History of MPD

[battyvamp.livejournal.com]

Does anyone know of a good site or something that tells the history of MPD? You know, like how far back it goes? Who first discovered it? that type of thing?

Thanks,
BV

Comments

[echthros.livejournal.com]

Um, aren't you a psychology student? You should have access to that sort of thing. =P

[battyvamp.livejournal.com]

Nope, I am a CMA student.....

[echthros.livejournal.com]

Still. I mean, if you want to know who "discovered" it and so on, I'd imagine you're looking for the history of the study of the disorder, right? So you'd want psychology and sociology texts for that. You can probably find much better resources on that sort of thing in your school's library than you can on the internet.

[shandra.livejournal.com]

Although it's focused on legal aspects, Jekyl on Trial has a good overview of a lot of theory in the first chapter.

A lot depends on definitions.

The first case studies came out in the 1800s (from France). This is around the time that psychology starts to develop as a "science" too and branches out from philosophy and medicine both (although remember that medicine also was slow to develop from snake-oil-sales). There were cases reported from then through the 1950s, but very low numbers.

So psychology is pretty busy growing up and goes through the whole professionalization process and development of the DSM, and then - whee - in the 1960s dissociative disorders appear in the DSM.

However if you take a broader view there are a lot of possible multiples that crop up in literature and history. Like oh, Joan of Arc's voices, that kind of thing.

[ex-khailitha846.livejournal.com]

I don't know about finding a documented history that goes any farther back than the history of psychology (as previously mentioned.)

It occurs to me that most shamanic traditions include phenomena that could be interpreted as multiplicity. In fact, in those traditions the "holy men" or "holy women" are usually picked because of their ability to walk in more than one world at once. Maybe that's a stretch... but it's something I've thought a few times.

(And, along the lines of woo-woo new agey stuff: We've been getting acupuncture treatments from a woman who is also a shaman and she said that one of her guides told her (in reference to Us) that in the "old days" (pre-history?) multiples were considered to be rare and precious, and were treated with the utmost care.)

??????

I'm guessing that for most of recorded history (think: Western ideology), multiples were considered dangerous and possibly evil and persecuted just like witches.

(Rhonda is informing me that I need to mention that this is all conjecture on my part.)

Good luck in your research!

-Kat

[ksol1460.livejournal.com]

http://www.fortea.us/english/psiquiatria/history.htm

[random-element.livejournal.com]

May I quote something from the Bible?

I am Legion, for we are many.

Thank you