FMSF 2004 False Memory Syndrom

"What has happened to all the survivor newsletters that were around when the Foundation started?" we were asked. As we begin the thirteenth year of the FMSF Newsletter, the

Margaret Thaler Singer

17% were severely beaten once, or more than once, in childhood. Among those beaten severely more than once, 21% reported experiencing unwanted sexual intercourse and 27% reported

sexual intercourse and 27% reported unwanted sexual activities. Two percent reported all three forms of abusive experiences before the age of 16 years. Eight percent of women reported that they had experienced rape at the

that they had experienced rape at the age of 16 years or older, and 9% reported sexual assaults of other types. Forty-one percent fulfilled the study definition for domestic violence.

Conversion and Dissociation, 2nd ed. Pennsylvania Social Worker

In the summer of 2002, the Foundation received a letter from a member asking what had happened to the many survivor newsletters that

Minds Uniquely Linked Together in a Productive Loving Existence (for people with MPD/DID)

(no longer published)

(Ottawa Recovered Memory Page last updated July, 1999) Stop Mind Control and

Survivors and Advocates For Abuse Recovery (SAFAR) (no information)

A $7.5 million settlement for Elizabeth Gale in February set a record for individual psychiatric repressedmemory malpractice suits.[1] Ms. Gale, a young woman with no history of psychiatric problems, had sought help for

Remembering Trauma [7] and Memory, Trauma Treatment, and the Law [8] in the March 11 issue of the New York Review of Books, Fred Crews warns: It would be a serious mistake... to assume that reckless traumatology has now been permanently laid to rest. The conviction that fathers are naturally prone t

Halperin was a consulting psychiatrist for the Custody Panel, Supreme Court of the State of New York. He also was an Associate Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Mount

3. Quoted in O'Connor, A. (2004, January 9). Theory given on burying of memories by people. New York Times, p. A-17. 4.See Chapter 6 in McNally, R. (2003). Remembering Trauma. Harvard University Press,

as Project Jericho, started with three children, who journalist Judy Steed called Lucy, Freddy, and Joey.[1] Lucy was the oldest at 7 and her younger brothers were barely verbal. There is

by Jeanette D. Bartha Humanity lost a kind soul and a great mind when Dr. Singer died this

(4)]. Friedman now contends that he lied when he confessed to sexually abusing children in computer classes that his father ran in their home. He was 19 years old in 1988 when he went

This in-depth, investigative report is written by Jan Fletcher, a Christian journalist from Campbellsville, KY., home of Theophostic Ministry.

Harvard University Press The most comprehensive review of research about trauma and memory

FMS in Scandanavia - Janet Hagbom

When the FMS Foundation was founded in 1992, we were confident that the positions the Foundation espoused were those of the scientific mainstream. Unfortunately, the

Janet Fetkewicz, Howard Fishman, Peter Freyd, Members of the FMSF Scientific Advisory Board and Members who wish to remain anonymous. Letters and information: Our Readers.

Aaron Beck Receives 2004 In December 2003, Aaron T. Beck, M.D., was awarded the Grawemeyer

Ritual Abuse allegations[5] concluding that after thoroughly investigating many reports brought by victims alleging such abuse, the Ministry had been unable to find any verification for such

In 1997, the Ministry of Justice Institute for the Study of Criminality

condemned suggestive memory retrieval practices.[9] In April 2000, the National Ombudsman, responding to requests from the Werkgroep and its falsely

Herinneringen [Dubious Memories], Gezondheidsraad (Health Council of the Netherlands), 27 January 2004. Among its many points, the report noted that many clinicians did not

noted that many clinicians did not seem to be aware of major recent scientific research findings in the area of Major recommendations and findings of the Health Council: a) a broad recognition that memories recovered during suggestive therapy may be false, harm patients and

crimes: Sexual abuse reported to the police after therapy - Advice to the Minister of Justice. Prof. Dr Peter van Koppen, 1997. Coincidentally, at the same time as Van Koppen's report appeared, the WFH published Een kleine fout

the period from 1 October 1999-31 December 2000]. 9. This lengthy document, not available in English, analysed 26 cases. These involved allegations of remembered abuse a) prior to age 3 years, b) satanic

two factors (therapy and counselling) because in 23 out of the 30 cases, the accusers had been in therapy or counselling, in 6 of these cases even switching from one therapist or counsellor to yet another many

U.S.L.W. 4229, March 8, 2004 Decided On March 8, 2004, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, in a 9-0 decision, that defendants have the right to crossexamine witnesses. The decision disallows hearsay evidence that had

SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED by R. Chris Barden, Ph.D., J.D. The Constitution-Bill of Rights of

by R. Chris Barden, Ph.D., J.D. The Constitution-Bill of Rights of the United States is a sacred contract

Wouldn't be be interesting if there were a "cease fire" in the memory wars for the summer? But the debate rages on relentlessly, slowly bringing greater clarity to the issues.

When the media passes along doubtful information, it runs a risk of not only misinforming, but of starting things truly harmful. Junk psychology

will not be surprised to learn that the data regarding child maltreatment (see article in this issue) need to be parsed carefully. They are revealing both in terms of what is included and what is

unmentioned is the fact that despite laws sanctioning false reporting, such prosecutions almost never occur. The report notes that "an estimated 896,000 children were determined to

896,000 children were determined to be victims of child abuse or neglect in 2002." Seventy percent of these children (about half a million) were "victims" of neglect. There is no acknowledgement that "neglect" typically means nothing more than "poverty" and that a significant majority of these

officials fail to include the ultimate outcomes of so-called "founded" cases. Whether pursued through administrative channels, civil proceedings, or criminal trials, approximately one-third to one-half of these cases

and she began to go forward. Hmmmmm! Interesting to note that mental health and taking responsibility

things that are often found in retractor reports. At several points in the therapy, they questioned how therapists could know more about their own histories and "memories" than they did. GOOD question! There were times when they themselves found the

Allen Esterson dissects a BBC radio program on Freud and hysteria in which a researcher claimed to have uncovered early childhood sexual abuse in one of

concluded that local authorities had used "suggestive" questioning that led children to give answers that they wanted. At that time, the "attorney general said there was both a shortage

"Keep your memories alive with a free camera!" flashed out from our computer junk e-mail recently. Reminders that memories fade and that recall is not always

Dr. Susan Kelly (who interviewed children in the Amirault case) and Kelly Michaels (who was convicted and spent 5 years in jail in connection with the Wee Care day-care center case); and Dr. Ann Burgess (researcher involved in satanic abuse day-care cases) and Patricia Burgus (former patient who was

readers is the fact that the documentary Hungry for Monsters (See p. 12) was screened twice at the 57th Locarno International Film Festival in August. What is special is that the film was shown in the festival's Human Rights section. At least in some places and by some groups, the outrages that were

Philip S. Holzman, Ph.D. died on June 1, 2004 at the age of 82 in Boston.

the practice of repressed memory therapy. The investigation is the result of a barrage of requests from affected families and will examine the scientific literature and the extent of the problem. The Commissioner said that it is easy to install a false memory in someone and the practice of repressed

2000, for a description of the Fairlie suit. Netherlands: On June 10, 2004, the Minister of Health sent a brief to the Parliament in support of the report

"Dubious Memories." (See May/June FMSF Newsletter.) In addition, the Minister stated that he has asked the professional mental health organizations to produce a general information pamphlet stating the methodology and

by Spencer Harris Morfit and the letter from Fighting Dad in the July/August newsletter. Both offer a shift in the prevailing wisdom that has guided the FMS Foundation's position since its inception. For 15 years that position

as a client, I am ultimately responsible for managing my illness. But in my specific situation, my illness is biologically based. When I have a relapse of symptoms, sometimes I become psy-

when it said that in the therapy world Caveat Emptor (Buyer Beware) is the

Sunday, October 3, 2004, 1-5 pm Falk Pavilion, 2013 Rawson Avenue A representative of the Wisconsin Innocence Project will speak on the

For more information, contact: Bill Lanz at 815-724-6473 Episodic memory is vulnerable to distortion. While memory can recall

We laughed when we read the following in an analysis of the presidential campaign: "The [presidential] campaign is subjecting American voters to an intensive course of attempted treatment for a nonexistent-memory disorder. [They] have seeded the political discourse with what amounts to False Memory

of the presidential campaign: "The [presidential] campaign is subjecting American voters to an intensive course of attempted treatment for a nonexistent-memory disorder. [They] have seeded the political discourse with what amounts to False Memory Syndrome. Not recovered memory syndrome, mind you, wh

3. Macaulay, S. (2004, April 22). Not always on my mind. The Times,

Crews, F. (2004, March 11). The trauma trap. NY Review Books LI(4), p. 37-40. A Letter from the Netherlands

Workgroup Fictive Memories to the It's been a long time since we officially communicated with you about the state of your sister organization from Holland: the "Werkgroep

wrote, commenting on a visit from our father (our parents divorced years Hi! How are you doing? Thank you

her worry that something was terribly wrong with my sister. The trip was a disaster. My mother stayed in a motel room for eight days, leaving phone messages daily on their answering

printed a quote by Janet Boakes, head of psychotherapy services at St. George's Hospital, London. Boakes states, "Most doctors in the mental health field now accept that some socalled recovered memories can be false

(e-mail edition). Vol. 12, No. 6. Freyd, P. (1995, Spring). False memory syndrome phenomenon: Weighing the evidence. Court Review, Freyd, P., & Goldstein, E. (1998). Smiling through

Bernard, Rhianna Light claims to have recovered repressed memories of sexual abuse by her father. When Light was 2-years-old, her parents divorced, and she lived full time with her father. Later, she alternated weeks with each

Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety Division of Consumer Affairs had ordered social worker Dorothy Neddermeyer to remove the "Ph.D. from the list of credentials on

Ontario and Quebec Families, Friends, and Professionals CURRENT ISSUES AND PERSPECTIVES Sunday, November 7, 2004 Civic Garden Center (Edward Gardens) Toronto Botanical Gardens ( Civic Garden Centre)

Sunday, November 7, 2004 Civic Garden Center (Edward Gardens) Toronto Botanical Gardens ( Civic Garden Centre) S.W. corner of Lawrence East and Leslie South

Jan Fletcher, writer for the Central Kentucky NewsJournal, won an award for Excellence in News Writing from the newspaper's parent company, Landmark Community Newspapers Inc. The judges said of Fletcher's entry about Theophostic counseling: "This reporter's work stood out for its depth of detail and