<description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;!-- wp:paragraph --&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;In 1973 a bombshell study appeared in the premier scientific journal &lt;em&gt;Science&lt;/em&gt;. It was called “On Being Sane in Insane Places.” Its author, a Stanford psychology professor named David Rosenhan, claimed that by faking their way into psychiatric hospitals, he and eight other pseudo-patients had proven that psychiatrists were unable to diagnose mental illness accurately.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;!-- /wp:paragraph --&gt; &lt;!-- wp:paragraph --&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Psychiatrists panicked, and, as a result, re-wrote what’s known as “psychiatry’s bible”—the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM. The study and the subsequent overhaul of the DSM changed the field forever. So it was a surprise when, decades later, a journalist reopened Rosenhan’s files and discovered that the study was full of inconsistencies and even blatant fraud. So should we throw out everything it revealed? Or can something based on a lie still contain any truths?&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;!-- wp:heading --&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;h2 id="credits" class="wp-block-heading"&gt;Credits&lt;/h2&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;!-- /wp:heading --&gt; &lt;!-- wp:paragraph --&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;Host: &lt;a href= "https://www.sciencehistory.org/profile/alexis-j-pedrick"&gt;Alexis Pedrick&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt; Senior Producer: &lt;a href= "https://www.sciencehistory.org/profile/mariel-carr"&gt;Mariel Carr&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt; Producer: &lt;a href= "https://www.sciencehistory.org/profile/rigoberto-hernandez"&gt;Rigoberto Hernandez&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt; Associate Producer: &lt;a href= "https://www.sciencehistory.org/profile/sarah-kaplan/"&gt;Sarah Kaplan&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt; Audio Engineer: &lt;a href="https://www.podbrain.org/" target= "_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"&gt;Jonathan Pfeffer&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt; “Color Theme” composed by &lt;a href= "https://www.podbrain.org/" target="_blank" rel= "noreferrer noopener"&gt;Jonathan Pfeffer&lt;/a&gt;. Additional music by &lt;a href="https://www.sessions.blue/" target= "_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"&gt;Blue Dot Sessions&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;!-- /wp:paragraph --&gt; &lt;!-- wp:heading --&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;!-- /wp:paragraph --&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;&lt;!-- /wp:paragraph --&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description>

Distillations | Science History Institute

Science History Institute

The Fraud that Transformed Psychiatry

JUL 23, 202458 MIN
Distillations | Science History Institute

The Fraud that Transformed Psychiatry

JUL 23, 202458 MIN

Description

In 1973 a bombshell study appeared in the premier scientific journal Science. It was called “On Being Sane in Insane Places.” Its author, a Stanford psychology professor named David Rosenhan, claimed that by faking their way into psychiatric hospitals, he and eight other pseudo-patients had proven that psychiatrists were unable to diagnose mental illness accurately.

Psychiatrists panicked, and, as a result, re-wrote what’s known as “psychiatry’s bible”—the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, or DSM. The study and the subsequent overhaul of the DSM changed the field forever. So it was a surprise when, decades later, a journalist reopened Rosenhan’s files and discovered that the study was full of inconsistencies and even blatant fraud. So should we throw out everything it revealed? Or can something based on a lie still contain any truths?

Credits

Host: Alexis Pedrick Senior Producer: Mariel Carr Producer: Rigoberto Hernandez Associate Producer: Sarah Kaplan Audio Engineer: Jonathan Pfeffer “Color Theme” composed by Jonathan Pfeffer. Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions