FMSF 1995 False Memory Syndrom

informal debate in the hallway between Colin Ross, M.D. <ID:d Richard Ofshe, Ph.D. Several others joined for pan of th1s two and one-half hour discussion. Did this informal exchange and the conference move us closer to the end of the FMS Craze? Colin Ross has been one of the leaders of those who hav

proposed legislation that is described in material from the America_n Co~ition ~or Abuse Awareness (ACAA), the group With wh1ch Manlyn van Dcrbur is now affiliated. Dr. Brown states, ''Totally apart from my critical fee1ings about FMSF, which is a lobbying group that attempts to take on

The American Psychological Association issued an Interim Repon from the Working Group on the Investigation of Memories of Childhood Abuse. The rcpon ha<; been de~ scribed as an "On the one hand this---on the other hand that" kind of report. The interim report adds liulc but confusion to the serious

of the trauma literature prepared by the three practitioners: Judith Alpert, Laura Brown, Christine Courtois on the corn~ minee, with a response by the three scientists: Steven Ceci, Elizabeth Loftus, Peter Omstein and a rejoinder by the practitioners; there will also be a review of the memory liter

comact the Public Affairs Office of the American PsychCJoo logical Association (202) 336-5700, 750 1st Street NE,

DATE: November25, 1994 Members of the APA Working Group on the

Judith L. Alpcn, Laura S. Brown, Stephen J. Ceci, Christine A. Counois, Elizabeth F. Loftus, APA Board of Directors Contacts for the Working Group: Dorothy C. Cantor, Ronald E. Fox, Robcrt

sanguine about some clinicians' claims that memories of childhood abuse can be repressed, dissociated, or otherwise forgotten, and then recovered-spontaneously, through psychotherapy, or by other means. After reviewing the literature on this area, l have come

3 books (2 as editor, 1 as author) -Psychoanalysis and women ; contemporary reappraisals I edited by Judith L. Alpert. Hillsdale, N.J.: AnalytJc Press, c1986. --Motherin!;J: The view from psychological research. Signs. 1984 Spr Vol 9(3) 434-453 (Gerson, Mary-Joan.; Alpert, Judrth L.;

4 books (all as editor): -Personality and psychopathology :feminist reappraisals I Laura S. Brown, Mary Ballou, ed~ors; foreword by Lenore.A. Walker. New York : Guillord Press, c1992.

-Personal and professional issues for the counseling psycholo· gist in private practice: 7-10 years postdoctorate.Counseling Psychologist. 1992 Jan Vol 20(1) 17-23 -The memory retrieval process in incest sufVivor therapy.Journa/ of Chifd Sexual Abuse. 1992 Vol1{1) 15-31 -Pregnancy and childbirth as

PETER A. ORNSTEIN (memory researcher) -Plus ea change .•. or, Who writes the scripts for these guys anyway? Feminism & Psychology. 1991 Feb Vol1 (1/89-92

APPROVED BY BOARD OF DIRECTORS, Guidelines Relating to The Reponing of Recovered

in an individual family increases. Each time an article appears that presents

nes and the sha~bincss of the data which have been discussed in the that generated the 1deas and supports it

other thing that I want to thank you find some optimism if we recognize for, .~om and Dad. I feel that I have initial proponents, they begin to recogw that the false memory epidemic is a

h1ghhghts from Poole, Lindsay, Memon, and Bult's (in press~ surveys of psychotherapists' opinions, practices, and expenences regarding clients' memories of childhood sexual abuse (CSA). I prefaced my report by commenting on the

than other members of the population, people with recovercause, with the audience providing standing ovations when able hidden memories would, at most, make up a tiny mistining orators espoused the group political doctrine. The nority of clients. Furthermore, there is little reason to beaudience at

(although it may help understand why some therapists have age shift in Baltimore, and many more males in the audipromulgated such searches). ence in Baltimore. The key difference was a rotation of the

malpractice suit. I'm not convinced that the percentage of impaired clinicians is higher in dissociative disorders field identified-in 1994, ISSD members tend to view the FMSF as ''pcrps incorporated" while FMSF members tend to view than in biological psychiatry.

We said last September that David Calof of Seaule, Washington, had no known credentials. He asked us to list the following as his credentials: he is an RMHC (Registered Mental Health Counselor) in the State of Wa-.hington, he is a Visiting Faculty Memlx:r of the San Francisco Family Institute, and h

In January, the British Psychologica1 Society issued the report on which it ha-. been working for the pa'\t 18 months. We urge readers to obtain the full report as it is a testament to the thinking and compromises by clinicians and scientists on the issue of recovered memories. We print the Executiv

to the thinking and compromises by clinicians and scientists on the issue of recovered memories. We print the Executive Summary and Guidelines for Therapists. To obtain the full copy, enclose a cheque for $20 (twenty dollars). British Psychological Society, St. Andrew House, 48, Princess

consequence of experiencing certain kinds of psychological 6. The therapist should be alert to a range of possibilities, traumas including childhood sexual abuse. These memories for example that a recovered memory may be literally true, are sometimes fully or panially recovered after a gap of

detail of event memories detion of "Recovered Memories." Indeed, given the 8. CSA should not be diagdeep clinical and social importance of the question it nosed on the basis of presempcnds on a number of factors, was prudent for it to do so. In the evenr, unfortunateing symptoms such as eating inclu

The working party was charged with reponing on the scien- Guidelines for therapists

Therapy given the risks and coslS involved on February 22, 1995, their campaign inTyroler

Matching-Offer Surpassed Our challenge to raise $100,000 between December 1, 1994 and February 28, 1995 to match $100,000 from a generous member has been met -and well before the deadline!

But there is one exception and it needs to be looked at. to say on the issues. The following summarizes their A strongly worded letter was sent to John Backus, Se. D. view of FMSF and of memory recovery. 'The backlash

view of FMSF and of memory recovery. 'The backlash and Barbara Una Stannard, Ph.D. in response to their article movement denies the reality of childhood sexual abuse, entitled, "Your Memories Are Not FaJse: A Reply to the claiming that survivors make up their memories or have

Jamestown, NY in 1988. His son, who nature of memory are just as OF ORGANIZED RITUAL SAwas 16 at the time, started to receive telephone death treats from people

The Connection, 11 #1, Winter 1995 who believed he was a satanist - perCourt Appointed Special Advocates baps because he favored a punk look. That infants do retain memories of what happens to them is the subject

practice serious meditation often In Cobleskill, NY a report that there were people in the woods in costumes with swords have experiences like this: • ... suddenly I was one

only to verify its beliefs; it ignores the volumes of evidence that contradict its position." place near Toledo, Ohio. There the police used bulldozers to dig up the land in which bodies were rumored to be _bu_rStatements like these, for all their scient~fic naivete and all ied. National press and s

Patients sue psychologist over false abuse memories Post Register (Idaho) February 5, 1995 An Idaho Falls psychologist is being sued by two fanner patients who claim that he used hypnosis to convince them they were victims of childhood sexual abuse and

Abuse AND Memory Recovery Therapy" in the February FMSF Newsletter

from leading experts was presented in support of their positions. Advocates of traumatic recovered memory, however, continue to state their case as one of conviction. It is their ethical responsibility to support their beliefs and clinical impressions with data that satisfy standard scientific crite

Kemper, the well-known Kansas businessman from the prestigious philanthropic family, provided support for and was in much evidence at the meeting. With Kemper at the meeting was his step-daughter, who often speaks about her "recovered memories" of abuse from age 3 to 27 by her biological father. On

Ofra Bike! and Karen O'Connor On April4 and April 11, Frontline will present a 4-hour documentary on the issue of repressed memory and the 'recovery movement.' A review in the Wall Street Journal by Rabinowitz notes "for the therapy schools in question,

concerning clinical practice as seen through the lens of the "recovered" or "false memory "debate" by Spencer Harris Morfit in the Journal of Sex Education and Therapy, Vol 20 no 4 1994, "Rape of psychotherapy" by Ronald E. Fox in Professional

Ross, I would hke to pomt out to him, as a fanner patient Newsletter in which he stated: who b~lieve_d fal_se mem~Jries, that he needs to spend a lot "It is true that there are impaired therapists more ttm~ hstenmg to hts patients as to the importance or

who b~lieve_d fal_se mem~Jries, that he needs to spend a lot "It is true that there are impaired therapists more ttm~ hstenmg to hts patients as to the importance or practicing in the dissociative disorders field. I l~ck therem of the so-called 'memories'. If my false memobelieve, _based on my clini

my further deterioration. One wonders if Dr. Ross bothers to listen to his patients if he truly believes the content of the !"emories are of only minor significance. Can he not imagTucson,

The response from the professional community to the legislative efforts of the Mental Health Consumer Protec~ tion Act has been swift and clear.In fact, the American Psychological Association Council of Representatives

The response from the professional community to the legislative efforts of the Mental Health Consumer Protec~ tion Act has been swift and clear.In fact, the American Psychological Association Council of Representatives approved the following resolution, February 17-19, 1995:

"I am enclosing copies of two pieces of correspondence - one from two years ago and one from March of this year. What on earth has happened to change a loving, generous daughter into an almost unrecognizable, hatefilled person who seems to have forgotten everything positive that happened in her life

Thank you for your love and support. I love who you are, not just as mom but as you. I am so grateful to have you in my life and in the lives of my children. I don't know if they'll ever put your name

!" T~e. Bo_ston Globe, Harvard University has begun an mvesuga~IOn of psychiatrist John Mack, MD, famous ~ecause h1s patients recover memories of space alien abducmony of his daughter, who said she had seen her

6 of patients is involved. Consumers mightjustiDear Friends, 8 fiably wonder why the American Psychiatric

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 pop· ulation that has no in

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 pop· ulation that has no in

"The healing profession seems to be filled with strange new therapies, which would play well on "Ofra Bikel's documentary carefully uncovers the the Shrinkovision network... 'Divided Memories' is agony of the process and the devastation of the

of suggestion (i.e. brainwashing) during psycho"I cannot believe they are adults, like you mother. What are therapy sessions. This is, of course, a serious they, faking it? When little children play doctor, they know breach of professional ethics ... "

(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 call· ing when they have no scientific or logical arguments.

uoelaney Nickerson, of the American Coali· lion for Abuse Awareness, voices that pain, angrily referring to the False Memory Syn· drome Foundation as "The F---ing Molesters'

Ann Richardson were members of the firm.) The Coalition Example 1. Alice Phillips, M.D., in Washington wrote that for Accuracy About Abuse started by Ellen Bass and Rene "Some of us who have educated ourselves in the treatment Fredrickson recently merged with ACAA.

Katy Butler writes that in School: Every time people tell a story, it's basically a direct contradiction to state· story that is looking for somebody to believe you, toments by FMSF that the

people's own well-being, the accuracy of one's own and apologize for things their story about oneself is not critical. We all tell tales daughters recall after years

MEMORY THERAPY IS ABOUT$$$$ Thousands of parents have received letters similar to the one that follows. To families it looks like a seam to get money for therapy and not an effort to insure either justice or protection for children. Incest is. after all, a crime. If a

Thousands of parents have received letters similar to the one that follows. To families it looks like a seam to get money for therapy and not an effort to insure either justice or protection for children. Incest is. after all, a crime. If a crime was committed. the perpetrator should be punished

RUMORS AND OUR CRITICS The follOwing are four rumors to which we were asked to respond hi the last month.

The follOwing are four rumors to which we were asked to respond hi the last month. Rumor 1 F(l>m a letter sent to a member of the FMSF Scientific Advisory Board (May 16). gl've had a minimum of experience with MPDs/DIDs and have heard from them and associates of theirs that the

American Medical News Julie Johnsson and Howard Larkin A "litigation feeding frenzy" is taking place in Texas in

John Mack has been entirely in tenns of academic freedom.

"I am immensely proud of my profession when it opens up new research inroads and gathers empirical evidence with analytical criteria for a range of basic and applied psychological issues. But I despair when it indulges in issuing dogmatic assertions, barren of

experienced satanistic ritual abuse can be taken as essentially never 3%, sometimes 54%, usually 38%, always 5% But the really bad news is the way that the BPS Working

Question #14 led to the following remarkable conclusion • There are high levels of belief in the essential accuracy of recovered memories of child sexual abuse among qualified psychologists. These beliefs appear to be fuelled by high

We don't seem to have a summer lull in the office. First-time telephone calls from people who tell us they have

Charles Wbitfield, M.D. writes the truth for therapists "It was clear that Isabella, Rose and the others were not heard and judged by a jury of their peers. These 12 were not therapists, and none of them was known to be in recovery,

A memory based suit against therapists (from Memory and Abuse, 1995, Charles Whitfield) GUIDELINES FOR THERAPISTS On what grounds are former RMT patients

On what grounds are former RMT patients We have received several queries in the past month asking about the grounds on which fanner recovered memory therapy (RMT) patients are bringing lawsuits. We now know that there were more than 200 lawsuits filed against

The dark truth about the ''Dark Tunnels of McMartin" Issues in Child Abuse Accusations Vol 7. No 2, 76-131

very different from the current belief that a sign of an abuser is that he or she denies it. "Oh, you deny that you sexually abused your child. You must be guilty!"

critically examines Stickel and his Letter to Nature Medicine, Volt Violet Arnirault - 71 years old claims. Stickel and the tunnel theory

Violet Arnirault - 71 years old claims. Stickel and the tunnel theory are both discredited.

and-answer format, also mcludes sections on The overturning of the Donna Sue Hubhow memory works, suggestions for research bard mid-80s case is another in a significant pattern of overand criteria for selecting a psychotherapist. The full report turning day-care case convictions such as Kelly Michae

Washington State Therapist's License Suspended Seattle Times, August 4, 1995 The external audit of the Foundation has been completed for the fiscal year 1994-1995, which extends from

about any kind of talk to suit their taste. including both sides of the false memory issues. Elizabeth Loftus received an award, and others who hold opposing views about FMS were also acknowledged. Professional conferences should encourage different perspectives, discussion and argument.

session- the opening keynote address delivered by Gloria Steinem. A keynote address sets the tone, and it sets the direction for a conference. Ms. Steinem, an engaging speaker. is firmly aligned with those who hold to the strong belief in robust repression and multiple personality disorder.

At the American Psychiatric Association meeting in

I wonder if the FMSF would consider expanding on the "before therapy/after therapy" excerpts that appear at times in the newsletters. These letters to other parents have had a profound impact on me as I not only have the same "before and after" notes from my daughter but it appears

Three articles appearing in the popular press this sum~ mer deserve special notice. Each one offers valuable insight into professionals and the practices involved in the FMS issues. Each, in a different way, helps to fill in the pieces of the puzzle: How could this have happened? Unfortunately,

negative things about the Foundation were included in his workshop. For example, she notes that Whitfield seems to have an enemy list and ''Topping this enemies list is the False Memory Syndrome Foundation." Whitfield, she writes, describes FMSF as "a hoax being perpetrated on the

ered versus false memories of became a movie. "Brideyabuse, a stream of books and artiThe FMS Foundation SPEAKERS BUREAU cles demonstrating that Freud mania swept the country."

is growing rapidly. Those listed include psychiafudged his results or was just trists, psychologists, social workers, nurses, attarplain wrong, claims that lung the truth. As a child, Ms. neys, law enforcement officials and writers. was equally economical with the

ently told her many stories

(3) The Memory Wars: Freud's Legacy in Dispute will be published in November. It will contain the New York Review of Books articles by Frederick Cr~:ws and as much of the ensuing correspondence as the publishers were given

with which families are now struggling. They provide insight for other families and for professionals in what is going on and what may be helpful to families. This issue has an expanded section of letters.

The significant questions now shift to, 'What is it that the number of letters from families with concerns about causes people to realize or acknowledge that their memories reintegrating was greater than from families asking how to

''The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?" Los Angeles Times, August 25, 1995 Elizabeth Loftus "The more people think about an event from the past (the more they rehearse), the more confident they become in their memories. The problem is that they get more confident

SPIEGEL - argues that MPD (DID) is naturally occurring and is more prevalent now because previously undiagnosed cases

the reports in the media and in legal case~ of people claim~ SPIEGEL ~ views dissociation as the failure to integrate ele~ ing to have remembered abuse from a time younger than two. They sought to see if perh.aps such recollections ~ ments of identity, consciousness and memory. The tenn

involve incorporation of an external identity from the social Among the results were that autobiographical memo~ world, while those in the West involve fragmentation of ries for traumatic events are essentially no different from

SPIEGEL - notes that in a disaster there is a sense of helplessness. Victims can detach from the current

states that "The general structure of these therapies involves controlled access to various dissociated states, often facilitated by techniques such as hypnosis, in the service of integrating disparate identities or personalitiy

and case series." MPD has been in the DSM since 1980. How can it be that in 15 years whole hospital units have been built, vast amounts of insurance money have been spent, a whole literature has been created, a heated debate has raged- and there have been no proper studies! Is it

Talk TV's Destructive Impact on Mental Health by Jeanne Albronda Heaton and Nona Leigh Wilson Targeted for professionals who have ignored the influence of the daytime "talks" on popular thinking about mental health issues, this book is easily accessible to the general public. For readers of this New

by Jeanne Albronda Heaton and Nona Leigh Wilson Targeted for professionals who have ignored the influence of the daytime "talks" on popular thinking about mental health issues, this book is easily accessible to the general public. For readers of this Newsletter, perhaps the most interesting part of

THINGS: Critical Thinking for a New Age, by Theadore Schick, Jr. & Lewis Vaughn Mayfield Publishing Co. 1995 $18.95 with Forward by Martin Gard· ner, member FMSF Advisory Board.

''The current controversy over false memory syndrome is as damaging to reputable dynamic psychotherapy as it is hannful to families and to patients. Among psychotherapists there seem to be two underlying justificatory arguments. There are those who think that to question a literal interpretation of

HELP US COMPLETE THE WORK .. "~.few ~ci_e~tists also h~ the profession by publicly cnttciZmg clmtctans for relymg on an evidence base that

.. "~.few ~ci_e~tists also h~ the profession by publicly cnttciZmg clmtctans for relymg on an evidence base that cannot yet be proved according to rigidly conceived definitions of what constitutes scientific evidence, he said ...."

support for SRA. Since earlier she expressed disda~n for those who question the incidence of MPD, discusston of that issue was avoided. However, someone in the audience told about a presentation the day before where a speaker

claimed to have 10,000 personalities and identified what he thought would be a helpful therapeutic ·response. I~ was reassuring to hear a small number of those m. the

sound clinical and common sense questions the National Association of Social Workers' annual

The Foundation maintains a database of more than 6,000 professional and newspaper/magazine articles, videos and books. Categories of the articles include False Memory Syn~rome, MPD/DID, SRA! Cults, Eating Disorders, HypnOSIS, Therapy Issues, Child Testimony/Day Care, and LegaL There are additional c

The altered state of hypnosis Irving Kirsch and Steven Jay Lynn American Psychologist, October, 1995, 846-858 The authors argue that it is no longer accurate to portray theorists of hypnosis as belonging to warring camps

tionabJe relevance to issues surrounding more spectacular occurrences of false memories outside the lab. However, we believe that these are all reasons to be more impressed with the relevance of our results to these issues. After all, we

This article reports on the retrospective evaluation of their therapy by 4,000 Consumer Reports subscribers who generally reported that their therapy had been helpful. However, the acknowledged methodological weaknesses unfortunately render the results of little value. The article also covered gener

employing a couch and free association, patients explore and confront troubling childhood experiences. In psychody~ namic therapy, the emphasis is on discovering unconscious conflicts and defense mechanisms that hinder adult behavior. The goal of interpersonal therapy is to enhance

course, possibly to oblivion, but not allow it to attack anyone outick Crews's two-part article pubFreud Was Wrong" by Richard Webster. The Sunday Times, September 17, 1995 side in the meantime-especially lished in the New York Review of