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The following document, known as
the "Barden letter" initiated the beginning R. . Christopher Barden, Ph.D.,
J.D., LP
January 5, 1995 The Honorable Henry Hyde, Chairman Dear Representative Hyde : Mental illness, child abuse and health care fraud are serious social problems that should be addressed in a responsible, effective manner. In the past year, the academic, scientific and psychotherapy communities have become embroiled in a well publicized controversy regarding the "recovery" of long "repressed" memories of childhood trauma including sexual abuse.(1) Regardless of the long term outcome of the scientific debate regarding "recovered memories," the use of such controversial, unproven "treatments" on unsuspecting and unwarned psychotherapy patients raises serious legal, legislative and public policy issues which must be addressed immediately. Consumer, patient, and professional groups are just now realizing that psychotherapy patients across America are being subjected to experimental and potentially dangerous forms of "psychotherapy," including "memory retrieval/enhancement" therapy, at taxpayer expense.(2) Even more disturbing is the almost universal practice of subjecting patients to these controversial and potentially dangerous procedures without any semblance of informed consent. We believe that fraud investigations by the F.B.I. and other agencies would reveal that virtually none of the therapists engaged in "memory retrieval" or "memory enhancement" procedures are informing their patients (or insurance companies) of the experimental, very controversial and potentially dangerous nature of these "treatments." Many of these therapists are also failing to inform their patients of the reservations and warnings voiced publicly by the American Medical Association and numerous experts in the field regarding the hazards of these unproven procedures. Consumers, parent and other groups are also beginning to realize that the American Medical Association (A.M.A.) and other professional organizations warned against the inappropriate use of such techniques many years ago. As the A.M.A. Research Council noted in April of 1985:
"The council finds that recollections obtained during hypnosis [and similar procedures such as guided imagery] can involve confabulations and pseudomemories and not only fail to be more accurate, but actually appear to be less reliable than nonhypnotic recall.... There are no techniques based on the individual’s report that can discriminate reliably between a true and false memory report in any specific case...."(3) Similarly, basic textbooks in psychiatry and psychology have warned against the use of such procedures for years. For example, one of the most widely used and cited textbooks in psychiatry noted, "An overwhelming body of research indicates that hypnosis does not increase accurate memory, but does increase the person’s willingness to report previously uncertain memories with strong conviction. Furthermore, the hypnotized individual has a pronounced tendency to confabulate [produce false memories] in those areas where there is little or no recollection; to distort memory to become more congruent with beliefs, hopes, and fantasies; and to incorporate cues from leading questions as factual memories. Finally, there is a high likelihood that the beliefs of the hypnotist will somehow be communicated to the patient in hypnosis and incorporated into what the patient believes to be memories, often with strong conviction."(4) (5) It should be obvious to any law-abiding therapist that billing Medicaid and Medicare for controversial, unproven, experimental and hazardous techniques such as "memory retrieval" or "memory enhancement" therapy appears to constitute a fraud on the health care system and the taxpayers of America. It should be obvious to any law abiding therapist that subjecting patients to unproven and potentially hazardous "treatments" without informed consent violates patients’ civil rights. We are concerned that the federal government apparently continues to condone such unethical and potentially illegal behavior and waste millions and perhaps billions of tax dollars, without question or investigation, reimbursing "therapists" for experimental, controversial, untested, unproven and hazardous "psychotherapy" procedures such as "memory retrieval" or "memory enhancement" therapies. Such reimbursements appear to violate federal laws, state laws, federal regulations and state regulations. Such inappropriate reimbursements create powerful financial incentives for the reckless use of experimental "therapies" on unsuspecting psychotherapy patients. This apparent health care fraud has also created unprecedented problems in the legal system. Accusations of childhood trauma based upon "recovered memories" (including "memories" of sexual abuse by parents, relatives, "cults," and "aliens" from UFO’S) have reached epidemic proportions. These largely uncorroborated accusations feed into and are fueled by a mass hysteria of child sexual abuse that, in terms of the number of lives destroyed, may well exceed the Salem witch trials of 1692 and the McCarthy hearings of the 1950s.(6) Economic incentives for this hysteria were apparently created by the flow of federal funds (under the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act) to a network of child protective agencies. These funds were unwisely dispersed in direct proportion to interagency referrals of suspected child abuse. Under this poorly conceived program, each false accusation of abuse may be compensated with cash rewards. Child abuse is too serious a social problem to be dealt with in this irresponsible manner. We strongly support the implementation of effective programs to reduce the incidence of child abuse, assist victims of abuse and punish those who harm children. Efforts to attain these important goals must, however, be based in fact rather than prejudice, science rather than hysteria and reason rather than political ideology. The recent increase in additional forms of psychotherapy fraud is apparently related to the increased availability of public funds for untested and unproven "treatments" for emotional disorders. The Congress has a responsibility to require mental health treatments to be proven safe and effective before they are offered to an unsuspecting public. Most tragically, the time, attention and resources now diverted to adults with "recovered memories" are sorely needed in reliable, responsible programs to prevent actual child abuse and apprehend and punish actual child abusers. Another serious legal issue involves so-called "experts" who are willing to testify in criminal and/or civil trials that they are reliably able to certify the "truth" of recovered memories based solely on the patient’s report. Such "experts" are clearly engaging in fraud on the court. As the most recent A.M.A. public statement notes, "[i]t is not yet known how to distinguish true memories from imagined events in these [recovered memory] cases.... The A.M.A. considers recovered memories of childhood sexual abuse to be of uncertain authenticity, which should be subject to external verification.... The use of recovered memories is fraught with problems of misapplication."(7) The legal system, as well as the health care system, is thus being abused by irresponsible, reckless and fraudulent therapists who claim the ability to "retrieve" fully accurate "repressed memories" of childhood trauma. To reduce the possibility of future, similar tragedies we suggest that the following language be included in all appropriate sections of relevant health care codes:
"No tax or tax exempt monies may be used for any form of health care treatment, including any form of psychotherapy, that has not been proven safe and effective by rigorous, valid and reliable scientific Investigations and accepted as safe and effective by a substantial majority of the relevant scientific community." (8) Because these widespread, harmful practices waste millions of taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars, violate the civil rights of patients and families and defile the American judicial process, we respectfully request open hearings into these important scientific, legal, consumer protection and public policy issues. Although any number of committees could address these issues, we have been informed that several committees have already scheduled hearings on this or related topics. We respectfully request a time, a date and a place where these issues may be presented in a joint hearing before the press, the American public and any and all appropriate committees of the Congress.
Respectfully, R. Christopher Barden, Ph.D., J.D., Paul E. Meehl, Ph.D., Terence W. Campbell, Ph.D., Richard Ofshe, Ph.D., Richard A. Gardner, M.D., Margaret Singer, Ph.D., William Grove, Ph.D., Michael D. Yapko, Ph.D., Robyn Dawes, Ph.D., Richard Flyer, M.D., Robert Kinscherff, Ph.D., J.D., Mel Guyer, Ph.D., J.D., Francis Fincham, Ph.D., Thom Moore, Ph.D., Henry E. Adams, Ph.D., E. Mark Cummings, Ph.D., Lewis P. Lipsitt, Ph.D., Donald M. Kaplan, Ph.D., Robert R. Holt, Ph.D., Richard M. McFall, Ph.D., Hans H. Strupp, Ph.D., Stephen J. Lepore, Ph.D., Lee Sechrest, Ph.D., Paul Ekman, Ph.D., Hans J. Eysenck, Ph.D. SIGNERS OF VERSION TWO OF
THIS LETTER Jerome Kagan, Ph.D., George Stricker, Ph.D., Debra Ann Poole, Ph.D., Mark L. Howe, Ph.D., J. Don Read, Ph.D., Howard Shevrin, Ph.D. BRIEF SUMMARY OF CREDENTIALS R. Christopher Barden, Ph.D., J.D. - is often introduced as the "only licensed psychologist (Ph.D., Univ. of Minnesota) and licensed attorney to receive a national research award in psychology (W. T. Grant Foundation Faculty Scholar Award, Foundation for Child Development Young Scholar Award) and a law degree from Harvard Law School (J.D., cum laude)." Prof. Barden currently practices law and psychology, teaches "Law, Psychiatry and Psychology" at the University of Minnesota Law School and serves on the Minnesota State Board of Psychology. Dr. Barden, with colleagues in law and medicine, drafted model health care reform legislation (the Emergency Medical Systems for Children Act) which has been enacted in some form in a number of states. Prof. Barden served on the Editorial Consulting Board for Developmental Psychology and has held faculty positions in a highly ranked psychology department (former Director of the Ph.D. Child Clinical Psychology Training Program, Univ. of Utah), a highly ranked medical school (Department of Surgery, Univ. of Utah) and a highly ranked law school (Univ. of Minnesota) and has published in the leading journals in child psychology, social psychology, medicine/surgery, and law/legislation. Paul E. Meehl, Ph.D. - One of the most influential and respected psychologists of the 20th Century, Prof. Meehl, former President of the American Psychological Association, has been a leading figure in psychotherapy, behavior genetics, the philosophy of science, and forensic psychology for decades. Dr. Meehl received the APA Distinguished Scientific Contributor Award, the Distinguished Scientist Award, the Klopfer Distinguished Contribution Award, the ABPP Award for Distinguished Service and Outstanding Contributions to the Profession, the Gold Medal Award for Lifetime Achievement in the Application of Psychology, the American Psychological Society’s William James Award, the J. Zubin Award for Distinguished Contributions in Psychopathology, and the APA Award for Distinguished Contributions to Knowledge. Prof. Meehl is a Diplomate of the American Board of Professional Psychology (Clinical) and served as a member of the ABPP. Dr. Meehl trained, and served as a mentor to, many of the most prominent and productive psychologists in the United States. Prof. Meehl served as a member of the American Psychological Associations Committee on Test Standards as well as Chairman of the APA Special Committee on Certification and Licensure of Psychologists. Prof. Meehl is the author of over 160 professional publications and served for many years as Regents Professor at the University of Minnesota lecturing in Psychology, Law, Medicine and Philosophy. Margaret Singer, Ph.D. - Dr. Margaret T. Singer in one of the most respected and influential psychologists in the United States. Dr. Singer has been a recipient of the Hofheimer Prize for research from the American Psychiatric Association; the Stanley R. Dean Award for Research in Schizophrenia from the American College of Psychiatrists; the McAlpine Award for Achievement in Research from the Mental Health Association of the United States; the Research Scientist Award from the National Institute of Mental Health; The American Family Therapy Association Award for Distinguished Achievement in Family Therapy Research Award; the Leo J. Ryan Memorial Award for Research on Cults from the Citizens Freedom Foundation; and the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Award for Cumulative Contributions to Research in Family Therapy. Professor Singer also served as the President of the American Psychosomatic Society and served on President Gerald Ford’s Biomedical Research Panel. Professor Singer serves on the editorial board of many of the most prestigious journals in the field of family psychology and psychosomatic medicine. A long time member of the faculty of the University of California, Berkeley, Prof. Singer has also served as a Faculty Member and/or Lecturer at The Albert Einstein College of Medicine, The Washington School of Psychiatry, The Massachusetts Institute of Technology, The Department of Psychiatry at the University of Rochester School of Medicine, the Department of Psychology at The University of California at Los Angeles Psychology, the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California at San Francisco, and other institutions. Professor Singer is the author of over 100 professional publications. Richard Ofshe, Ph.D. - recipient of a 1979 Pulitzer Prize, Prof. Ofshe, of the University of California at Berkeley, is known around the world as a leading expert in suggestibility, indoctrination and forensic psychology. A member of the Editorial Boards of The American Journal of Sociology, Sociometry, and Administrative Science Quarterly, Dr. Ofshe has published numerous books and professional articles in this field and has consulted with numerous law enforcement agencies including the U.S. Department of Justice. Richard A. Gardner, M.D. - Dr. Gardner, Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, is also on the faculty of the William A. White Psychoanalytic Institute. Dr. Gardner is a Fellow of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the American Academy of Psychoanalysis, and the American Psychiatric Association as well as a member of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law. Prof. Gardner is an internationally recognized and respected expert in the areas of psychotherapy, child psychiatry and forensic psychiatry and has published over 250 books, articles, audiotapes and videotapes. Francis Fincham, Ph.D. - Prof. Fincham, a former Rhodes Scholar, currently serves as Professor and Director of the Clinical Psychology Training Program at the University of Illinois. Dr. Fincham is the recipient of the G. Miller Award for Early Career Achievement, a Fellow of the American Psychological Society, a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, a recipient of the Berscheid-Hatfield Career Award for Distinguished Contributions, recipient of the W.T. Grant Faculty Scholar Award and a Fellow of the British Psychological Society. The author of dozens of professional publications and books, Prof. Fincham is an internationally recognized expert in several areas of social, developmental and family psychology. Terence W. Campbell, Ph.D. - One of the best known psychotherapists in the country, Dr. Campbell has published widely in the area of child sexual abuse, the hazards of psychotherapy and iatrogenic outcomes. Dr. Campbell was made a Fellow of the American Psychological Association in 1992 in recognition of his "distinguished contribution to scientifically oriented psychology." William Grove, Ph.D. - Professor William M. Grove of the University of Minnesota is a nationally recognized expert in psychopathology, diagnosis, behavior genetics and scientific methodology. Professor Grove has served as a reviewer for virtually every leading journal in psychology and psychiatry, and is the author of over 80 professional publications. A former director of Clinical Psychology Training at the University of Minnesota, Dr. Grove has received several millions of dollars worth of research grants from the National Institutes of Health. Michael D. Yapko, Ph.D. - Dr. Michael Yapko is currently the director of the Milton H. Erickson Institute of San Diego and an internationally recognized expert in hypnosis. A Fellow of the American Society of Clinical Hypnosis, Dr. Yapko has published numerous books, videos and professional articles in the area of the proper and improper use of hypnosis in psychotherapy. Robyn Dawes, Ph.D. - Trained at Harvard University and the University of Michigan, Professor Robyn M. Dawes is currently a University Professor at Carnegie Mellon University. A Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and Former Chairman of the Department of Psychology at Carnegie Mellon University and the University of Oregon, Dr. Dawes is an internationally recognized expert in judgment and decision making theory as well as scientific methodology. A Fellow of the American Association for Applied and Preventative Psychology, Dr. Dawes also served as a Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. In addition, Professor Dawes is a Fellow of Divisions 1, 3, 5, 8, 9, and 34 of the American Psychological Association. Dr. Dawes has published dozens of articles in leading scientific journals and has contributed editorial reviews to the leading journals in Psychology, Behavioral Decision Making, and Management Science. Professor Dawes has served on 64 PhD Dissertation Committees. Richard Flyer - A graduate of Harvard Medical School, Dr. Flyer is a nationally recognized expert in legislative reform in regard to Health Care Systems for Children. Dr. Flyer, together with other colleagues, has prepared, drafted, and helped enact health care reform legislation to improve the Emergency Medical System for Children. This legislation is currently law in New Jersey, Texas, Hawaii and Utah. Robert Kinscherff, Ph.D., JD. - Dr. Robert Kinscherff is one of the few licensed psychologists in the United States to receive a law degree (J.D., magna cum laude) from Harvard Law School. Dr. Kinscherff currently serves as Associate Director for Forensic Services, Law and Psychiatry Service, Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital at the Harvard Medical School and as Lecturer at the Boston University College of Law. Dr. Kinscherff, with colleagues in law and medicine, drafted model health care reform legislation (the Emergency Medical Systems for Children Act) which has been enacted in some form in a number of states. An internationally recognized expert in stress and dissociative disorders in children and adults as well as the effects of child abuse and neglect, Dr. Kinscherff has published numerous scientific investigations related to forensic psychology and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in maltreated children. Melvin J. Guyer, Ph.D., JD. - Dr. Guyer serves as Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and is Adjunctive Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Michigan Medical Center, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Prof. Guyer received his Ph.D. in psychology and his J.D. in law from the University of Michigan. Dr. Guyer has published numerous professional articles regarding legal and social issues, forensic psychology and related issues on child abuse in some of the best known journals in child psychiatry including the Journal of American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry, and the Bulletin of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law. Thom Moore, Ph.D. - Dr. Moore serves as Director of the Psychology Clinic at the University of Illinois. Henry Earle Adams, Ph.D. - One of the most distinguished psychologists in America, Prof. Adams is the former Director of Clinical Psychology Training, former Chairman of the Division of Social Sciences and currently Research Professor at the University of Georgia. Former chief Editor of the Journal of Behavioral Assessment and the Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, Prof. Adams has served as an Editorial Board Member or referee for virtually every important journal in psychology. Author or Editor of more than a dozen books, Prof. Adams has published more than one hundred professional articles. E. Mark Cummings, Ph.D. - Dr. Cummings serves as Professor of Psychology at West Virginia University. Trained at Johns Hopkins University and U.C.L.A., Dr. Cummings serves on the Editorial Boards of Child Development, Developmental Psychology, Journal of Genetic Psychology and Genetic, Social and General Psychology Monographs. The author of dozens of professional publications, books and book chapters, Prof. Cummings is a nationally recognized expert in several areas of developmental and social psychology. Lewis P. Lipsitt, Ph.D. - Prof. Louis Lipsitt is one of the best known and widely respected psychologists in America. Currently serving as a Professor of Psychology and Medical Science at Brown University, Dr. Lipsitt was the Founding Director of Brown’s Child Study Center from 1967 to 1991. Prof. Lipsitt has been a Guggenheim Fellow, a Fellow of London’s Tavistock Institute of Human Relations and St. Mary’s Hospital and a Fellow of Stanford’s Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. A recipient of the James McCattell Fellowship Award, he was also the Nicholas Hobbs Awardee for "science in the service of children" in 1990 from the American Psychological Association (APA). Prof. Lipsitt also won the 1994 American Association for the Advancement in Science Mentor Award for Lifetime Achievement. With Alvin Poussaint, M.D., Dr. Lipsitt co-directs the Lee Salk Center of KIDSPEACE/Wiley House, a national center for youth in crisis. Prof. Lipsitt has served as past President of the Eastern Psychological Association, President of the American Psychological Association’s Division of Developmental Psychology, chaired APA’s Board of Scientific Affairs and was APA’s Executive Director for Science. A founding Editor of Infant Behavior and Development, Dr. Lipsitt now co-edits Advances in Infancy Research. Donald M. Kaplan, Ph.D. - Dr. Kaplan is one of the best known and widely respected psychotherapists in America. A past President of the New York Freudian Society and past President of the Psychoanalytic Interest Group of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Kaplan has also served as a Member and Training and Supervisory Analyst of the International Psychoanalytic Association. Dr. Kaplan currently serves on the North American Editorial Board of The International Journal for Psychoanalysis and as a Faculty member of the New York Freudian Society and Clinical Professor of Psychology at New York University. Prof. Kaplan has published dozens of books, book chapters, professional articles and book reviews. Robert R. Holt, Ph.D. - Educated at Princeton and Harvard Universities, Dr. Holt is one of the best known and widely respected psychotherapists in America. Currently Professor Emeritus at New York University, Prof. Holt served as a Fellow of the Stanford Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences and Special Research Fellow of the National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Holt received the Research Career Award from the National Institute of Mental Health for his work spanning 1962 - 1988. Dr. Holt is also the recipient of many other awards including the Award for Distinguished Contributions to Clinical Psychology from the Division of Clinical Psychology of the American Psychological Association. A former President of the American Psychological Association’s Division for Clinical Psychology, Dr. Holt was named a Fellow of Divisions 8 & 12 of the APA and also a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Holt has served as Editor, member of the Editorial Board or member of the Editorial Advisory Board for more than a dozen prominent professional journals. Richard M. McFall, Ph.D. - Prof. McFall currently serves as Professor and Director of Clinical Psychology Training at Indiana University, an internationally respected APA approved training program. Prof. McFall is past President of the Society for a Science of Clinical Psychology (APA, Division 12, Section III) and a current Board Member of the Council of University Directors of Clinical Psychology. A Fellow of the American Psychological Association, Prof. McFall has served on the Editorial Boards of many of the most respected journals in psychology including Behavior Therapy, the Journal of Clinical and Consulting Psychology, Behavior Modification, Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry and many others. Dr. McFall has dozens of professional publications to his credit including books, book chapters and professional articles. Hans H. Strupp, Ph.D. - Dr. Strupp is widely regarded as the most influential and respected psychotherapy researcher in the world. Formerly Director of Clinical Psychology Training at Vanderbilt University, Prof. Strupp currently serves as Distinguished Professor of Psychology at Vanderbilt U. Prof. Strupp has received many awards including: the Lasker Memorial Award; the Helen Sargent Memorial Award of the Menninger Foundation; the Distinguished Professional Psychologist Award (Div. of Psychotherapy, APA); Distinguished Scientist Award (Sec III, Div of Clinical Psychology, APA); Distinguished Scientific Achievement Award (Div. of Clinical Psychology, APA); Distinguished Career Contribution Award (Society for Psychotherapy Research); Distinguished Professional Contributions to Knowledge Award, APA. A Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the American Psychological Society, Prof. Strupp served as a Board Member of the Council of University Directors of Clinical Training and as President of the Society for Psychotherapy Research. A former President of the Division of Clinical Psychology of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Strupp also served as Chairman of the Treatment, Diagnosis and Development Research Review Committee of the National Institute of Mental Health. Prof. Strupp has served in an editorial capacity on many of the finest journals in psychology and has published close to 300 professional research articles, books or book chapters. Stephen J. Lepore, Ph.D., Ed.M. Educated at U.C. Irvine and Harvard University, Dr. Lepore is currently a faculty member at Carnegie Mellon University. The author of dozens of professional research articles, book chapters and books, Prof. Lepore serves as a reviewer for the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Environment & Behavior, Developmental Psychology, Psychological Assessment, the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, the Journal of Applied Social Psychology and many others. Lee B. Sechrest, Ph.D. - One of the best known and widely respected psychologist in America, Dr. Sechrest currently serves as Professor of Psychology at the University of Arizona. A Fellow of the American Psychological Association, Prof. Sechrest has received the Myrdal Prize for Excellence in Evaluation Practice from the American Evaluation Association; the Award for Special Achievement in Public Service from Div. 18 of the American Psychological Association; and the Harold M. Hildreth Award for Outstanding Contributions to the Field of Public Service Psychology from Div. 18 of the American Psychological Association. Dr. Sechrest has also served on the Committee on Women in Science and Engineering for the National Academy of Sciences and the National Institute of Medicine Committee on Federal Regulation of Methadone as well as on the Veterans Administration Health Services Research and Development National Advisory Panel. Prof. Sechrest has also served on the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Law and the Administration of Justice as well as the National Center for Health Services Research Advisory Committee for Evaluation of Experimental Medical Care Review Organizations and also the American Psychological Association Policy and Planning Board. An Editorial Board member for many of the most respected journals in psychology, Prof. Sechrest has also published over 200 professional articles, books and book chapters. Paul Ekman, Ph.D. - One of the most influential and respected psychologists in the world, Dr. Ekman currently serves as Professor of Psychology and Director, Human Interaction Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Langley Porter Psychiatric Institute, School of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco and as Program Director, Post Doctoral Training in Emotion Research funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. Prof. Ekman has received many awards including: Distinguished Scientific Contribution Award of the American Psychological Association, Research Scientist Award of the National Institute of Mental Health, Career Development Award from the National Institute of Mental Health, elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and elected Fellow of the American Psychological Association. Prof. Ekman has published over 100 professional articles, books and book chapters in the leading journals of psychology and medicine including the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, the Journal of Experimental Psychology, American Psychologist, Psychological Bulletin, Science, Psychiatry, the Journal of Nervous and Mental Diseases, and many others. Hans J. Eysenck, Ph.D. - Considered by many to be one of the most influential psychologists of the 20th Century, Prof. Eysenck was the Founder and Director of the Department of Psychology at the Institute of Psychiatry (Maudsley and Bethlem Royal Hospitals) in Great Britain. He currently serves as Professor Emeritus of Psychology and continues his research in personality and individual differences, the psychophysiology of intelligence, the genetics of personality and many other topics. Prof. Eysenck was awarded the Distinguished Scientist Award of the American Psychological Association and is currently a member of the Board of Scientific Affairs of the American Psychological Association. Prof. Eysenck was also named a William James Fellow of the American Psychological Society. Dr. Eysenck is the author of an astounding 75 books and 1,000 articles and book chapters. He is founder and editor-in-chief of Personality and Individual Differences and founder and past editor of Behaviour Research and Therapy. Prof. Eysenck was co-founder and first President of the International Society for the Study of Individual Differences. SIGNERS OF VERSION TWO (Identical to Ver. I but with the proposed legislative language deleted) All signers of VERSION ONE with the addition of the following: Jerome Kagan, Ph.D. - Prof. Kagan is one of the most respected and influential psychologists of the 20th Century. Prof. Kagan currently serves as Chairman and Professor of Psychology at Harvard University. Educated at Rutgers, Yale and Harvard, Prof. Kagan has received many awards including the Hofheimer Prize for Research from the American Psychiatric Association, the Wilbur Lucius Cross Medal from Yale University, the William James Award from the American Psychological Association (Division I), the Distinguished Scientist Award from the American Psychological Association, the K. Craik Award from Cambridge University, the Distinguished Scientist Award from the Society for Research in Child Development, the C. Anderson Aldrich Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics and the G. Stanley Hall Award of Division 7 of the American Psychological Association. In addition, Prof. Kagan has served as the Head of Section J of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Member of the Program Committee of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, a Member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences, a Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Prof. Kagan serves and has served in an editorial capacity for many of the finest journals in psychology and has published dozens of books, research articles, book reviews and monographs. George Stricker, Ph.D. - One of the most influential and widely respected psychotherapists in America, Dr. Stricker has received the American Psychological Association Award for Distinguished Contributions to Applied Psychology. Currently the Distinguished Research Professor of the Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies of Adelphi University, Dr. Stricker formerly served as Professor and Dean at Adelphi. Dr. Stricker currently also serves as a site and funding reviewer, Mental Health Research Education Review Committee, National Institute of Mental Health. Dr. Stricker is a Fellow of APA Divisions 12 and 29 and served as President of the Division of Clinical Psychology for the American Psychological Association. Dr. Stricker has served as an influential member of many national training and other conferences including the National Conference on Postdoctoral Education and Training in Psychology. Dr. Stricker also served as President of the Society for Personality Assessment and President of the New York State Psychological Association as well as serving on the Board of Trustees of the Association for the Advancement of Psychology. Dr. Stricker also served as President of the National Council of Schools and Programs of Professional Psychology. He has performed editorial duties for many of the most respected journals in psychology and has published over 200 books, book chapters, professional research articles and book reviews. Debra Ann Poole, Ph.D. - Prof. Poole currently serves on the faculty of Central Michigan University. Educated at the University of Connecticut, Dr. Poole is a nationally recognized expert on children’s testimony in legal proceedings. Prof. Poole’s work on eyewitness testimony by children has been published in the leading journals in psychology including Developmental Psychology, Child Development and others. Dr. Poole serves as a reviewer for a number of journals including Criminal Justice and Behavior, Sex Roles, Developmental Psychology and others. Mark L. Howe, Ph.D. - Dr. Howe currently serves as Professor of Psychology in the Faculty of Science of Memorial University of Newfoundland. He also has cross-appointments in the Division of Community Medicine and Behavioral Sciences and in the Gerontology Center of the Memorial University of Newfoundland. Prof. has published over 50 professional research articles, books and book chapters and performs editorial services for the Society for Research in Child Development Monographs as well as serving as a consulting reviewer for many of the finest journals in psychology including Aging and Cognition, Memory, Memory & Cognition, Developmental Psychology and others. J. Don Read, Ph.D. - Dr. Read currently serves as Professor and Chairman of the Department of Psychology of the University of Lethbridge, Great Britain. Prof. Read is a nationally recognized expert in memory and forensic psychology. Prof. Read serves on the Editorial Boards of Legal and Criminological Psychology and Law and Human Behavior. In addition, Prof. Read performs other review and editorial services for many of the best known journals in psychology including the Journal of Experimental Psychology, Applied Cognitive Psychology, Memory & Cognition and others. References: 1. See e.g., "Lies of the Mind" - Time Magazine, November 29, 1993, pp. 52-59; "Fatal Memories, A tragedy for the 90’s: How therapy destroyed one man’s family", Chicago Tribune Magazine, February 27, 1994; and "The Monster in the Mists", New York Times Book Review, Section 7, May 15, 1994. 2. Other examples of untested and potentially dangerous "therapies" include "primal scream therapy", "family of origin psychodramas" and "past life regression therapy." 3. See, "Scientific Status of Refreshing Recollection by the Use of Hypnosis", Journal of the American Medical Association, Apr. 5, 1985, Vol. 253, No. 13. 4. See, Orne M. & Dinges, D., (1989) Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry IV, Vol. 2, 5th Ed., Kaplan and Sadock (Eds.), Baltimore: Williams & Wilkins, at 1516. 5. "Hypnotic techniques are not the only well documented method for inducing false memories. It is well known that many "memory retrieval" techniques are little more than thinly disguised versions of hazardous hypnotic procedures. As one of the world experts in hypnosis, Prof. Martin Orne recently noted, "[H]etero-hypnotic context is by no means unique in facilitating directed pseudo-memories. Free association, guided imagery, relaxation techniques, repeated visualization, ‘support’ group probing, and the therapeutic context itself can, under certain circumstances, in suitable subjects, work to facilitate the production of pseudo-memories, or the filling of gaps in childhood memory, with fantasy or narrative material.... The mechanisms underlying these believed-in ‘uncovering techniques’ seem to share qualities with, but are not necessarily identical to, hypnosis and seer-hypnosis." See, Orne, M. & Orne, E., "On the modification of memory in relaxed and hypnotic states", Presentation to the Cogniscience Section, National Center for Scientific Research at Salpetriere Hospital in Paris, November 1992. 6. Richard A. Gardner, "Sexual Abuse Hysteria: Diagnosis, Etiology, Pathogenesis, and Treatment," Academy Forum (Fall, 1993), pp. 2-5. 7. See, Coble, Yank D. (Chair), American Medical Association Report of the Council on Scientific Affairs Re: Memories of Sexual Abuse, CSA Report 5-A-94, 1994. 8. Innovative treatments might still be offered but only if patients are fully and fairly informed of the experimental nature of such procedures. The Congress may wish to explore provisions to provide time limited funding for some therapies pending empirical demonstrations of efficacy. Some commentators would permit acceptance of treatments based upon "substantial clinical evidence" whereas most of the signatories of this document would require substantial empirical evidence. This language would not impose unfair burdens on currently unproven treatments but would, in fact, create powerful financial incentives for improved psychotherapy research. Under the current system, empirically validated treatments receive the same reimbursements as pseudotreatments thus providing limited incentives for careful research on treatment effectiveness. Finally, other forms of psychotherapy could be funded as social programs but not misleadingly labeled as "heath care treatments." |