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False Memory Syndrome From Child Abuse Wikicopied with permissionhttp://childabusewiki.org/index.php?title=False_Memory_SyndromeThe term False Memory Syndrome was created in 1992 by the False Memory SyndromeFoundation (FMSF)[1]. It has been called "a pseudoscientific syndrome that wasdeveloped to defend against claims of child abuse."[1] The FMSF was created byparents who claimed to be falsely accused of child sexual abuse.[1] The FalseMemory Syndrome was described as "a widespread social phenomenon where misguidedtherapists cause patients to invent memories of sexual abuse."[1] Research hasshown that most delayed memories of childhood abuse are true[2]. In general, ithas been shown that false allegations of childhood sexual abuse are rare, withsome studies showing rates as low as one percent[3][4] and some studies showingslightly higher rates[3]. It has been found that children tend to understaterather than overstate the extent of any abuse experienced[3]. It has been statedthat misinformation on the topic of child sexual abuse is widespread and that themedia have contributed to this problem by reporting favorably on unproven andcontroversial claims like the False Memory Syndrome[5].Contents* 1 Research on False Memory* 2 Critiques of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation and its theories* 3 References* 4 Bibliography* 5 External LinksResearch on False MemoryThere is a great deal of evidence showing the existence of the phenomenon ofrecovered memory and the fairly high corroboration rates of these memories[6]. Thebase rates for memory commission errors have been shown to be quite low, at leastin professional trauma treatment. The base rates in adult misinformation studiesrun between zero and 5 percent for adults and between 3 - 5 percent forchildren[7]. It has been shown that people who recover memories are a lot lesssuggestible than clinicians have been led to believe by false memory advocates[8].It has been stated that false memories are rare[9] One research study showed theunlikelihood of being able to plant a false memory of a traumatic event[10]. Somehave stated that the False Memory Syndrome is not a scientific syndrome[11].Brown, Sheflin and Hammond stated "The hypothesis that false memories can easilybe implanted in psychotherapy (Lindsay & Read, 1994; Loftus 1993; Loftus &Ketcham, 1994; Ofshe and Watters, 1993, 1994; Yapko, 1994a) seriously overstatesthe available data. Since no studies have been conducted on suggested effects inpsychotherapy per se, the idea of iatrogenic suggestion of false memories remainsan untested hypothesis.[12]Elizabeth Loftus, a proponent of the theory of false memory, has been critiqued inseveral studies and papers[13][14][15][16].Critiques of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation and its theoriesMembers of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation have been critiqued formisrepresenting data and for their possible reasons for having created the idea ofthe syndrome.
 
In reply to a TV documentary about FMS, William Freyd, (Pamela Freyd's (one of thefounders of the FMSF) step brother and sister-in-law) wrote "There is no doubt inmy mind that there was severe abuse in the home of Peter and Pam. . . . The FalseMemory Syndrome Foundation is a fraud designed to deny a reality that Peter andPam have spent most of their lives trying to escape. There is no such things as aFalse Memory Syndrome."[2] "In addition, Peter Freyd's own mother (who is alsoPamela's step-mother) and his only sibling, a brother, were also estranged fromPamela and Peter. It should be noted that these family members support Jennifer'sside of the story."[1]A co-founder of the False Memory Syndrome Foundation, Ralph Underwager, has alsohad several critiques written about him[17]. In an interview in Amsterdam in June1991 by “Paidika,” Editor-in-Chief, Joseph Geraci, Underwager replied to thequestion "Is choosing paedophilia for you a responsible choice for theindividuals?" with "Certainly it is responsible. What I have been struck by as Ihave come to know more about and understand people who choose paedophilia is thatthey let themselves be too much defined by other people. That is usually anessentially negative definition. Paedophiles spend a lot of time and energydefending their choice. I don’t think that a paedophile needs to do that.Paedophiles can boldly and courageously affirm what they choose. They can say thatwhat they want is to find the best way to love. I am also a theologian and as atheologian, I believe it is God’s will that there be closeness and intimacy, unityof the flesh, between people. A paedophile can say: “This closeness is possiblefor me within the choices that I’ve made."[18]In a transcription of the TV show Witness for Mr. Bubbles from “Australia 60Minutes,” Channel Nine Network (Aired on August 5, 1990 in Australia), researcherAnna Salter stated that Underwager "isn’t accurate. That what he says in courtdoes not necessarily fairly represent the literature." That he frequently distortsfacts and he sometimes he quotes specific studies, and he’s frequently wrong aboutwhat the studies say."[19]It was stated in a court document that the two books that he and his wife HollidaWakefield, wrote "Accusations of Child Sexual Abuse" (1988), and The Real World ofChild Interrogations (1990) were not "well received in the medical and scientificpress." It was also stated that "when they cannot use a quotation out of contextfrom an article, they make unsupported statements, some of which are palpablyuntrue and others simply unprovable.” David L. Chadwick, Book Review, in 261 JAMA3035 (May 26, 1989)." In the same document it was stated that "Both Salter andToth came to believe that Underwager is a hired gun who makes a living bydeceiving judges about the state of medical knowledge and thus assisting childmolesters to evade punishment."[20]Those that have examined or written about the False Memory Syndrome theories orfoundation or its members have been subjected to harassment. This includes AnnaSalter's analysis of her harassment by Ralph Underwager[21], David Calof, theformer editor of Treating Abuse Today [22] and Jennifer Hoult [23].Accusations have also been made about the accuracy of the False Memory Syndromes'proponents data and research. Salter has critiqued some of those that defend thoseaccused of child sexual abuse. “The people who support and defend those accused ofchild sexual abuse indiscriminately, those who join organizations dedicated todefending people who are accused of child sexual abuse with no screeningwhatsoever to keep out those who are guilty as charged, are…not necessarily peopleengaged in an objective search for the truth. Some of them can and do use deceit,trickery, misstated research, harassment, intimidation, and charges of launderingfederal money to silence their opponents.”[21]. Whitfield stated "Since at least95 percent of child molesters initially deny their abusive behaviors, how can
 
untrained lay people like Pamela Freyd and her staff “document” a real or “unreal”case of “FMS,” as appears to be the case with most of their communications, whichusually occur over the telephone or by letter (p. 76)."[2]. Jennifer Freyd stated“Despite this documentation for both traumatic amnesia and essentially accuratedelayed recall, memory science is often presented as if it supports the view thattraumatic amnesia is very unlikely or perhaps impossible and that a great many,perhaps a majority, maybe even all, recovered memories of abuse are false…Yet noresearch supports such an implication…and a great deal of research supports thepremise that forgetting sexual abuse is fairly common and that recovered memoriesare sometimes essentially true.” (p. 107) [24]Proponents of false memory theories have also been accused of manipulating themedia[25][26]. The theory of false memory has been used as a defense in court totry and negate "abusive, criminal behavior" and this defense is fraught withdisinformation, smoke screens, and other untruths that are a distortion of whatthe available science of the psychology of trauma and memory shows.[27].References1. Dallam, S. (2002). "Crisis or Creation: A systematic examination of falsememory claims". Journal of Child Sexual Abuse 9 (3/4): 9–36.doi:10.1300/J070v09n03_02. PMID 17521989. "A review of the relevant literaturedemonstrates that the existence of such a syndrome lacks general acceptance in themental health field, and that the construct is based on a series of faultyassumptions, many of which have been scientifically disproven. There is a similarlack of empirical validation for claims of a "false memory" epidemic. It isconcluded that in the absence of any substantive scientific support, "False MemorySyndrome" is best characterized as a pseudoscientific syndrome that was developedto defend against claims of child abuse."http://www.leadershipcouncil.org/1/res/dallam/6.html2. Whitfield M.D., Charles L. (1995). Memory and Abuse - Remembering and Healingthe Effects of Trauma Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc. ISBN 1-55874-320-0.http://books.google.com/books?id=z1LW3u1e04YC3. Leadership Council - How often do children’s reports of abuse turn out to befalse? "Jones and McGraw examined 576 consecutive referrals of child sexual abuseto the Denver Department of Social Services, and categorized the reports as eitherreliable or fictitious. In only 1% of the total cases were children judged to haveadvanced a fictitious allegation. Jones, D. P. H., and J. M. McGraw: Reliable andFictitious Accounts of Sexual Abuse to Children.Journal of Interpersonal Violence,2, 27-45, 1987.http://www.leadershipcouncil.org/1/res/csa-acc.html4. False allegations of child sexual abuse by children are rarehttp://ritualabuse.us/research/false-allegations-of-child-sexual-abuse-by-children-are-rare/5. Whitfield, Charles L.; Joyanna L. Silberg, Paul Jay Fink (2001). MisinformationConcerning Child Sexual Abuse and Adult Survivors. Haworth Press. ISBN 0789019019. 6. Recovered Memories - Child Abuse Wikihttp://childabusewiki.org/index.php?title=Recovered_Memories7. Brown, Scheflin and Hammond (1998).”Memory, Trauma Treatment, And the Law” (W.W. Norton) ISBN 0-393-70254-5
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