their validity.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| from a flyer of the National Center for Missing Persons |
| |
| MISSING PERSON |
| Robin Marie Mewes (pronounced Mavas) |
| |
| Age: 23; Height: 5'4"; Weight:110 lbs; Hair: Light Brown; |
| Eyes: Brown; Missing From: Terre Haude, IN; |
| Missing Since: Sept 15, 1990 |
| |
| Robin was last seen leaving Rax's Restaurant in Terre Haute, |
| Indiana with three men and a woman. Robin would not make eye |
| contact with or speak to her friends. Robin may be in the company |
| of her mental health counselor Deborah Jean Rudolph, |
| SS# 347-68-4300 who was with her at the restaurant. Ms Rudolph |
| vanished 4 months after Robin. Robin, a victim of FMS, was known |
| to be emotionally and mentally unstable at the time she vanished. |
| She had come to believe that she was a victim of intergenerational |
| satanic cult abuse. |
| Contact: National Center for Missing Persons |
| 800-851-FIND |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
RECOMMENDED READING
"One Face of the Devil: The Satanic Ritual Abuse Moral Crusade and the
Law" Mary deYoung, Ph.D. Behavioral Sciences and the Law, Vol 12,
389-407 (1994).
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| But what if the memory of abuse is not true? "I don't care if it's |
| true," one California therapist replies to that question. "What |
| actually happened is irrelevant to me...We all live in a delusion."|
| The Washington Post 4/4/95 |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
PATIENTS CAUGHT IN THE MIDDLE
Dear FMSF,
When I purchased "Victims of Memory" by Mark Pendergrast a few weeks
ago, I read in it the name of my doctor, Dr. Q. I had purchased the
book because of the numerous favorable reviews in it from
psychologists and doctors. Dr. Q was portrayed as someone who would
make me sicker than I am, create MPD in me which would not otherwise
exist, and keep me dependent and in therapy. In short, he was
portrayed as an incompetent clinician, a quack.
I have a twenty-year history of inappropriate therapy. My mostly
male therapists were often demeaning towards women, some telling me,
uninvited, about their sexual prowess. None took seriously my all-
too-real and completely remembered traumas. It was after this damaging
therapy history that I went to Dr. Q for an evaluation. I was
impressed with his kindness, empathy and ethical behavior. He answered
my questions about trauma sensitively and directly. He was completely
appropriate and professional.
After reading his name attacked in the book in question, I was so
distressed that I was in the bathroom weeping. For the next month I
had recurring crying spells and a few related nightmares. It was worse
than the molestation I experienced as a child. I was not able to cope
with the feelings and confusion triggered by seeing Dr. Q verbally
attacked. I feel terribly unsafe in therapy with anyone.
I feel angry and resentful. I was put in the position of trying to
protect Dr. Q. I feel the doctors who favorably reviewed the book
bamboozled me into buying it. I feel used by them to get at Dr. Q. I
feel resentful at a system which paternalistically pats itself on the
back for doing things for the good of patients, and yet does something
this hurtful and inappropriate. Did any of the doctors reviewing this
book consider the effect on the patients of the doctors attacked?
Confused Patient
Dear Confused Patient,
You are not alone in your feelings and confusion about the mental
health system. We have spoken to several people about your problem.
They say that it is important to separate what happens in a private
therapy session from critical published material.
As an example of the confusion, consider the chart on this page that
lists the number of MPD alters of patients of Richard Kluft, MD. Some,
like Pendergrast, express skepticism about claims that a patient has
4,500 alters or 4,000 alters. Some ask for evidence of the existence
of intergenerational satanic cults before giving lectures on treating
it as Dr. Kluft has for Cavalcade video. Others find both claims
acceptable. The American Psychiatric Association does and has
frequently invited Dr. Kluft to present seminars on treatment of MPD
(renamed DID). He will be speaking at an APA sponsored continuing
education program in September, for example.
It is a tragedy of the FMS phenomenon that patients may be caught in
the middle and that is why it is so important for professionals to
resolve this problem quickly.
FMSF Newsletter Editor
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| TABLE 2 |
| Treatment Histories: 26 Cases |
| |
| # M/F Age Total Yrs Visits Hosps. Current |
| Alters Px /Wk #/Mos. Alters |
| 1. F 37 >100 5 1-2 0/0 1 |
| 2. F 39 238 3* 2 1/2 238 |
| 3. F 55 33 3.5 1-2 0/0 1 |
| 4. F 34 27 4* 1-3 3/7 ? |
| 5. M 37 26 4 1 0/0 1 |
| 6. F 27 38 5 1 0/0 5 |
| 7. F 45 88 5 1 4/4 1 |
| 8. F 32 >150 4 1 0/0 1 |
| 9. F 39 >280 7** 1-2 7/18 >280 |
| 10. F 51 409 7 1dbl 0/0 <10% |
| 11. F 33 36 4*** 1 1/1 36 |
| 12. F 39 56 3* 1 3/5 3 |
| 13. F 37 42 5 1 2/1.5 1 |
| 14. F 42 86 5 1 0/0 1 |
| 15. F 27 >100 3 1 0/0 <10% |
| 16. F 34 37 4 1-2 2/7 2 |
| 17. F 26 36 4 1-2 1/1 1 |
| 18. F 35 38 4 1-2 0/0 1 |
| 19. F 42 >1600 3.5 1-2 0/0 3 |
| 20. F 48 >150 5.5 2 3/14 1? |
| 21. F 39 685 8 1-2 7/24 7 |
| 22. M 62 36 7 1 0/0 1 |
| 23. F 39 82 8 2 12/30 1 |
| 24. F 46 >4000 3 4 2/37 <5% |
| 25. F 40 143 7 1-2 4/12 1 |
| 26. F 37 >4500 7 4 3/52 1 |
| |
| * Interrupted treatment against advice |
| ** Just returned after 3 year break of therapy |
| *** Transferred to another therapist for logistic reasons |
| |
| page 52 DISSOCIATION, Vol 1, No. 4 December 1988 |
| "The phenomenology and treatment of extremely complex multiple |
| personality disorder" by Richard P. Kluft, M.D. |
| |
| (Dissociation Vol 2 (1) March 1989 Editor-in-Chief: Richard |
| P. Kluft,M.D.; Assoc. Ed: Bennett G. Braun,M.D.; Assis Ed: |
| Catherine G.Fine, Ph.D.; Assis Ed: David L. Fink,M.D.; Editorial |
| Board- Gail Atlas,A.C.S.W.; Edith Baum,M.C.A.T.; Philip M Coons, |
| M.D.; Harold R.Crasilneck,Ph.D.; Jean Goodwin,M.D.,M.P.H.;George B.|
| Greaves,Ph.D.; Linda Jacobs,R.N.,B.S.N.; Richard J.Loewenstein,M.D.|
| Stephen S.Marmer,M.D.; Layton McCurdy,M.D.; Thurman Mott,Jr.,M.D.; |
| John C.Nemiah,M.D.; Frank W.Putnam,M.D.; Roberta G.Sachs,Ph.D.; |
| Shirley Sanders,Ph.D.; David Spiegel,M.D.; Moshe Torem,M.D.; Onno |
| van der Hart,Ph.D.; Bessell A.van der Kolk,M.D.; John G. Watkins, |
| Ph.D.; Cornelia B.Wilbur, M.D. |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
LEGAL CORNER
FMSF Staff
____________________
RETRIAL FOR MEMORIES
San Diego Union Tribune, April 5, 1995
Rob Egelko
U.S. District Judge D. Lowell Jensen has ordered a new trial for
George Franklin who was convicted in 1990 of the murder of 8-year old
Susan Nason in 1969 on the basis of his daughter Eileen Franklin-
Lipsker's recollection. This case was the first time that someone had
been convicted of murder based solely on a recovered memory.
Judge Jensen found that Superior Court Judge Thomas McGinn Smith had
erred in instructing jurors that Franklin's silence during a jail
visit with his daughter when she asked him to tell the truth could be
viewed as a possible admission of guilt. Jensen also ruled that
defense attorneys should have been allowed to show jurors 1969
newspaper articles that included crime-scene details of the murder to
challenge prosecution claims that Franklin-Lipsker had provided
eyewitness information.
In 1990, therapists and psychologists had confined their studies to
subjects of recollections of known events. The defense attorneys did
not argue that repressed memories do not exist. The prosecution
expert, Dr. Lenore Terr, testified that Franklin-Lipsker showed signs
of someone who had buried a traumatic event. Terr's theories have
since come under heavy criticism.
Dennis Riordan, Franklin's appellate attorney, commented that if
Franklin is retried, a conviction will be unlikely because of the
errors cited by Jensen and because of an increasing public skepticism
about repressed memory.
The state could appeal the ruling to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of
Appeals. Matt Ross, a spokesman for state Attorney General Dan
Lungren, declined comment.
After the Franklin conviction, there was a rash of civil filings by
plaintiffs claiming they suddenly remembered being abused as
children. In California, the statute of limitations on criminal
prosecutions and lawsuits was extended to the time the abuse was
recalled.
(For more information about the Franklin trial in 1990, we
recommend: Once Upon a Time by Harry MacLean, a Denver attorney.)
________________________________________________
JURY AWARDS $7.5 MILLION TO 4 CHARGED WITH ABUSE
Los Angeles Times, April 16, 1995
A Norwalk, CA, Superior Court jury awarded $7.3 million in general
damages to four people who had been arrested 11 years ago on charges
of sexual molestation of neighborhood children. The jury is scheduled
to consider whether to award additional punitive damages to the four.
The original molest charges were later dismissed in 1985 after
several children said they had made up the molest accusations. The
arrests had come at the time of the highly emotional McMartin case.
The case inflamed the neighborhood and at least one resident
threatened to attack the defendants. "There was no evidence," said
the attorney for one of the plaintiffs, "but people were up in arms in
the city and demanded that somebody be arrested." Those arrested then
sued the Sheriffs Department and others alleging false imprisonment,
civil-rights violations, defamation and negligent infliction of
emotional distress. After so many years, it never goes away. Once
you're labeled with a charge like the one I was labeled with, it stays
with you."
Those arrested then sued the Sheriffs Department and others alleging
false imprisonment, civil-rights violations, defamation and negligent
infliction of emotional distress. They said the sheriff's deputies
entered their homes without proper search warrants and arrested them
on unsubstantiated evidence. In 1990, the Plaintiffs had won $3.7
million in damages but county attorneys appealed and a jury trial was
ordered. After trial, the jury awarded nearly double that amount in
damages.
_________________________________________
JURY REJECTS SEX CHARGE AGAINST CAPUCHINS
The Detroit News, March 29, 1995
Allan Lengel
A federal court jury in Detroit turned down a $2 million lawsuit
brought by Paul Isely, 34 against several priests who taught him in
high school in Wisconsin or classes for would-be Roman Catholic
priests in Detroit from 1974 to 1979. In a pretrial deposition, two of
the priests admitted abusing several children but not Isely.
Attorneys said some jurors thought that Isely may have been abused
but all jurors agreed that he had not repressed the memories for up to
20 years. Under the statute of limitations, Isely had two years after
the abuse to file a civil claim. Isely said the trauma caused him to
lose the memory until he had flashbacks in 1992. The defense said that
he invented the amnesia claim to circumvent the statute of
limitations. Isely v Capuchin Province, 1995 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 3064
(U.S. Dist. Ct. Mich., 1995)
___________________________________
RECOVERED MEMORY ABUSE CASE DROPPED
Record Courier, Nevada, March 16, 1995
Sheila Gardner
On March 10, 1995 District Court Judge Norm Robison dismissed
criminal charges against Edward Gerald Dorsey, 56. Nearly two years
ago, Dorsey's 35-year old daughter said her father raped her in
1991. She claimed the alleged assault was a culmination of a lifetime
of sexual abuse, satanic rites and ritual murder which began when she
was a small child. She claims that she didn't remember any of these
things until she began therapy in 1993 and the memories flooded back.
In a motion for dismissal, the chief criminal deputy district attorney
Kris Brown wrote that because of the court's previous rulings on the
admissibility of repressed memories and anticipated testimony of
defense experts, the state would not be able to prove the charges
beyond a reasonable doubt.
In her motion Brown said, "The court entered an order which stated
evidence of memories retrieved through hypnosis and expert testimony
regarding the retrieval of repressed memories through hypnosis will
not be admitted. The order further states that family members of the
victim could not testify to the incidents of ritual
abuse. Corroboration for the victim's testimony concerning the ritual
abuse and thus, the charged crime, came in most part from the
testimony of the two sisters."
Since the testimony was ruled inadmissable, according to Brown, the
claims were supported only by the victim. Investigators involved in
the case were not able to uncover any admissible evidence.
"Because of the anticipated length of the trial and expenses for
both the state and defense, the interest of justice would best be
served by a dismissal at this time," Brown wrote.
_________________________________________________________
UTAH SUPREME COURT TOSSES OUT LAWSUIT RECALLING TEEN RAPE
Salt Lake Tribune, April 19, 1995
Sheila McCann
Mechelle Roark, now 35, did not claim she had repressed the memory
of a rape by a former neighbor when she was a teenager. She filed a
lawsuit in 1993 relying on a law passed by the 1992 Legislature. The
law extended the statutes of limitations in child sexual-abuse
cases. Third District Judge David Young dismissed her lawsuit, ruling
the law was not retroactive and did not apply to abuse dating back to
the 1970s. The Utah Supreme Court unanimously agreed with that
decision.
"We are unable to find any support for Roark's position," Justice
Leonard Russon wrote. "To the contrary, there is ample support for the
position that the legislators were aware of the problems with
retroactive application and intended to avoid those problems by having
this section apply prospectively."
In Utah, a person has one year after age 18 to file an assault claim
and four years to file an emotional distress claim. Recognizing that
victims may not recall the abuse until years later, the 1992
Legislature changed state law. If a victim repressed memories, the
deadlines do not begin to run until the events are recalled, the new
law says. It applies to Utahns abused since 1992.
_________________________________________________
BIDS FAIL TO TOLL LIMITS ON FILING IN ABUSE CASES
NY Law Journal, March 31, 1995
Deborah Pines
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the Appellate
Division, Second Department, of the New York State Supreme Court,
affirmed lower court rulings dismissing suits by women in unrelated
cases who were seeking to extend the deadlines on lawsuits against
alleged sexual abusers due to purported repression of memories as
time-barred.
The Second Circuit's March 29 ruling, Overall v. Estate of
L.H.P. Klotz, 94-7407, rejected a woman's claims that the statute of
limitations for her suit alleging abuse by her father in the 1940s was
tolled due to duress. The New York Supreme Court, Second Department's
unanimous March 27 ruling, Steo v. Cucuzza, 93-05336, rejected another
woman's claims that insanity and duress tolled the deadline for her
suit alleging abuse by her stepfather between 1974 and 1981.
In the first case, Ms. Overall, now 52 and living in California,
claims her father abused her sexually, emotionally and physically
between 1947 and 1949 when he had custody of her from age 4 to 7. She
says the abuse was so severe that she repressed all memories of it for
more than 40 years until therapy, starting in 1988, helped her
remember. She filed a lawsuit in 1992. Her father died the next
year. Judge Cabranes found New York law permitted tolling her claim
stemming from childhood abuse until two years after her 21st birthday
in 1965 but not beyond that, holding that she had not proved the
elements of duress.
In the second case, the plaintiff, Susan Steo, now in her 30s,
contended that the Statute of Limitations was tolled for a number of
years due to the trauma of the abuse which caused her to repress the
memories of the abuse and which caused her to suffer from a variety of
psychological and emotional disorders. She claimed that she had
physical, emotional and psychological injuries inflicted upon her by
her stepfather from 1974 to 1981 when she moved out of the house. The
Supreme Court rejected her contentions, found that the applicable
limitations periods had expired.
_______________________________________________________
JURY TRUSTS CHILDHOOD MEMORY, CONVICTS FATHER OF MURDER
Hartford Courant, April 21, 1995 (AP)
Jurors in Phoenix convicted Eugene Keidel of the murder of his wife
in 1966, some 29 years ago. Keidel's daughter, who was 5 years old at
the time, came forward two years ago and said she couldn't live with
the memory any longer. She did not claim to have suppressed knowledge
of the events.
"Jurors who convicted Keidel of murder this week said they were
convinced by the riveting story that a tearful Lori Romaneck recounted
without the aid of hypnosis or psychoanalysis."
"I don't think the general public finds 'repressed memories'
credible," said Tom Hoopes a criminal defense lawyer and former
prosecutor in Boston.
_____________________________________________
THERAPIST MAKES DEAL ON FALSE MEMORIES CLAIMS
Phoenix Gazette, April 26, 1995
Alfred Ells, director of Samaritan Counseling Services, has agreed
to submit his state certification to a one year's probation under
supervision of the Arizona Board of Behavioral Health Examiners.
Relatives of fine patients have complained that therapists at
Samaritan convinced their children that they had been abused.
(Samaritan Counseling is not associated with Samaritan hospitals.)
The board will be asked to approve the agreement on May 5.
**********************************************************************
AS WE GO TO THE PRINTER, WE HAVE RECEIVED NOTICE THAT THE LITTLE
RASCALS DAY CARE CONVICTIONS IN NORTH CAROLINA HAVE BEEN OVERTURNED.
**********************************************************************
ALICE MILLER CHANGES HER POSITION
The Weekend Guardian, April 29, 1995, Natasha Walter
This is a remarkable article about Alice Miller, Swiss psychoanalyst
and author of the influential book, "Drama of the Gifted Child"
(1979). She has had a seminal role in the philosophic underpinnings of
the recovered memory movement. Miller traced the roots not just of
personal neurosis, but of all social ills, back to childhood. Her
theory provide a focus of resistance to the theory that genes cause
violence and criminality.
"In all her work to date, Miller has remained committed to the
usefulness of therapy. Her original project was a grandiose one,
revolutionary in its scope -- to reform the whole world by showing
every disturbed person, every criminal, that all their problems stem
from the way their parents treated them, and that they must allow
themselves to feel their emotions before they can move on."
In the last year, Miller has changed her position.
"I would say, if you go into therapy, from the beginning, don't go
as a child, but as an adult.""If someone doesn't want to know about
his past, perhaps it is better for him not to know it. We can't force
the truth on everyone.""Maybe it is not so important to look back in
order to find a way to organize one's life in the present. If a good
therapist helps us to organize a healthy life, the childhood trauma
wouldn't be triggered."
Miller is concerned that her arguments have been twisted by cults
and quacks who don't want to let the children grow up.
**********************************************************************
THE SEARCH FOR "SPECIAL MECHANISMS" IN MEMORY:
FLASHBULBS, FLASHBACKS, AND OTHER NOT-SO-BRIGHT IDEAS
Charles A. Weaver, III
Associate Professor of Psychology,
Baylor University, Waco, TX 76798
Few concepts in the study of memory have generated as much interest
as "flashbulb memory" and "repressed and recovered memory." Even
people with little formal training are familiar with the concept of
flashbulb memory: "Where were you when you received word that John
Kennedy had been assassinated?" "What were you doing when you learned
that the space shuttle Challenger had exploded?" Almost everyone who
is old enough to remember the events can vividly recall who they were
with, what they were doing when they heard the news.
Though less common in everyday experience, most people also have an
intuitive understanding of the phenomena of repressed and recovered
memory: some event, almost certainly some tragic event, is so
overwhelming that rather than remembering the event in detail, the
event is "blocked out" of consciousness. However, at some later
point, something "triggers" the retrieval of the repressed memory, and
it comes back perfectly detailed, vivid, and accurate.
On the surface, these two types of events -- events which lead to
flashbulb memories and those which lead to repressed memories -- seem
to have little in common. After all, one leads to perfect memory (or
so it is generally assumed) while the other leads to conscious
blocking, though later perfect retrieval, of a memory (again, as
generally assumed). However, upon closer examination, the two types of
events share a great deal in common (first noted by E. Loftus and
L. Kaufman [FOOTNOTE: Loftus, E.F. & Kaufman, L. (1992). Why do
traumatic events sometimes produce good memory (flashbulbs) and
sometimes no memory (repression)? In E. Winograd & U. Neisser (Eds.),
Affect and accuracy in recall: Studies of "flashbulb" memories.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.]). In this paper, I will
discuss the similarities between the types of memory, briefly review
the outcome of nearly two decades of intense scientific investigation
into flashbulb memories, and draw some parallels between what we now
know about flashbulb memories, and what is likely correct about
repressed memories. The results may come as quite a surprise.
FLASHBULB MEMORY
The term "flashbulb memory" was first coined by Brown and Kulik in
1977 [FOOTNOTE: Brown, R. & Kulik, J. (1977). Flashbulb memories.
Cognition, 5, 73-99.]. Brown and Kulik investigated memory for the
Kennedy assassination, an event which is still considered the
prototype flashbulb event. What kind of events lead to the formation
of flashbulb memories? The properties typically associated with
flashbulb memories are listed on the left side of Table 1. (The
properties typically associated with repressed and recovered memories
are listed on the right side, and will be discussed later.)
Table 1.
Commonly Accepted "Folk Beliefs"
regarding Flashbulb Memory and Repressed Memory.
FLASHBULB EVENT REPRESSED EVENT
Perfectly: Perfectly:
* Accurate * Accurate
* Accessible * Inaccessible, (initially)
* Retrievable * Retrievable (ultimately)
* Complete * Complete
* Detailed * Detailed
* Unchanging * Unchanging
* Higher confidence * Higher confidence
means means
greater accuracy greater accuracy
For several years following publication of the original article,
memory researchers commonly assumed that flashbulb memories did, in
fact, have the properties generally attributed to them. After all, it
is almost impossible to verify these reported memories; furthermore,
the memories are generally reported with extreme confidence. However,
memory researchers began to look critically at the claims surrounding
flashbulb memory.
Michael McCloskey and his colleagues made one of the most thorough
attempts at verifying the claims surrounding flashbulb memory
[FOOTNOTE: McCloskey, M., Wible, C.G., & Cohen, N.J. (1988). Is there
a special flashbulb-memory mechanism? Journal of Experimental
Psychology: General, 117, 171-181.]. Specifically, McCloskey and his
colleagues identified the four most remarkable properties attributed
to flashbulb memory, what they called the "strong claims." These
strong claims are that the memories are perfectly detailed, perfectly
vivid, perfectly resistant to forgetting, and perfectly accurate.
These properties imply a "photographic-like" quality to these
memories, which would set them apart from all other memories. Indeed,
McCloskey and his colleagues were willing to concede that if these
"strong claims" were supported, then flashbulb memories would be
sufficiently unlike all other memories. The production of perfect
flashbulb memories require the need for a "special memory mechanism."
No other memories have the properties generally attributed to
flashbulb memories.
When these strong claims were tested, though, it was clear that
flashbulb memories did not have any special properties. The memories
were better than most other memories, but they were not perfectly
detailed, perfectly accurate, perfectly vivid, not immune from
forgetting. They were good -- but normal -- memories for important
events. Most importantly, they concluded that no special mechanism was
needed to produce these memories.
Later research conducted in my laboratory [FOOTNOTE: Weaver, C.A.,
III. (1993). Do you need a "flash" to form a flashbulb memory?
Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 122, 39-46.] has
confirmed these findings, but added one other component to our
understanding of flashbulb memory. My research has shown that while
memory for extraordinary events is not necessarily better than memory
for ordinary events, the extraordinary events are typically remembered
with much higher levels of confidence. That is, one of the things
which may make flashbulb memories unique is the confidence with which
they are held, even when this confidence doesn't necessarily lead to
increased accuracy.
In conclusion, then, it is clear that flashbulb memories are not
"photograph-like," as their name implies. Though the memory for these
events is usually quite good, it is clear that good memory for these
events is nothing "special." Furthermore, it is likely that these
events are recalled more confidently even when they are not recalled
more accurately.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN FLASHBULB MEMORIES AND REPRESSED (AND
RECOVERED) MEMORIES
I wish to identify three critical, striking similarities between
events which lead to flashbulb memories and those which lead to
repressed and recovered memories. The first similarity is the
nearly-identical circumstances surrounding the formation of these two
types of memories. Table 1 lists the properties associated with the
two events. Why should they sometimes lead to very good memory yet
other times lead to no memory?
The second similarity between the two types of memory is the degree
to which they are accepted as "true" by the general public. Flashbulb
memories are almost uniformly believed to be perfect, accurate,
detailed, etc. The general public also believes that memories which
are reported with high confidence are also likely to be more
accurate. The past few years of research investigating the claims of
flashbulb memory have shown that these generally accepted beliefs are
incorrect! To what degree does the general public's "folk beliefs"
regarding memory influence the level of unquestioned acceptance of
flashbulb and repressed memories?
The third similarity between flashbulb and repressed memory revolves
around the idea of a "special mechanism" for their production. If
flashbulb memories had the properties generally attributed to them --
which they don't -- then they must be the product of special memory
mechanisms. Science has held that simple explanations are always
preferable to complex ones -- this is the principle of
parsimony. Postulating a special mechanism to produce flashbulb (or
repressed) memories would violate this principle of parsimony (also
known as "Morgan's Canon"). The burden of proof, then, falls squarely
on those who believe flashbulb or repressed memory to be "special."
WHY SHOULD SUCH SIMILAR EVENTS PRODUCE SUCH DIFFERENT MEMORY OUTCOMES?
The mechanisms generally assumed to produce repression have their
origins with Freud. Briefly, Freud believed that some memories were so
threatening that they were somehow "walled off" from consciousness.
This implies that the memories are still there, though they may be
currently inaccessible. This also implies that they may be subject to
later retrieval. Neither of these assumptions has been validated.
The consensus regarding flashbulb memories now is that they are
vivid, but quite normal memories of extraordinary events. They are
characterized by things which generally enhance memory: high affect,
personal significance, novelty, surprise, frequent rehearsal (both
covert and overt) and so on. These are summarized in Table 2. In a
sense, then, flashbulb memories are better than normal memories
because they should be better -- they are memories for memorable
events! It is equally clear, though, that they are normal memories,
subject to the same constraints of other normal memories. They are
reconstructive, they frequently change over time, while the gist is
often well remembered, the details often change, and so on. A list of
common sources of reconstruction for both flashbulb memories and
alleged repressed memories is also listed in Table 2. Many
individuals, including most psychologists, underestimate the role that
therapists, hypnosis, workbooks, and group interactions can have on
the creation and modification of memories.
The best answer to the question posed above -- why should such
similar events produce such different memory outcomes? -- is that they
shouldn't. To the extent that these memories are indeed forgotten,
that should make them even more susceptible to reconstructive
influences. Type of psychogenic amnesia for events -- amnesia produced
by psychological factors rather than physiological factors -- differs
in one critical respect from the concept of repressed and recovered
memories. To the extent that psychological factors disrupt memory
(psychogenic amnesia), this amnesia is permanent. The event should not
be subject to later retrieval.
To summarize, the most likely outcome for these extraordinary events
is better but not perfect memory. But these are normal episodic
memories, subject to the same changes and distortions of other
memories. If the event is sufficiently shocking or threatening, it may
produce psychogenic amnesia (though there is remarkably little
scientific evidence validating this type of psychogenic amnesia). If
so, however, it should permanently impair memory.
THE ROLE OF FOLK BELIEFS IN MEMORY
Though science has made some genuine progress in the study of
memory, especially in the last 30 years, most people are unaware of
these advances. In fact, most people, including most psychologists,
believe that memory works largely like a videotape -- that every event
that has transpired is stored somewhere. The usual problem with
retrieval is that you simply can't locate a memory.
As a result of these commonly accepted folk beliefs, most people
assume several things about memory. First of all, they accept at face
value that both flashbulb memories and repressed memories exist, and
that both are perfectly accurate, detailed, and unchanging. Second,
they assume that an individual's confidence in a memory is directly
related to the accuracy of that memory. Finally, they assume that
since "memory is a videotape," memories cannot be falsely created,
changed, or constructed. All of these assumptions are incorrect.
Virtually all memory researchers now view memory as a reconstructive
process, not a reproductive process. Memory works by providing us with
the larger bits of a memory, but most of the details are "filled in"
or reconstructed. For example, how many of you would swear in a court
of law that you paid to see the movie "Jurassic Park?" I would --
though I don't have a conscious memory of paying. However, I know I
saw it at a theater and not on TV. I know I must pay to see movies in
a theater. Therefore, I must have paid -- but the memory of paying is
reconstructive.
Folk beliefs reflect the common understanding of memory, by the
average person. Juries are comprised of our peers, and most of our
peers believe memory works like a videotape. They believe that things
like therapy and hypnosis can bring back otherwise inaccessible
memories. Perhaps even more importantly, these same beliefs likely
reflect the typical accuser in a lawsuit. The accuser may have said
something during hypnosis that they did not consciously recall before.
Even though they still don't recall the event, they may believe it to
be true because they believe "hypnosis improves memory, especially for
events which otherwise would not be recalled." Confident witnesses
make believable witnesses, even if their confidence is misplaced.
THE NEED FOR SPECIAL MECHANISMS IN MEMORY
During the past century, memory for all kinds of events has been
studied. We now know a great deal concerning the factors which
contribute to good memory, those which lead to poor memory, and those
in between.
When flashbulb memories were first identified in the late 1970s, it
appeared that we had found a type of memory unlike any other. These
flashbulb memories were perfect, unchanging, etc. However, as I have
pointed out, the initial claims for flashbulb memories have not been
supported. Almost without exception, memory theorists are ready to
conclude that flashbulb memories as originally formulated do not
exist. They are good -- but not exceptional -- memories for events
which should be well-remembered. Most importantly, they are clearly
the product of normal memory mechanisms.
As difficult as it was to test the claims surrounding flashbulb
memory, it may prove even more difficult to test special theories of
repressed and recovered memory. After all, we would need to be able to
independently verify the truthfulness of these memories, something
which is probably impossible.
But we can say something about memory for the most comparable
situations, flashbulb memories: we have not needed to postulate
special mechanisms. The strongest (and widely believed) claims about
flashbulb memory have not proven true.
CONCLUSIONS
The problem of abuse in childhood is real, and the long-term effects
can be tragic. It is not necessary to deny the problem of abuse in
order to question the accuracy of recovered memories. Furthermore,
accepting something as "true" in a clinical setting (as most
therapists do) is quite different from assuming that the remembered
account is literally true. The psychodynamic aspects of memory are
essential to therapy. However, most individuals -- including most
psychologists -- make assumptions regarding these "lost but now found"
memories. These beliefs -- that the memories are accurate, permanent,
and immune to forgetting -- cannot be supported in light of current
memory theory.
Table 2
PROPERTIES OF FLASHBULB MEMORIES, AND THOSE TO BE EXPECTED IN
REPRESSED AND RECOVERED MEMORY
FLASHBULB EVENT REPRESSED EVENT
Level of Scientific High Low
Understanding
"Folk" Belief Memory as "videotape" Memory as "videotape"
Typical Affect Relatively High Extremely High
Novelty Relatively High Usually High (except
in the case of
repression of
repeated abuse)
Importance of Events Relatively High Extremely High
Personal Significance Relatively High Extremely High
Personal Confidence in Modest Once retrieved,
Memory extremely high
Correlation b/w Modest High
Confidence & Accuracy
Need for Rehearsal? Yes No
What kinds of changes
in memory? * Loss of Detail * Loss of Detail
* Omissions * Omissions
* Reconstructions * Reconstructions
* Confabulations * Confabulations
* Reinterpretation * Reinterpretation
* Very little true * Very little true
hypermnesia hypermnesia
* Often, increased * Often, increases
in confidence with in confidence with
re-telling re-telling
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| There are solid indications that a phenomenon known as source |
| amnesia (in which a person forgets the source or context in which |
| a memory originated) renders people vulnerable to memory |
| distortions. When people cannot remember the source of a memory, |
| they are apt to confuse whether it reflects an actual event, a |
| fantasy or something that was said or suggested. The role of |
| source amnesia in therapeutically induced false recollections |
| remains to be explored. |
| Daniel L. Schacter |
| Scientific American, April 1995 |
| Review: Making Monsters |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
FROM OUR READERS
_______________________
Returning to the family
(Following are letters from the mother, the father and the daughter
of one family)
We want too do all we can to help prevent other families from
hurting like we did. We also want to help prevent others from having
to go through the ordeal our daughter and her husband went through.
Our daughter is a retractor. Even though our daughter is a
retractor, my husband and I are not giving up the fight against False
Memory Syndrome. During the months when we were labeled "Accused
Parents," we could hold our heads high because we knew we were
innocent, but our hearts were broken. Being the mother of a retractor
has been a full time job; but the big difference is that your heart
does not hurt anymore. My daughter and I had to work through the
problems. It is painful to listen to the sad stories of what my
daughter went through; but it is good medicine for both of us just to
hug each other and cry together.
At times I feel guilty that our daughter has retracted when so many
others have not. Our new friends from FMSF have been such an
encouragement through all of this and assure us that it gives them
hope. My husband and I even get to baby sit for our grandchildren
again; just a few months ago I thought this would never be
possible. It is a joy that I pray will be yours someday.
The first thing my daughter said to me when we got back together was
"Mom, I never stopped loving you." How in the world was I supposed to
know that? As time heals the wounds, my daughter and I want to go out
and talk to others about FMS; we especially want to talk to church
groups as we see this is where a lot of the damage is being done.
From the very start, my husband and I have had the attitude that the
devil knocked at the wrong door! We have taken an active role in
warning others about the False Memory Syndrome; and with God's help
will continue to do so.
Child abuse is horrendous, but encouraging someone to believe they
have been molested when they have not is barbaric.
A Mom
I had not realized that anything could have such a devastating
effect, not only on our whole family but also on our entire being. I
am thankful for the information from FMSF. Had it not been for our
faith in God, I do not know how we would have maintained our sanity.
It was comforting to know we had the love and support of our other two
children, our family, and our friends.
Our love for our daughter never wavered during the time of her false
memories. We never blamed her because we were knowledgeable on the
subject and cause of FMS.
Before we determined what was wrong with our daughter, she told her
sister about her memories. Our son recommended that we access the CD
NewsBank at the Public Library under "False Memory," "Repressed
Memory," and "Regressive Memory Therapy." Our son and daughter
suggested we do research before they revealed to us what was going on
in our daughter's life. We figured out what was coming after reading a
few news articles and "Lies of the Mind" in Time, November 1993. Just
a week before I had read an article by Rev. Abshire in the Chalcedon
Report No 344, March 1994, "The Psychological Shell Game vs Biblical
Revelation" in which he stated, "Iatrogenic therapy is now achieving
epidemic proportions with what is known as False Memory Syndrome." I
continued to spend hours in the library searching for additional
articles and information. The personnel in the library were very
helpful and ordered the new books that were published on the subject.
To be with our grandchildren again is wonderful beyond
description. What is tragic is that when our daughter most needed
support and love from her family, she was told, "It is not in your
best interest to see your family." Facts have proven otherwise. Her
husband brought her back to us. After there was contact, she began to
see what had happened. We are thankful for the return of our whole
family.
A Dad
After a year in "Christian" counseling and six weeks after having a
baby, I had my first "memories." The memories caused me to have a
nervous breakdown. My counselor had told me "God causes you to forget
your abuse until you are older and can cope with it." I believed that
sexual abuse could be repressed because an acquaintance had recovered
memories of her sexual abuse.
When the pressure of life got too tough, I gave up. I went through
months of depression, anxiety, and suicidal thoughts after separation
from my family. My husband went through great pain and grief taking
care of me, two children and a newborn while trying to work at the
same time.
After my second breakdown, my husband contacted my parents for
help. They gave him information on FMS. He reminded me that I had
never had these horrible memories before I went to counseling. He said
"repressed memories" is a theory and that it is not supported by the
Scriptures.
It is by God's grace that I was able to begin to understand that the
memories that were so painful and so real might be false. My parents
have been so forgiving. I have lost so much of my life and so have my
husband, children and the families from both sides.
The belief of "repressed memories" has done much damage. The
realization that this theory is not Biblically based must be shown to
the churches that are teaching it as fact.
A Daughter, Wife, and Mother
______________________________________
My Daughter's Hearing of her Complaint
against her Therapist before the
Massachusetts State Licensing Board
In March of this year, in the midst of the questions (most from the
Board's lawyer) to my daughter were some about her dreams in which I,
her father, showed up as the spectre of her nightmares. The dreams and
other fears/imaginings became the basis for referral to self-help
books and to a Christian therapist who, using symptomatology,
confirmed the worst, childhood sexual abuse.
Right in the middle of the questions from the Board's lawyer,
another member of the committee proceeded to psychoanalyze my
daughter, whom she had never seen before. Here is a close
approximation of her comments to my daughter:
You were a friendly little girl; you needed friends, but you were
rejected, so you were lonely. One of your brothers was probably more
outgoing than you were and you felt somewhat inferior because he
could be what you couldn't. Your brothers didn't want you to tag
along after them. Your dreams are a sign of a fixation you had about
your father; it represents a dream transference in which you
expressed hatred against your father which you really felt for
yourself because you felt yourself to be unloved.
This came after ten minutes of listening to my daughter describe how
her therapist pressured her with a threat to halt therapy unless she
wrote a letter of confrontation to me.
After this psychobabble, my daughter said, "In the first place, I am
the oldest, so I wouldn't be 'tagging along' after my baby brothers.
What you're saying makes no sense whatever in regard to my complaint
against the therapist."
My daughter did not go there to be psychoanalyzed. She went there to
complain about this same type of stuff!
ADDENDUM: I learned after the hearing that the member of the Board who
tried to "analyze" my daughter had no professionals qualifications.
Sound familiar?
______
Coping
I thought of my daughter as temporarily away. I thought of the
accusing person as in no way related to my child. I prayed
continuously for the grace to accept my daughter should she come back
rather than being angry at her. That grace was granted to me when my
daughter did return. What once seemed so impossible has actually
happened and our family is now happily reunited.
A Mom
___________
Lots of Work
How do we cope? A very interesting question. It is so incredible to
be accused of something so terrible and be able to say only, "we are
innocent."
We cope by keeping extremely busy so as not to let this hideous part
of our lives gain a foothold in our everyday living. We have a
stronger belief in God than we had before this. Without a religious
background, and an excellent church, we would be without hope. We are
as active in the church as possible.
Hobbies keep our minds focused on something besides our horror. For
instance, sewing, cake decorating, gardening, baking, piano playing,
computer, mall walking. It seems all are important hour after hour,
day after day.
Our retirement years were not expected to be turmoil where we must
keep busy to survive. It's like being in hell with no way out. We're
so thankful we know the truth and we can at least try to shut one door
and open another.
A Hurting Mom and Dad
______
Coping
At first I was tearful, empty, irritable, full of despair and
helplessness. I was paralyzed, motionless. I cried until I was too
numb to feel. But the shared suffering eased the pain. So many parents
who have experienced this 90's fluke. I ceremoniously removed objects
connected with my daughter, but you can't surgically remove an
emotional part of you.
Now, two years later, my most ardent prayer is that I spend more
time on productive things. I rest in the fact that we are not
guilty. The bizarre accusations are confabulations. The only thing we
have been guilty of is loving our children too much and bailing them
our of their problems too many times. The rest of my children are
still part of the family. I thank God for them. I tried to ride this
out alone and found that I could not endure the weight of such
devastation without support. This was a drive by shooting at my
heart. It was a hit and run.
A Mom
______
Thanks
Thank you for helping me with my accusing daughter. It wasn't just
the information that you mailed. It was what the man in the office and
the man in Ohio told me that helped me "understand" what was happening
with my daughter. When my daughter called me, I was able to avoid
angry and bitter words that would have driven us farther apart. I told
her, from the bottom of my heart, that I loved her and missed her more
than anything in this world. I pray the love and the truth somehow can
get through the wall she has allowed to be put up around her. Thank
you for being there.
A Dad
______
Coping
* Avoid making any major personal decisions in the initial period of
confrontation, if possible. Those impacted by FMS are emotionally
numb, noticeable in periodic confusion, insomnia, etc.
* Link into the FMS Foundation. Educate yourself. Read.
* If financially possible, locate a counselor skilled in the FMS
phenomenon.
* Consult a lawyer.
* Let your child know that you do not have the same "memories."
* Build a network around yourself -- trusted physician, minister or
rabbi, selected friends and relatives.
* Work to allow for family normalcy and even humor. Make special
plans for holidays to minimize the pain of the loss - maybe celebrate
in a different place and invite new guests. Spend extra time with the
other children.
* Take time to nurture yourself. Remember that high stress lowers
immunity levels. Exercise and eat well. Keep in close touch with your
family physician.
* Don't distance yourself from those who love you. The hurt is so
great that many want to run away or hide. Instead, try to reach out to
others.
* If grandchildren are involved, they will naturally want to please
their parents. While it is true that they are being damaged, remember
that children are resilient.
* Stay in touch with your accusing child and grandchildren if it is
possible. Send cards that express love.
We must educate ourselves in FMS and work to share that knowledge
with others, especially notifying the psychiatric and legal community
that something is very wrong that must be addressed and
corrected. Each of us must choose his or her own path in this
respect. Some will be more vocal than others and it is important that
we respect the differences. The strategies above are a beginning
point. You must work to develop what is best for you and draw upon the
wonderful reservoir that is the human spirit.
A Professional and a Mom
_________________________________
How does a family cope with this?
A few months ago, one of the families of our local group lost an
accusing son. Before he committed suicide, their son had tried to sue
these parents for millions of dollars on the basis of "repressed
memories" of sexual abuse. He lost. At his funeral, members of the
family who had been divided on this issue were brought together for
the first time. The grieving congregation were listening to the
clergyman trying to bring some peace to the group who were trying to
cope with the loss of one so young. Suddenly, several rowdy young
people walked in shouting that the deceased parents had molested their
son. Mourners rushed over trying to get these individuals who
identified themselves as 'survivors' to leave. The 'survivors' shouted
louder and louder saying that they were speaking for their friend who
could no longer speak for himself. It was some time before they left
and the ceremony could be resumed.
___________________________________
My wife and I were told that we were to have no contact while our
child searched for what had happened. We respected her wish. She said
it would be temporary and that she would later tell us when we could
be a family again. It never came about. That was five years ago and
now we don't even know where she is.
A Dad
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| "Professionals must understand that most families feel that |
| they have been attacked. We have had both our offspring and our |
| reputations ruthlessly stolen from us. Don't expect us to behave |
| with the same polite aplomb as we would if someone had merely |
| stepped on our toes in passing. We are appropriately defending |
| ourselves, as any self-respecting person would, in our |
| circumstances." |
| A Dad |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
(Editors Note: Many families have asked for guidelines to help them
cope with the disruption of FMS. No guidelines can cover all
families and all circumstances. Complex problems don't have simple
solutions. Following is an excerpt of the kind of information for
which some families are looking.)
DOS AND DON'TS FOR FAMILIES OF ACCUSING CHILDREN
Claudette Wassil-Grimm
Diagnosis for Disaster $22.95 (+ $3.50 S&H)
Overlook Press, 2568 Rt 212, Woodstock, NY 12498
DO DO THIS DON'T DO THIS
Keep in touch in small, Don't exhibit anger with your
non-threatening ways. accusing child. Her mind is not
her own
Be sympathetic to your child's Don't send literature you think
pain and supportive of her in your child might find "interest-
other aspects of her life. ing." That triggers resistance.
Remind your child of good times Don't sue or threaten the
in the past in a conversational therapist unless you have
(not preachy) way. given up all hope of
reconciliation.
Encourage your child's dreams Don't criticize your child's
and plans for the future. therapy or therapist.
Keep your child informed of Don't force the family
major family events such as a members to take sides.
marriage or the death of
grandparents.
(list continues)
**********************************************************************
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
Families who are experiencing or have experienced reconciliation with
an accusing family member are asked to share their experience with
others. This information is being used in current research as well as
the upcoming book DEFENDING YESTERDAY, a guide to help families
experiencing the FMS problem. Please explain in detail... How did the
reconciliation come about? What worked? What made things worse? What
helped you get through this experience? What advice do you have for
other families? You do not have to give your name.
Please write to: Sheila S. Gerschler, M.S., 240 Joy Drive,
Talent, OR 97540, 503-535-2835
(If you call, leave your name, number and best time to call you back.)
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| A MESSAGE TO PROFESSIONALS |
| |
| When I hear the uproar from professionals about a father picketing |
| outside a therapist's office, I have to wonder! Have |
| professionals ever stopped to compare the two disruptions -- that |
| of a father, with a sign, walking back and forth on a sidewalk |
| versus that of a family being torn apart, reputations ruined, by |
| so-called recovery of repressed memories which never happened? |
| On a sheer level of magnitude, what seems to you, dear readers, |
| the more serious violation? |
| Another Father of a "Lost Daughter" |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
MAKE A DIFFERENCE
This is a column that will let you know what people are doing to
counteract the harm done by FMS. Remember that three years ago, FMSF
didn't exist. A group of 50 or so people found each other and today we
are over 16,000. Together we have made a difference. How did this
happen?
OHIO - One Dad writes, "I still don't know what to do for my daughters
who are trapped in a repressed memory group. But I can write. Sit
down in a quiet place with a big pad, a bunch of pencils and 2 large
boxes of Kleenex and WRITE about what happened. Fill the pages with
facts and feelings. Get up once-in-a-while, walk around the room,
scream and yell, get advice from someone who really counts and do it
again until you are finished. Send copies, hand written, tear stained,
to your state and federal legislators, the professional organizations,
NASW, both APAs. Then you will have done something to stop this
madness."
WISCONSIN - One Mom went to her local library and looked for
Confabulations, Making Monsters and Victims of Memories. The library
didn't have them. She requested they be ordered. After 6 months
Confabulations was available, not the other two. The Mom donated the
books and got the librarian's attention. They discussed the enormous
amount of material published in the last two years on the subject. The
librarian suggested that perhaps a "Display" could be done on FMS.
The person in charge of the "Display was approached and was delighted
to have such an interesting theme. The Mom supplied research material,
graphics, ideas, etc. She also called the State Contact who told her
that Eleanor Goldstein and Mark Pendergast were printing up posters
especially for libraries. Thousands of people will see that
display. That makes a difference.
MISSOURI - The legislation is "wrongly being promoted as a consumer
protection bill" and it "would effectively render the practice of
psychotherapy impotent as well as illegal." Joan Shapiro, M.S.W., St
.Louis Dispatch, April 7, 1995.
Ms. Shapiro's comments "sound like an endorsement of anything-goes
therapy... If Shapiro feels that the bill is deficient, I encourage
her to suggest other means to preclude the blatant misuse of
therapeutic procedures that have not been proven." Robert Redelfs,
St. Louis Dispatch, April 15, 1995.
A hearing was held in Missouri to introduce legislation relating to
mental health treatment with the idea that it would provide consumer
protection. The legislation was introduced by a legislator who had
attended the conference in Baltimore. The first speaker noted that
insurance companies have been paying for therapy in which patients
recover abuse in past lives, abuse by space aliens and abuse by
intergenerational cults. A doctor who had been accused by his grown
daughter testified. A retractor testified that she had come to believe
that her family was involved in satanic ritual abuse and that she
performed sacrifices. She said she lost her teaching job, all of her
money and was isolated from her family. She went on public
assistance. Her therapist was not licensed. A septuagenarian testified
that being accused by his daughter was more difficult to deal with
than seeing another daughter killed in a bicycle/automobile accident
11 years ago.
Two psychiatrists and two psychologists spoke against the proposed
legislation. They agreed that the outcomes described by the first
speakers were occurring. They seemed to have difficulty explaining how
their professional organizations were dealing with the problems
Families and professionals and political leaders are working
together in Missouri to try to find a way to solve the problem that
has affected so many people.
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| HELP NEEDED WITH A SMALL RESEARCH PROJECT |
| |
| How can we capture the general climate of therapeutic practices in |
| 1995? One attorney has started to collect notices and |
| advertisements in telephone books under two different categories: |
| (1) Counseling |
| (2) Hypnosis. |
| Check out your telephone book and send us what you find under |
| these headings. If you travel, check the phone books where you |
| are visiting. Please send your examples to |
| |
| FMSF, Suite 130, 3401 Market Street, |
This address and the phone numbers have changed as of July 15, 2000
| Philadelphia, PA 19104. |
| Thank You. |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
NEW FALSE MEMORY SYNDROME VIDEO
A video copyrighted by the
False Memory Syndrome Foundation
app. 16 min
Overview of False Memory Syndrome. Images and voices tell the tragic,
yet sometimes hopeful story. Explores the key psychiatric,
psychological and scientific issues through interviews with
researchers and clinicians and family and retractor stories.While the
problem is complex, one important fact remains:
We must work together to assure that our mental health practices are
so good that they both encourage true victims of child abuse to come
forth and discourage false accusations. (Pamela Freyd, Ph.D.)
To order: send $10.00 + $2.50 S/H (US)
False Memory Syndrome Foundation
3401 market St., Suite 130
Philadelphia, PA 19104
800-568-8882.
* This video would be appropriate to send to other family members to
friends as a way to explain what has happened in your family.
**********************************************************************
RETRACTOR'S NEWSLETTER UPDATE
Thank you to those who have expressed an interest in receiving the
Retractor's Newsletter. There have been many requests for
subscriptions. I need support from retractors! Please send your
stories, thoughts, etc. to:
Diana Anderson
P.O. Box 17864
Tucson, AZ 85731-7864
**********************************************************************
DOCUMENTARY VIDEO
MAKING MEMORIES:
The Recovered Memory Movement
Experts Analyze the Story of a Woman Subjected to Dangerous Therapy
Practices and Why It Happened
A Must-See for Professionals and Families Involved in
False Memory Litigation
$20 S/H and Tax Inclusive
To order, phone in with MC/Visa or send check:
Berkeley Creek Productions
3494 Camino Tassajara Rd, Suite 218
Dannville, CA 94506
510-736-6359
'Making Memories' is a documentary of Laura Pasley's descent into drug
and therapy induced mental illness and her recovery six years
later. To explain how this could happen, psychiatrist Lee Coleman and
attorney Patrick E. Clancy join Pasley in exploring the development
and uncritical acceptance of this dangerous therapy movement of the
nineties.
**********************************************************************
RECOMMENDED ARTICLE
Pope & Hudson, (1995) "Can memories of childhood sexual abuse be
repressed?" Psychological Medicine, Vol 25 pp 121-126.
This paper was reviewed by Dr. Bruce Charlton in The Times (London)
March 14, 1995.
"Repression has been made familiar by a multitude of films and
television thrillers during which the hero or heroine suffers a
childhood trauma, to which they react by experiencing amnesia of the
events. Years later the lost memory floods back, often in response to
the probings of a psychoanalyst or hypnotist. The scenario is so
familiar that the reality of repression has come to seem like common
sense to many people...[the paper by Pope and Hudson] both
psychiatrists at Harvard University, throws serious doubt on the
issue."
"Drs. Pope and Hudson suggest three main prerequisites [for
authentic repression]. In the first place, the traumatic event must
actually have happened. There are several acceptable sources of
objective evidence for sexual abuse such as contemporary medical
records, photographs, reliable and unbiased witnesses and sometimes
confirmation by the perpetrator of the abuse."
"Secondly, repression must be distinguished from concealment,
pretending, misleading and lying. This can often be clarified by
in-depth interviewing.
"Thirdly, the neurotic amnesia of repression must be distinguished
from the normal process of forgetting..."
"Finally, to prove repression, abuse must be sufficiently traumatic
that any normal child would be expected to remember the events."
"Reviewing the evidence in the light of their criteria, Drs. Pope
and Hudson made an astonishing discovery. In all the published
literature on the subject there was not one authenticated case of
repression of the memories of the childhood sexual abuse."
"The urgent need is for rigorously designed studies to check the
negative finding. The task is not impossible in principle. Drs. Pope
and Hudson suggest that investigators could start with medically
documented cases of sexual abuse and concentrate on those people where
the abuse happened over the age of five and was of sufficient severity
to be unforgettable under normal circumstances. Such individuals
would be interviewed in two stages. First a general discussion about
the history of childhood trauma, then those who denied the abuse could
be followed up in a clarification interview when they would be asked
directly about the known abuse event. Subjects who still reported
amnesia would be plausible candidates for repression."
______________________________SIDEBAR_______________________________
/ \
| GET IN TOUCH WITH YOUR INNER SELF WITH DISNEY |
| March 19, 1995 |
| Bay Living Sentinel (from The Wall Street Journal) |
| |
| A new Disney resort institute ( for adults and children over 10) |
| will open next February in Orlando, FL. The Institute will offer |
| guests workshops on self-discovery and "reclaiming family stories."|
| "Disney's move is one of the first big attempts by a major |
| corporation to cash in on the New Age movement at a time when |
| spiritual manifestos are crowding best seller lists and workshops |
| on male bonding are jammed," according to the author, Eban Shapiro.|
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
RECOMMENDED READING
----------------------------------------------------------------------
OOPS! CORRECTION
From the issue of June 1
In the May issue on page 17 in the "Recommended Reading" list we erred
in two citations. The correct information is as follows:
* Gullible's Travels, or The Importance of Being Multiple. Simpson,
M. In Dissociative Identity Disorder (1995), (Cohen, Berzott & Elin,
Eds.), Jason Aranson.
* A skeptical look at multiple personality disorder. Piper, A., Jr.,
In Dissociative Identity Disorder (1995), (Cohen, Berzott & Elin,
Eds.), Jason Aranson.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
* Gullible's Travels, or The Importance of Being Multiple. Simpson,
M. , Dissociative Identity Disorder (1995), (Cohen, Berzott & Elin,
Eds), Jossey Bass.
* Multiple Personality Disorder and False Memory Syndrome
(Edirotial). Merskey, H., British Journal of Psychiatry (1995), 166,
281-283.
* On the belief that one body may be host to two or more
personalilties. Sarbin, T., International Journal of Clinical and
Experimental Hypnosis, Vol XLIII, No. 2, April 1995, 163-183.
* Psychiatrists' attitudes to Multiple Personality Disorder: A
questionnaire study. Mai, F., Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, Vol 40,
April 1995, 154-157.
* Skeptical look at multiple personality disorder. Piper, A., Jr., In
Dissociative Identity Disorder (1995), (Cohen, Berzott & Elin, Eds),
Jossey Bass.
**********************************************************************
MAY 1995 FMSF MEETINGS
FAMILIES, RETRACTORS & PROFESSIONALS
WORKING TOGETHER
=======================================
STATE MEETINGS
MICHIGAN
Keynote Speaker: Mark Pendergrast
Saturday, June 10, 8:00 to 5:30
(lunch included)
Members from other states invited. Call for info:
Chris (616) 349-8978 or Jaye (313) 461-6213
MINNESOTA
Saturday, June 24
Terry & Collette (507) 642-3630
Dan & Joan (612) 631-2247
=======================================
UNITED STATES
Call person listed for meeting time & location.
key: (MO) = monthly; (bi-MO) = bi-monthly
=======================================
ARKANSAS - Little Rock
Al & Lela (501) 363-4368
CALIFORNIA
Northern California
San Francisco & Bay Area (Bi-MO)
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)
Central Coast
Carole (805) 967-8058
Southern California
burbank (formerly valencia)
Jane & Mark (805) 947-4376
4th Saturday (MO)10:00 am
central orange county
Chris & Alan (714) 733-2925
1st Friday (MO) - 7:00 pm
orange county (formerly laguna beach)
Jerry & Eileen (714) 494-9704
3rd Sunday (MO) - 6:00 pm
covina group (formerly rancho cucamonga )
Floyd & Libby (818) 330-2321
1st Monday, (MO) - 7:30 pm
west orange county
Carole (310) 596-8048
2nd Saturday (MO)
COLORADO - Denver
Ruth (303) 757-3622
4th Saturday, (MO)1:00 pm
CONNECTICUT - Area code 203
Earl 329-8365
Paul 458-9173
FLORIDA
Dade-Broward Area
Madeline (305) 966-4FMS
Delray Beach PRT
Esther (407) 364-8290
2nd & 4th Thursday [MO] 1:00 pm
Tampa Bay Area
Bob & Janet (813) 856-7091
ILLINOIS
Chicago metro area (South of the Eisenhower)
Roger (708) 366-3717
2nd Sunday [MO] 2:00 pm
INDIANA - Indianapolis area
Nickie (317) 471-0922 (phone); 334-9839 (fax)
Gene (317) 861-4720 or 861-5832
IOWA - Des Moines
Betty & Gayle (515) 270-6976
2nd Saturday (MO) 11:30 am Lunch
KANSAS - Kansas City
Pat (913) 738-4840 or Jan (816) 931-1340
KENTUCKY
Lexington - Dixie (606) 356-9309
Louisville - Bob (502) 957-2378
Last Sunday (MO) 2:00 pm
MAINE - Area code 207
Bangor - Irvine & Arlene 942-8473
Freeport - Wally 865-4044
3rd Sunday (MO)
Yarmouth - Betsy 846-4268
MARYLAND - Ellicot City area
Margie (410) 750-8694
MASSACHUSETTS / NEW ENGLAND
Chelmsford
Jean (508) 250-1055
MICHIGAN - Grand Rapids Area - Jenison
Catharine (616) 363-1354
1st Sunday (MO) -please note day change
See State Meetings list
MINNESOTA - Minneapolis Area
Terry & Collette (507) 642-3630
Dan & Joan (612) 631-2247
See State Meetings list
MISSOURI
Kansas City
Pat (913) 738-4840 or Jan (816) 931-1340
2nd Sunday (MO)
St. Louis area
Karen (314) 432-8789 or Mae (314) 837-1976
Retractors support group also meets
Springfield - Area Codes 417 and 501
Dorothy & Pete (417) 882-1821
4th Sunday [MO] 5:30 pm
NEW JERSEY (So.) See State Meetings list
NEW YORK
Downstate NY - Westchester, Rockland & others
Barbara (914) 761-3627 - call for bi-MO mtg info
Upstate / Albany area
Elaine (518) 399-5749
Family group meets bi-monthly, call for info
Western/Rochester Area
Call George & Eileen (716) 586-7942 [bi-MO]
OHIO - Cincinnati
Bob (513) 541-5272
2nd Sunday (MO) 2:00-4:30 pm
OKLAHOMA - Area code 405
Oklahoma City
Len 364-4063 Dee 942-0531
HJ 755-3816 Rosemary 439-2459
PENNSYLVANIA
Harrisburg area
Paul & Betty (717) 691-7660
PENNSYLVANIA (continued)
Pittsburgh
Rick & Renee (412) 563-5616
Wayne (includes So. Jersey)
Jim & Joanne (610) 783-0396
Saturday, May 13 - 1:00 pm.
TENNESSEE - Middle Tennessee
Kate (615) 665-1160
1st Wedmesday (MO) 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 - Burlington Area
Kim (802) 878-1089
WISCONSIN
Katie & Leo (414) 476-0285
=======================================
CANADA
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
Muriel (204) 261-0212
Call for meeting information
ONTARIO
London
Adrian (519) 471-6338
May 21 (Bi-MO)
Ottawa
Eileen (613) 836-3294
Toronto - North York
Pat (416) 444-9078
=======================================
OVERSEAS
AUSTRALIA
Ken & June, P O Box 363, Unley, SA 5061
NETHERLANDS
Task Force False Memory Syndrome of
"Ouders voor Kinderen"
Mrs. Anna de Jong, (0) 20-693 5692
NEW ZEALAND
Mrs. Colleen Waugh, (09) 416-7443
UNITED KINGDOM
The British False Memory Society
Roger Scotford (0225) 868-682
+++
Deadline for JUNE 1995 Issue:
Wednesday, May 24th
Mail or Fax meeting notice 2 months
before scheduled meeting:
Please markenvelope or fax: Meeting Notice
**********************************************************************
WHAT IF?
What if, parents who are facing lawsuits and want legal information
about FMS cases, had to be told, "I'm sorry, there isn't any such
thing available?"
What if, your son or daughter began to doubt his or her memories and
called FMSF only to get a recording, "This number is no longer in
operation?"
What if, a journalist asks you where to get information about the
FMS phenomenon, and you had to answer, "Sorry, I don't know?"
What if, you want to ask a question that only an expert, familiar
with FMS can answer, and find out that FMSF can no longer provide that
information? Where would you turn?
What if the False Memory Syndrome Foundation did not exist? A
frightening thought, isn't it?
Please support our Foundation. We cannot survive without your
support!
Reprinted from the August 1994 PFA (MI) Newsletter
**********************************************************************
Yearly FMSF Membership Information
Professional - Includes Newsletter $125______
Family - Includes Newsletter $100______
Additional Contribution: _____________
__Visa: Card # & expiration date:______________________________
__Mastercard: Card # & expiration date:______________________________
__Check or Money Order: Payable to FMS Foundation in U.S. dollars
Please include: Name, address, state, country, phone, fax
______________________________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-News". You'll also learn about |
| joining the FMS-Research list (it distributes reseach materials |
| such as news stories and research articles). It would be useful, |
| but not necessary, if you add your full name (all addresses and |
| names will remain strictly confidential). |
\____________________________________________________________________/
**********************************************************************
The False Memory Syndrome Foundation is a qualified 501(c)3 corpora-
tion 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 Ex-
ecutive Director. All membership dues and contributions to the Founda-
tion must be forwarded to the Foundation for its disposition.
**********************************************************************
3401 Market Street suite 130, Philadelphia, PA 19104, (215-387-1865)
This address and the phone numbers have changed as of July 15, 2000
Pamela Freyd, Ph.D., Executive Director
FMSF Scientific and Professional Advisory Board, May 1, 1995:
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; FREDERICK C. CREWS, Ph.D., University of California,
Berkeley, CA; 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; HENRY C.
ELLIS, Ph.D., University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM; 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., Charing Cross Hospital, London; 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., Yale University, New
Haven, CT; 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; EMILY K ORNE,
B.A., University of Pennsyllvania, The Institute of Pennsylvania
Hospital, Philadelphia, PA; 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.