The Case of Sybil in the Teaching of Psychology |
| |
| Authors: | Robert W Rieber Harold Takooshian Humberto Iglesias |
| |
| Institution: | 1. John Jay College of Criminal Justice CUNY, New York, New Yorkrwrieber@yahoo.com;3. Pordham University, New York, New York;4. U.C.L.A. Law School, Los Angeles, California |
| |
| Abstract: | What do psychology professors today typically tell their students about the case of Sybil (F R. Schreiber, 1973}—once considered the classic case of multiple personality disorder (MPD), until gradually revealed to be afraud by new evidence (R. W Rieber, 1998)? A 14-item survey was completed by a national sample of 125 college psychology teachers. It was found that a sizable minority of teachers discussMPD (35%) or Sybil (23%) in their classes, 40% continue to regard Sybil as a classic case of MPD, and83% report being only slightly or not at allfamiliar with new revelations about the Sybil case. Psychology teachers are offered 5 guidelines for accurately teaching about Sybil today. |
| |
| Keywords: | Sybil teaching psychology |
|
|
