Skip to main content Accessibility help

We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Close this message to accept cookies or find out how to manage your cookie settings.

Close cookie message
×
Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-dzt6s Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-23T04:46:07.532Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

7 - Dissociation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 March 2023

By
Steven Jay Lynn ,
Fiona Sleight ,
Craig P. Polizzi ,
Damla Aksen ,
Lawrence Patihis ,
Henry Otgaar  and
Olivier Dodier
Edited by
Stephen Hupp  and
Cara L. Santa Maria
Stephen Hupp
Affiliation:
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
Cara L. Santa Maria
Affiliation:
Fielding Graduate University, California
Get access

Summary

This chapter describes pseudoscience and questionable ideas related to dissociative identity disorder (DID), dissociative amnesia, and depersonalization/derealization disorder. The chapter opens by discussing controversies such as the “memory wars.” Dubious treatments include memory recovery interventions, exorcism, DID-oriented therapy, ego state therapy, and internal family systems therapy. The chapter closes by reviewing research-supported approaches.

Keywords

dissociative identity disordermultiple personality disordermemory warsbody memoriesbrainspottingexorcismDID-oriented therapyego state therapyinternal family systems therapytransdiagnostic approaches
Type
Chapter
Information
Pseudoscience in Therapy
A Skeptical Field Guide
 , pp. 94 - 110
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2023

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

American Psychiatric Association (2022). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, fifth edition, text revision (DSM-5-TR). American Psychiatric Association.Google Scholar
Berntsen, D., & Rubin, D. C. (2014). Involuntary memories and dissociative amnesia: Assessing key assumptions in posttraumatic stress disorder research. Clinical Psychological Science, 2(2), 174–186. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702613496241Google Scholar
Bowman, E. S. (1993). Clinical and spiritual effects of exorcism in fifteen patients with multiple personality disorder. Dissociation: Progress in the Dissociative Disorders, 6(4), 222–238.Google Scholar
Bull, D. L., Ellason, J. W., & Ross, C. A. (1998). Exorcism revisited: Positive outcomes with dissociative identity disorder. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 26(2), 188–196. https://doi.org/10.1177/009164719802600205Google Scholar
Caron, C. (2011). Therapist “brainwashed” woman into believing she was in a satanic cult, attorney says. ABC News. https://abcnews.go.com/US/therapist-accused-implanting-satanic-memories/story?id=15043529Google Scholar
Dalenberg, C. J., Brand, B. L., Gleaves, D. H., Dorahy, M. J., Loewenstein, R. J., Cardeña, E., Frewen, P. A., Carlson, E. B., & Spiegel, D. (2012). Evaluation of the evidence for the trauma and fantasy models of dissociation. Psychological Bulletin, 138, 550–588.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dalenberg, C. J., Brand, B. L., Loewenstein, R. J., Gleaves, D. H., Dorahy, M. J., Cardeña, E., Frewen, P. A., Carlson, E. B., & Spiegel, D. (2014). Reality versus fantasy: Reply to Lynn et al. (2014). Psychological Bulletin, 140(3), 911–920. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0036685Google Scholar
Dr. Janov’s Primal Center. What is primal therapy? Santa Monica (CA): Dr. Janov’s Primal Center; 2008 [cited 2021 Dec 23]. www.primaltherapy.com/what-is-primal-therapy.phpGoogle Scholar
EllieColmDesigns. (2019). Dissociative Identity Disorder Journal. Author.Google Scholar
Fetkewicz, J., Sharma, V., & Merskey, H. (2000). A note on suicidal deterioration with recovered memory treatment. Journal of Affective Disorders, 58(2), 155–159. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0165-0327(98)00193-1Google Scholar
Ganslev, C. A., Storebø, O. J., Callesen, H. E., Ruddy, R., & Søgaard, U. (2020). Psychosocial interventions for conversion and dissociative disorders in adults. Cochrane Database of Systematic Revs. 7: CD005331. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD005331.pub3.Google ScholarPubMed
Gleaves, D. H. (1996). The sociocognitive model of dissociative identity disorder: A reexamination of the evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 120(1), 42–59. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.120.1.42Google Scholar
Grand, D. What is brainspotting? [cited 2015 July 31]. brainspotting.pro/page/what-brainspottingGoogle Scholar
Houben, S. T. L., Otgaar, H., Roelofs, J., Wessel, I., Patihis, L., & Merckelbach, H. (2021). Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) practitioners’ beliefs about memory. Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice, 8(3), 258–273. https://doi.org/10.1037/cns0000211Google Scholar
Huntjens, R. J., Rijkeboer, M. M., & Arntz, A. (2019). Schema therapy for Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID): Rationale and study protocol. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 10(1), 1571377. https://doi.org/10.1080/20008198.2019.1571377Google Scholar
International Society for the Study of Trauma and Dissociation (ISSTD). (2011). Guidelines for treating dissociative identity disorder in adults, third revision: Summary version. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 12(2), 188–212.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Janet, P. (1973). L’automatisme psychologique.Société Pierre Janet (original work published 1889).Google Scholar
Kluft, R. P. (1991). Clinical presentations of multiple personality disorder. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 14(3), 605–629. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0193-953X(18)30291-0CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lambert, K., & Lilienfeld, S. O. (2007). Brain stains. Scientific American Mind, 18(5), 46–53. www.jstor.org/stable/24939724Google Scholar
Lanning, K. V. (1991). Ritual abuse: A law enforcement view or perspective. Child Abuse & Neglect, 15(3), 171–173. https://doi.org/10.1016/0145-2134(91)90061-HCrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lilienfeld, S. O. (2007). Psychological treatments that cause harm. Perspectives in Psychological Science, 2(1), 53–70.Google Scholar
Lilienfeld, S. O., Lynn, S. J., Kirsch, I., Chaves, J. F., Sarbin, T. R., Ganaway, G. K., & Powell, R. A. (1999). Dissociative identity disorder and the sociocognitive model: Recalling the lessons of the past. Psychological Bulletin, 125(5), 507–523.Google Scholar
Loftus, E. F. (1993). The reality of repressed memories. American Psychologist, 48(5), 518–537.Google Scholar
Loftus, E. F. (1997a). Creating false memories. https://staff.washington.edu/eloftus/Articles/sciam.htmCrossRefGoogle Scholar
Loftus, E. F. (1997b). Repressed memory accusations: Devastated families and devastated patients. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 11(1), 25–30. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1099-0720(199702)11:1<25::AID-ACP452>3.0.CO;2-JGoogle Scholar
Lynn, S. J., Condon, L., & Colletti, G. (2013). The treatment of dissociative identity disorder: Questions and considerations. O’Donohue, W. & Lilienfeld, S. O. (Eds.), Case studies in clinical psychological science: Bridging the gap from science to practice (pp. 329–351). Oxford.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lynn, S. J., Knox, J. A., Fassler, O., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Loftus, E. F. (2004). Memory, trauma, and dissociation. In Rosen, G. M. (Ed.), Posttraumatic stress disorder: Issues and controversies (pp. 163–186). John Wiley & Sons. https://doi.org/10.1002/9780470713570.ch9CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lynn, S. J., Lilienfeld, S. O., Merckelbach, H., Maxwell, R., Aksen, D., Baltman, J., & Giesbrecht, T. (2019). Dissociative disorders. In Maddux, J. & Winstead, B. (Eds.), Psychopathology: Foundations for a contemporary understanding. 5th ed. Routledge.Google Scholar
Lynn, S. J., Lock, T., Loftus, E. F., Krackow, E., & Lilienfeld, S. O. (2003). The remembrance of things past: Problematic memory recovery techniques in psychotherapy. In Lilienfeld, S. O., Lynn, S. J., & Lohr, J. M. (Eds.), Science and pseudoscience in clinical psychology (pp. 205–239). Guilford Press.Google Scholar
Lynn, S. J., Polizzi, C., Merckelbach, H., Chui-de, C., Maxwell, R., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Van-Heughten, D. (2022). Dissociation and dissociative disorders: Beyond the sociocognitive and posttraumatic models toward a transtheoretical/transdiagnostic perspective. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 18, 259–289.Google Scholar
Mack, L. (2019). Trauma, body memories, and how to heal them. https://thebodyisnotanapology.com/magazine/what-are-body-memories-and-how-to-heal-them/Google Scholar
Mangiulli, I., Otgaar, H., Jelicic, M., Merckelbach, H. (2022). A critical review of case studies on dissociative amnesia. Clinical Psychological Science, 10(2), 191–211. https://doi.org/10.1177/21677026211018194CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Maxwell, R., Merckelbach, H., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Lynn, S. J. (2018). The treatment of dissociation: An evaluation of effectiveness and potential mechanisms. In David, D., Lynn, S. J., Montgomery, G. H. (Eds.), Evidence-based psychotherapy: The state of the science and practice (pp. 329–361). Wiley-Blackwell.Google Scholar
McNally, R. J. (2005). Remembering trauma. Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Mohajerin, B., Lynn, S. J., Bakhtiyari, M., & Dolatshah, B. (2020). Evaluating the unified protocol in the treatment of dissociative identity disorder. Cognitive and Behavioral Practice, 27(3), 270–289. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cbpra.2019.07.012CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Otgaar, H., Howe, M. L., Patihis, L., Merckelbach, H., Lynn, S. J., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Loftus, E. F. (2019). The return of the repressed: The persistent and problematic claims of long-forgotten trauma. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 14(6), 1072–1095. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691619862306Google Scholar
Patihis, L., & Pendergrast, M. H. (2019). Reports of recovered memories of abuse in therapy in a large age-representative US national sample: Therapy type and decade comparisons. Clinical Psychological Science, 7(1), 3–21. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702618773315CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Patihis, L., Ho, L. Y., Tingen, I. W., Lilienfeld, S. O., & Loftus, E. F. (2014). Are the “memory wars” over? A scientist–practitioner gap in beliefs about repressed memory. Psychological Science, 25(2), 519–530. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797613510718CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pierce, L. (2014). The integrative power of dance/movement therapy: Implications for the treatment of dissociation and developmental trauma. The Arts in Psychotherapy, 41(1), 7–15.Google Scholar
Pignotti, M., & Thyer, B. A. (2015). New age and related novel unsupported therapies in mental health practice. In Lilienfeld, S. O., Lynn, S. J., & Lohr, J. M. (Eds.), Science and pseudoscience in clinical psychology (2nd ed., pp. 191–209). Guilford.Google Scholar
Polizzi, C. P., Aksen, D. E., & Lynn, S. J. (2022). Quality of life, emotion regulation, and dissociation: Evaluating unique relations in an undergraduate sample and probable PTSD subsample. Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy, 14(1), 107–115. https://doi.org/10.1037/tra0000904Google Scholar
Pro Profs Quizzes. (2021). Do I have repressed memories quiz. www.proprofs.com.Google Scholar
Putnam, F. W. (1989). Diagnosis and treatment of multiple personality disorder. Guilford.Google Scholar
Rozental, A., Kottorp, A., Boettcher, J., Andersson, G., & Carlbring, P. (2016). Negative effects of psychological treatments: an exploratory factor analysis of the negative effects questionnaire for monitoring and reporting adverse and unwanted events. PLoS One, 11(6), e0157503.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Sauerland, M. & Otgaar, M. (2022). Teaching psychology students to change (or correct) controversial beliefs about memory works. Memory, 30(6), 753–762. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2021.1874994Google Scholar
Schwartz, R. C. (1995). Internal family systems. Guilford.Google Scholar
Scoboria, A., Wade, K. A., Lindsay, D. S., Azad, T., Strange, D., Ost, J., & Hyman, I. E. (2017). A mega-analysis of memory reports from eight peer-reviewed false memory implantation studies. Memory, 25(2), 146–163. https://doi.org/10.1080/09658211.2016.1260747CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Spanos, N. P. (1994). Multiple identity enactments and multiple personality disorder: A sociocognitive perspective. Psychological Bulletin, 116(1), 143–165.Google Scholar
Stanley, S. Welcome to Somatic Transformation [Internet]. Bainbridge Island (WA): Somatic Transformations; 2015 [cited 2015 July 31]. www.somatic-transformation.org/SomaticTransformation.html.Google Scholar
Thyer, B. A., & Pignotti, M. (2015). Science and pseudoscience in social work practice. Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Traumatic Incident Reduction (TIR) Association. Traumatic incident reduction (TIR) [Internet]. Ann Arbor (MI): TIR Association; [year of publication unknown] [cited 2015 July 31]. www.tir.org/about-tir.htmlGoogle Scholar
Twombly, J. H. (2013). Integrating IFS with phase-oriented treatment of clients with dissociative disorder. In Sweezy, M. & Ziskind, E. L. (Eds.), Internal family systems therapy (pp. 100–117). Routledge.Google Scholar
van der Kolk, B. A. (1994). The body keeps the score: Memory and the evolving psychobiology of posttraumatic stress. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 1, 53–265.Google Scholar
Watkins, J. (1978). The therapeutic self. Human Sciences Press.Google Scholar
Watkins, J. G. (2001). Comment on Lynn. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 43(3–4), 293–295.Google Scholar

Save book to Kindle

To save this book to your Kindle, first ensure [email protected] is added to your Approved Personal Document E-mail List under your Personal Document Settings on the Manage Your Content and Devices page of your Amazon account. Then enter the ‘name’ part of your Kindle email address below. Find out more about saving to your Kindle.

Note you can select to save to either the @free.kindle.com or @kindle.com variations. ‘@free.kindle.com’ emails are free but can only be saved to your device when it is connected to wi-fi. ‘@kindle.com’ emails can be delivered even when you are not connected to wi-fi, but note that service fees apply.

Find out more about the Kindle Personal Document Service.

Available formats
×

Save book to Dropbox

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

Available formats
×