AU Blogspot

               Thanks to Curtis Perry for permission to use this Photo.

Since at least the 1930s, mental health professionals in the city of Jerusalem have attested to the existence of a peculiar syndrome affecting some first-time visitors. Referred to as the Jerusalem syndrome, it is described as an intense religious psychosis characterized by delusions, obsessive ideas, or other psychotic symptoms that can affect first-time visitors to the city and can quickly resolve in a matter of weeks. There is a suggested typology of Jerusalem syndrome episodes based on whether there is a preexisting psychiatric history or idiosyncratic ideation involved.

Case histories that have been reported include one individual, who was observed to be dressed in a white tunic and wearing a gilded crown on his head welcomes tourists and pilgrims on their way to the Wailing Wall and proclaiming himself as King David. Being the psalmist, he held a lyre and sang psalms accompanied by occasional preaching. Another case involved a self-proclaimed “messiah” who was observed to guard the entry to Jerusalem and calling on all sinners to repent as he claimed the doomsday is near.  Another individual referred to himself as “Samson” and attempted to move the giant stones of the Wailing Wall “to the right place”. After fighting down policemen who tried to interfere, “Samson” was taken to the Kfar Shaul Psychiatric Hospital in Jerusalem where he was treated and later released. (more…)

 
             Thanks to Mary Streepy for permission to use this Photo.

While spirit mediums and trance channellers come and go, there has never been anyone else quite like Catherine Elise Muller (more commonly known as Helene Smith). Born in Geneva, Switzerland in 1861, Catherine`s father was a Hungarian merchant with a talent for learning languages and her mother was prone to seeing “visions“. From an early age, Catherine had a vivid imagination and extremely intense daydreams. She would tell her parents of her visions of brightly coloured landscapes, bizarre images, and bright lights and openly speculated about being a changeling. It was in 1891 that she was first introduced to Spiritualism and quickly showed a remarkable talent for automatic writing. She also showed a knack for mediumship and communicated with different spirits (including the ghost of Victor Hugo). Table-tipping, spirit writing, clairvoyance, Catherine did it all. Her spirit guide, Count Cagliostro (more commonly known as “Leopold“) acted through her body and she claimed not to remember anything that occurred while she was in one of her trances . Surprisingly, Catherine never charged for her séances and supported herself as a shop-worker despite her growing fame throughout Geneva.

(more…)

The photo on the left is real circa 1989: Tiananmen Square.  On the right, a doctored photo.  300 people were shown either a real or altered photo of two different protests, and then asked to recall what happened back then.  The point of this study was to show that altering a photograph will change how the events are actually remembered (in this case, as bigger and more violent.)  It’s important to emphasize that the subjects already had a memory of the events (from TV, etc)– so this photo actually changed their pre-existing memories, and they weren’t aware of it.

But, here’s the thing: these subjects weren’t actually at the original protests.  Their original memories also came from images– hopefully not altered images, but certainly selected images.  Right?  The TV newspeople didn’t pick the boring pictures, did they?  I get that doctored photos are bad.  But how much of our memories and knowledge of the past are largely determined not by “reality” but what, or how, we were shown it in the first place.  Obviously, a lot.  Therein lies the question: is it worse to see a doctored photo, or doctored reality?

Here’s an example: search your mind for recollections about the Tiananmen “episode” in 1989.  Can you remember anything– anything at all– other than that guy standing in front of the tanks?  Do you remember who was protesting? Why?  The question isn’t why you don’t remember anything, hell, it was 20 years ago and a solar system away; the question is why you do remember that guy.  Are you better off for knowing this?  Are you smarter?  Or do you carry the false impression that you know something about which you really know nothing?  That’s the Matrix– not only do you have false memories, but you get to feel good about being a knowledgeable, aware, citizen of the world. (more…)

              Thanks to Jon Walton for permission to use this Photo.

Visitors to the countries of Western Africa (including Morocco, Algeria, and
Senegal) can take in the exotic sights, sounds and smells associated with that part of the world but, for a real understanding of the religious life of the people, you need to learn about the marabouts. Meaning “saints” in the Berber language spoken in Morocco and Algeria, the marabouts act as spiritual leaders of the particular brand of Islam practiced throughout the West African nations. While the marabout tradition appears to predate Islam (and Islamic leaders often denounce the veneration attached to them), marabout worship can take many forms.

The term marabout extends to the living spiritual leaders, known for their virtuous living and ability to act as agents between humans and divine forces, but also to the tombs where they are buried. Long after a marabout’s death, the tomb can be a site for pilgrimages with each saint being judged by the miracles attached to his name and stories surrounding his life. Of all the marabouts who continue to attract pilgrims long after their death, there are few who are more revered than Bouya Omar. (more…)

Of all the prominent English artists who came to international attention during the reign of Queen Victoria, Richard Dadd definitely is in a class by himself. Born in 1817, as the fourth of seven children, Dadd showed early promise as an artist and began sketching at an early age. After his family moved to London, he entered the Royal Academy of Arts at the age of twenty.

Along with other artists with whom he studied, Dadd formed an important group that became known as the Clique although he remained the foremost artist among them. Their meetings throughout the 1830s and into the 1840s inspired a new style of painting that rejected academic high art and favoured more personal art that they felt should be judged by the public rather than academics. Given Dadd’s developing prominence in the art world, it was only natural that he was chosen to go with his patron, Sir Thomas Phillips, as a draftsman on a planned expedition through Greece, Turkey and Egypt. The expedition that began in 1842 was seen as an excellent opportunity for Dadd to expand his artistic horizons.

Absolutely nobody could have foreseen the profound change that would come on him over the course of the journey. (more…)

A classic 1959 social psychology experiment demonstrates how and why we lie to ourselves. Understanding this experiment sheds a brilliant light on the dark world of our inner motivations.

The ground-breaking social psychological experiment of Festinger and Carlsmith (1959) provides a central insight into the stories we tell ourselves about why we think and behave the way we do. The experiment is filled with ingenious deception so the best way to understand it is to imagine you are taking part. So sit back, relax and travel back. The time is 1959 and you are an undergraduate student at Stanford University…

As part of your course you agree to take part in an experiment on ‘measures of performance’. You are told the experiment will take two hours. As you are required to act as an experimental subject for a certain number of hours in a year - this will be two more of them out of the way.

Little do you know, the experiment will actually become a classic in social psychology. And what will seem to you like accidents by the experimenters are all part of a carefully controlled deception. For now though, you are innocent.

The set-up

Once in the lab you are told the experiment is about how your expectations affect the actual experience of a task. Apparently there are two groups and in the other group they have been given a particular expectation about the study. To instil the expectation subtly, the participants in the other groups are informally briefed by a student who has apparently just completed the task. In your group, though, you’ll do the task with no expectations.

Perhaps you wonder why you’re being told all this, but nevertheless it makes it seem a bit more exciting now that you know some of the mechanics behind the experiment.

So you settle down to the first task you are given, and quickly realise it is extremely boring. You are asked to move some spools around in a box for half an hour, then for the next half an hour you move pegs around a board. Frankly, watching paint dry would have been preferable.

At the end of the tasks the experimenter thanks you for taking part, then tells you that many other people find the task pretty interesting. This is a little confusing - the task was very boring. Whatever. You let it pass.

Experimental slip-up

Then the experimenter looks a little embarrassed and starts to explain haltingly that there’s been a cock-up. He says they need your help. The participant coming in after you is in the other condition they mentioned before you did the task - the condition in which they have an expectation before carrying out the task. This expectation is that the task is actually really interesting. Unfortunately the person who usually sets up their expectation hasn’t turned up.

So, they ask if you wouldn’t mind doing it. Not only that but they offer to pay you $1. Because it’s 1959 and you’re a student this is not completely insignificant for only a few minutes work. And, they tell you that they can use you again in the future. It sounds like easy money so you agree to take part. This is great - what started out as a simple fulfilment of a course component has unearthed a little ready cash for you.

You are quickly introduced to the next participant who is about to do the same task you just completed. As instructed you tell her that the task she’s about to do is really interesting. She smiles, thanks you and disappears off into the test room. You feel a pang of regret for getting her hopes up. Then the experimenter returns, thanks you again, and once again tells you that many people enjoy the task and hopes you found it interesting.

Then you are ushered through to another room where you are interviewed about the experiment you’ve just done. One of the questions asks you about how interesting the task was that you were given to do. This makes you pause for a minute and think.

Now it seems to you that the task wasn’t as boring as you first thought. You start to see how even the repetitive movements of the spools and pegs had a certain symmetrical beauty. And it was all in the name of science after all. This was a worthwhile endeavour and you hope the experimenters get some interesting results out of it.

The task still couldn’t be classified as great fun, but perhaps it wasn’t that bad. You figure that, on reflection, it wasn’t as bad as you first thought. You rate it moderately interesting.

After the experiment you go and talk to your friend who was also doing the experiment. Comparing notes you found that your experiences were almost identical except for one vital difference. She was offered way more than you to brief the next student: $20! This is when it first occurs to you that there’s been some trickery at work here.

       Thanks to Matthew Fitzgerald for permission to use this Photo.

You ask her about the task with the spools and pegs:

“Oh,” she replies. “That was sooooo boring, I gave it the lowest rating possible.”

“No,” you insist. “It wasn’t that bad. Actually when you think about it, it was pretty interesting.”

She looks at you incredulously.

What the hell is going on?

Cognitive dissonance

What you’ve just experienced is the power of cognitive dissonance. Social psychologists studying cognitive dissonance are interested in the way we deal with two thoughts that contradict each other - and how we deal with this contradiction.

In this case: you thought the task was boring to start off with then you were paid to tell someone else the task was interesting. But, you’re not the kind of person to casually go around lying to people. So how can you resolve your view of yourself as an honest person with lying to the next participant? The amount of money you were paid hardly salves your conscience - it was nice but not that nice.

Your mind resolves this conundrum by deciding that actually the study was pretty interesting after all. You are helped to this conclusion by the experimenter who tells you other people also thought the study was pretty interesting.

Your friend, meanwhile, has no need of these mental machinations. She merely thinks to herself: I’ve been paid $20 to lie, that’s a small fortune for a student like me, and more than justifies my fibbing. The task was boring and still is boring whatever the experimenter tells me.

A beautiful theory

Since this experiment numerous studies of cognitive dissonance have been carried out and the effect is well-established. Its beauty is that it explains so many of our everyday behaviours. Here are some examples provided by Morton Hunt in his classic work ‘The Story of Psychology

• When trying to join a group, the harder they make the barriers to entry, the more you value your membership. To resolve the dissonance between the hoops you were forced to jump through, and the reality of what turns out to be a pretty average club, we convince ourselves the club is, in fact, fantastic.
• People will interpret the same information in radically different ways to support their own views of the world. When deciding our view on a contentious point, we conveniently forget what jars with our own theory and remember everything that fits.
• People quickly adjust their values to fit their behaviour, even when it is clearly immoral. Those stealing from their employer will claim that “Everyone does it” so they would be losing out if they didn’t, or alternatively that “I’m underpaid so I deserve a little extra on the side.”

Once you start to think about it, the list of situations in which people resolve cognitive dissonance through rationalizations becomes ever longer and longer. If you’re honest with yourself, I’m sure you can think of many times when you’ve done it yourself. I know I can.

Being aware of this can help us avoid falling foul of the most dangerous consequences of cognitive dissonance: believing our own lies. 

You can read Festinger and Carlsmith’s entire report at Classics in the History of Psychology.

Jeremy Dean
Creator of PsyBlog
Ashworth University Contributing Blogger

*Having already attained his law degree, Mr. Jeremy Dean is now studying for an MSc in Research Methods in Psychology at University College London.  Through his widely read and acclaimed blog, PsyBlog, Jeremy is committed to providing an insider’s view of psychology without the journalistic sensationalism.  We’re privileged to share this unique view with our students and sincerely appreciate Jeremy for providing us with this opportunity.  Visit PsyBlog to learn more about Jeremy’s life and work.    

Today we were treated to another dose of “Dr. Phil Now!” where Dr. Philistine investigated the very current phenomenon of school shootings. Obviously, we shouldn’t belittle the trauma felt by victims of any violence, nor should we condone brutal, inhumane behavior. At the same time, it might be just as wrong to refrain from belittling Dr. Phil, allowing his brutal, inhumane brand of psychology to persist without criticism. This issue touches upon many political ramifications such as gun control, education policy, and the rights and freedoms afforded to individuals (particularly young people). The most interesting fallacy related to school shootings, though, is not overtly political, but rather historical. Dr. Phil repeats an oft reported error so familiar to media reports, expert explications, and uneasy community meetings: these acts of violence are new and anomalous. This is an irrefutable—and perhaps deliberate—distortion of the historical record.

A Columbine survivor and guest added: “one thing got me into college, I thought it didn’t happen there.” Again, this is the historical record being annihilated. Even between the Columbine shooting and the Virginia Tech massacre (which apparently re-opened this victim’s eyes) there were at least 9 shootings on college campuses resulting in 19 deaths and many more injuries. In fact, there are dozens more similar acts of violence going back to at least 1936 where a student at Lehigh University killed himself and his English professor after demanded that his grade be changed. In 1966, for instance, a meticulously planned shooting by a deranged, well-armed shooter took place atop the Tower at the University of Texas which killed 16 and wounded more than 30 more.

In fact, a reasonable (though necessarily morbid) examination of the relevant history shows that almost all the common assumptions are wrong. Some of the most deadly school related killings in modern times don’t even take place in America, but rather as part of broader conflicts in places like Bratunac in Yugoslavia, Stalino in Ukraine, Hue in Vietnam, and Beslen in Russia. As these events also illustrate, such attacks are also often not the result of, as Dr. Phil muses, “heartbroken teenage boys” and “loners” but rather adults (or, more ominously by groups of adults) with deep felt social, political, and personal grudges. Even in America, the deadliest school-related killing was not perpetrated by a depressed, socially awkward adolescent at a modern, suburban campus.

                 Thanks to caribb for permission to use this Photo.

Instead, it was at a rural Bath, Michigan schoolhouse in the year 1927 when a 55 year old school board treasurer and farmer killed 45 students and teachers, injuring 58 more. Disgruntled over his foreclosed farm, difficult family situation, and other townspeople who ignored his fight for lower taxes, the killer used dynamite and combinations of shrapnel to destroy his own home and set of explosions in three locations at the township’s only school. The purpose of recounting these gruesome events is not to glorify them or even compare body counts as part of a dismal contest, but instead to point out that they are not completely new phenomena, nor do they follow (at least with any great regularity) any of the characteristics so meticulously mapped out and emphasized by Dr. Phil. This is quite different from Santayana’s famous claim that “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” (George Santayana Reason in Common Sense). It is difficult to see how anything can be repeated when it is forgotten, covered up, or unknown to begin with.

There are many conceptions of history. Hegel and Marx posit dialectics where various stages and interactions are thought to lead to progress and eventually a teleological perfection. Others, like Walter Benjamin, read history as a persistent accumulation of chaos and catastropher, with progress coming in the form of the backward-flung angel hurling through the post-lapsarian state (Illuminations). In this sense, it doesn’t really matter whether our age is the pinnacle of human existence or the nadir, or even if our time is not substantially different from anything that has already occurred. What is important is that virtually all reputable sciences, philosophies, and psychological movements (predicated on the idea that past events affect subsequent consciousness) must take account of past events and consider a broader historical context. Otherwise, as Dr. Phil demonstrates, one’s historical perspective mirrors that dangerous relationship where the subject becomes an illogical and introverted, social outsider obsessed with destruction.

Seth Woolf
Creator of Deconstructing Phil
Ashworth University Contributing Blogger 

*Although Mr. Seth Woolf is currently pursuing a law career in Boston, Massachusetts—he may need to change horses in midstream, as he’s already fast becoming an underground legend in the psychology world, not for his theories on Freud or Žižek or even Foucault for that matter, but for his groundbreaking work on the enigma that is Dr. Phil McGraw.  The recently launched blog, Deconstructing Phil, is insightful, funny, disturbing, and always original.  We’re excited to have Seth Woolf as a member of our contributing bloggers’ network and we’d like to thank Seth for the opportunity to share his perspectives with our Ashworth University student community.  All kidding aside, there is a lot to be learned on Deconstructing Phil and we encourage you to visit and tell your friends about Seth’s blog as he continues spiraling out of control into Dr. Phil’s mind.  Thanks Seth!

While cases of religious ecstasy are hardly unusual, there are definitely examples that tend to stand out. In 1728, in the Parisian cemetery of St. Medard, a phenomenon began that quickly became the talk of France. Following the burial of a pious, Jansenist bishop named Francois de Paris in the cemetery, stories arose of miraculous cures being worked at the bishop’s tomb. Pious female parishioners, who later became known as St. Medard’s convulsionaries, were described as engaging in “contortions and convulsive movements, attended by cries, shrieks and groans, all of which were regarded as manifestations of divine power”. The adherents would work themselves into states of religious ecstasy and engage in acts of severe torture which they either inflicted on themselves or through the actions of assistants known as Secouristes. They would then reportedly work miracles and cure all forms of disease.

The massive hysteria that arose led to a crackdown by the police under orders of the King and the eventual closure of the cemetery in 1732. Thousands of convulsionaries were arrested and the movement was driven underground. It eventually split into different factions and faded into obscurity (although it would briefly reappear in Paris in 1759). The police action gave rise to a famous epigram: “De par le roi, defense a Dieu De faire miracle en ce lieu. (Louis to God: To keep the peace, here miracles must henceforth cease).”

The convulsionaries of St. Medard gained a literary immortality through the writings of Voltaire and Diderot. A less famous but longer-lasting example of religious convulsionaries occurred in the northern Spanish town of Jaca. This small town was known for centuries for the annual pilgrimage to commemorate its patron saint, Orosia (also spelled Eurosia). Different accounts of Orosia’s life exist (and she may have never existed at all) and it remains unclear why she was named patron saint of the demonically possessed but she became the patron saint of Jaca after her relics were brought there in the eleventh century.

               Thanks to Karen for permission to use this Photo.

From that time until the Church banned the practice in 1947, St. Orosia’s convulsionaries took part in a bizarre procession each year on June 25 (the Saint’s feast day). The procession involved the “demonically afflicted” (eg, epileptics, mentally ill, physically handicapped, and other stricken) and took place in front of the Saint’s sarcophagus. The pilgrims would gather to find healing for their various afflictions through participation in the procession and exorcism rituals. In a description of the procession by a medical observer in 1881 (and bear with me here since my Spanish is rusty), the bishop and retinue of friars would start off the procession accompanied by music and dancing. “Paralytics, madmen, epileptics and hysterics would gather during the night before the chest containing the saint’s relics.

Their infirmity is attributed to possession by a devil and they seek the devil’s elimination. Cramping, muscle contractions, spasmodic grins, and howling are the preamble of the convulsions. They would fall to the ground until they were black and blue, blood spurting from their mouths”. At this point, the exorcism would begin with multiple applications of the rosary and cross which the convulsionaries would kiss repeatedly. Once the demon was deemed to have fled, the newly healed convulsionaries would jump for joy and scream loudly.

It is doubtful whether any actual “cures” took place (there were certainly no follow-up studies) but the sight of the newly-exorcised praising the saint for their healing made for quite a spectacle by all accounts and drew pilgrims from all over the region.The banning by the Church in 1947 brought an end to St. Orosia’s convulsionaries and marked the last example of recurring mass motor hysteria in
Europe. Sadly, the use of exorcism in dealing with mental illness continues even today with tragic results When proper mental health care isn’t available and families seek for a cure for their loved ones, what solutions might they turn to in desperation?

Romeo Vitelli
Creator of Providentia
AU Contributing Blogger

*A man who has lived a fascinating life, Dr. Romeo Vitelli spent fifteen years as a staff psychologist in Millbrook Correctional Centre, a maximum-security prison run by the Ontario government. In 2003, he successfully escaped prison and went into full-time private practice and currently also serves as a Disaster Management volunteer with the Red Cross.  He is one of the web’s most respected and trusted sources in matters of psychology.  We here in the AUCJ community are honored to share with our students and would like to express our gratitude.  Visit Providentia to learn more about the life and work of Dr. Romeo Vitelli.

There seems no question that William James Sidis was a genius. Born in New York City in 1898, his parents, Boris and Sarah, were Russian immigrants and intellectuals who had fled to the U.S. to escape persecution. Boris earned his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees at Harvard University and taught psychology there. He was a close friend of William James who was his son’s godfather (William was also named for him). Sarah was an M.D. whose family fled the Russian pogroms ten years before William’s birth. She gave up her medical career to be a full-time mother to her son (and later daughter). They both held radical notions concerning early child education (radical for the time anyway) and encouraged William to learn without using the discipline that characterized education in that era.

The results were nothing less than spectacular: William could read the New York Times by the age of 18 months and taught himself eight languages by the time he was eight (he also invented a new language and a new logarithm table). At the age of 11, he entered Harvard as part of an experimental program along with other promising prodigies including Norbert Weiner and Buckminster Fuller. He excelled in higher mathematics and language and a brilliant future was predicted for him. Intelligence testing was still in its infancy (and Boris dismissed IQ tests as “pedantic and misleading”) but later estimates would put William’s IQ in the 250 to 300 range. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts Degree with full honors at the age of 16.

And then things went downhill from there…

His lifelong feud with the press began with an interview before graduation in which he stated that he planned to remain celibate and that women did not appeal to him. Publicity over the interview may have been the cause of his being threatened by a gang of Harvard students and which led to his leaving Harvard to go to Rice University in Texas. After some time, he abandoned mathematics and enrolled in Harvard Law School in 1916. He withdrew three years later without finishing and became involved in political causes including being a conscientious objector to the World War I draft.

His arrest in 1919 for participating in a socialist rally that turned violent caused him to be sentenced to 18 months in prison for rioting and assault (there is some question concerning the legitimacy of the charges). His father made a special arrangement with the District Attorney to keep William out of prison by having him sent to his private sanatorium instead. This seemed to be an especially dark time of William’s life and he never forgave his parents for “kidnapping” him and holding him against his will for more than a year. He accused them of subjecting him to various forms of “mental torture” including scolding and nagging for hours at a time. He was frequently threatened with transfer to a regular insane asylum where his prospects for an eventual release would be slim.

William eventually managed to escape in 1921, but he never reconciled with his parents. His experience in the sanatorium had left him “scared of his own shadow” and his parents’ efforts to have him returned to their care made him extremely paranoid about his privacy and intrusions into his life. He spent the rest of his life apparently drifting between menial jobs although he continued to publish a range of eclectic works (mostly under pseudonyms) that still attracts a cult following.

He especially resented intrusions into his life by the press (who regularly presented him as being an unhappy and burned-out product of his forced acceleration) and even sued one paper for what he considered to be a libelous article about him that caused “grievous mental anguish and humiliation”. The stress from the lawsuit may have contributed to his death from a cerebral hemorrhage in 1944.

What do we make of William Sidis? Despite his early death and failure to live up to his early potential, his case is still followed in educational circles. Would things have turned out differently had his parents not intervened in his jail sentence as they did? Some questions can’t be answered.

Romeo Vitelli
Creator of Providentia
AU Contributing Blogger

*A man who has lived a fascinating life, Dr. Romeo Vitelli spent fifteen years as a staff psychologist in Millbrook Correctional Centre, a maximum-security prison run by the Ontario government. In 2003, he successfully escaped prison and went into full-time private practice and currently also serves as a Disaster Management volunteer with the Red Cross.  He is one of the web’s most respected and trusted sources in matters of psychology.  We here in the AUCJ community are honored to share with our students and would like to express our gratitude.  Visit Providentia to learn more about the life and work of Dr. Romeo Vitelli.

The nuclear explosions that devastated the city of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 and the city of Nagasaki three days later resulted in massive destruction and loss of life. Although the precise number of casualties has never been determined, it is estimated that 70,000 died in Hiroshima due to the immediate effects of the blast with an additional 50000 in Nagasaki (mostly civilians).

Estimates of the lingering effects of radiation exposure are even more problematic although it has been suggested that many thousands of casualties occurred in the decades that followed. It would be the only time that nuclear weapons would be used in war (so far). Another legacy of the bombings is far more subtle but just as devastating for the survivors.

Since 1945, there has been a lingering stigma attached to survivors and their descendants that led to them being frequently ostracized by mainstream Japanese society. Termed the hibakusha (meaning “radiation-affected people” in Japanese), there are over 200,000 that have been formally registered with the Japanese government (registration being necessary to receive compensation) although many hibakusha also live in neighbouring countries such as South Korea (there were numerous Korean and other foreign nationals living in Hiroshima and Nagasaki at the time of the bombings).

It would take years of activism and public awareness campaigns for the Japanese government to pass legislation subsidizing basic medical treatment for hibakusha in 1957.  (the United States government was formally absolved of any responsibility for compensation in a treaty with Japan in 1951). Due to the misinformation surrounding radiation exposure including fears of it being hereditary or contagious, many hibakusha face ongoing job and housing discrimination and non-affected families even object to their children marrying into a hibakusha family. To avoid discrimination, many hibakusha conceal their status to “pass” in mainstream society.

               Thanks to Nancy for permission to use this Photo.

The psychological scars involved with being a hibakusha are considerable although research into the psychosocial impact of being a survivor has been relatively neglected. In addition to the expected posttraumatic symptoms for those who survived the bombings, there is also considerable survivor guilt and a “conspiracy of silence” surrounding hibakusha discussing their experiences (although this has started to change as survivors become better organized). Survivors who emigrated to other countries after the war (including the United States) began organizing local support chapters. Despite attempts to encourage survivors to tell their stories, the lingering stigma has resulted in many hibakusha refusing to “out” themselves and sharing their experiences. As the elderly survivors die, their stories often die with them.  

Stigma can take a variety of forms and people can be ostracized for all sorts of reasons. Having the wrong skin colour, creed, place of origin, medical diagnosis or sexual orientation has been used to justify horrendous discrimination over the years. Simply being in the wrong place at the wrong time seems sufficient for some. It can happen in a flash of light.

Romeo Vitelli
Creator of Providentia
AU Contributing Blogger

*A man who has lived a fascinating life, Dr. Romeo Vitelli spent fifteen years as a staff psychologist in Millbrook Correctional Centre, a maximum-security prison run by the Ontario government. In 2003, he successfully escaped prison and went into full-time private practice and currently also serves as a Disaster Management volunteer with the Red Cross.  He is one of the web’s most respected and trusted sources in matters of psychology.  We here in the AUCJ community are honored to share with our students and would like to express our gratitude.  Visit Providentia to learn more about the life and work of Dr. Romeo Vitelli.