Mark Galway asks:
>We often hear stories about people being abducted by space aliens,
>taken to a flying saucer, probed, inspected and returned.
>Assuming that the people making these claims are suffering from
>some kind of delusion, I would like to know what kind of delusion -
>grandeur, influence or persecution. I kind of lean toward delusion
>of influence, but I would like to get some other opinions.
>
>I always get this question from students in my intro classes when
>I cover psychotic disorders. This semester I want to be prepared.
I would say that most are not delusional: they are normal people who have been
put in an extreme situation involving widespread cultural myths about alien
visitations to our planet and "therapists" who suggest to them that mundane
experiences (such as sleep paralysis) are indications of an abduction
experience. Over time, these people begin to construct false memories of alien
abduction in a manner similar to the sexual-abuse and satanic-ritualistic-abuse
memories of others subjected to this sort of "therapy."
Nova had a good show on this. It introduced the main supporters of alien
encounters--John Mack--a Harvard psychiatrist--and Bud Hopkins--an artist who
now leads support groups and does hypnotherapy for alien-abduction survivors.
You should contact the PBS website for ordering information.
Jeff Ricker
Scottsdale Community College
Scottsdale AZ
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
