Epidemic Hysteria: A Dialogue with Fran&amp;ccedil;ois Sirois

Bartholomew, Robert E.

doi:10.1159/000157423

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 7 publications

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“…Some like Bartholomew [5] have advocated social factors. We would rather propose here a hypothesis of a psychological type already advanced years ago by Freud [57] in his discussion of identification.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Epidemic Hysteria: School Outbreaks 1973–1993

Sirois¹

1999

Med Princ Pract

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Objective: Increased reporting of outbreaks has brought more familiarity with the syndrome but no more accurate knowledge about the nature and mechanisms of such episodes. As it has become an area for an expanding field of competitive explanations, the review is intended to find any additional epidemiological cues and any clarification about methods of investigating such outbreaks. Methods: The retrieval of data was organized upon a choice to have a homogeneous sample rather than a comprehensive one. Newspapers and sociological sources were left out. A Medline search with cross-referencing was conducted to select the outbreaks limited to the standard school type. Reports were examined from two points of view: the descriptive epidemiological parameters and the mode of reporting the outbreaks. Results: Forty-five episodes were studied. A historic shift in the manifest presentation is apparent: larger groups are involved for a shorter time. A period at risk has been identified: the last 2 months of the school calendar. The peak age of affected children is 12. A downward age spread is present in 14/20 episodes where suitable information is provided. Methods of reporting were classified into four categories: descriptive (n = 24), public health reports (n = 7), case-control (n = 7), case study (n = 7). Diagnosis of exclusion for environmental contamination is still a prevalent mode of reporting but does not make the outbreak intelligible. Conclusion: (1) A two-step approach is suggested: a simple environmental check for short and uneventful outbreaks; an intensive case study for any episode with long duration or recurrence. (2) Two hypotheses for future testing are proposed: a hypothesis of arousal, probably of a benign, age-specific, and sexual nature, in short simple cases; a hypothesis of conflict in the long or recurrent ones.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Bartholomew about the thorny aspects of the question [summarized in ref. 4,5]. It provided the impetus for a new look at the evidence about epidemic hysteria.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Epidemic Hysteria: School Outbreaks 1973–1993

Sirois¹

1999

Med Princ Pract

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“…Subsequent episodes often involved female students or sweatshop workers and were accompanied by outspoken criticism of authorities. Interpreting them as signs of a physical problem provided a culturally acceptable explanation for an otherwise intolerable breach of the social order (Bartholomew, 1997 ).…”

Section: Etiologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation and Management of Psychogenic Nonepileptic Attacks

Langfitt

Watson

2014

Handbook on the Neuropsychology of Epilepsy

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“…Concordantly, epidemic hysteria is common among Malay females in conspicuously repressive, intolerable occupational settings in Malaysia (Ong, 1987(Ong, , 1988. Bartholomew (1997) examines the appearance of epidemic hysteria in Malaysia, where episodes are numerous and almost exclusively affect Malay females in school and factory settings, and sets out to find out why not a single case of epidemic hysteria was recorded until about 1960. He begins with the work of Lewis (1971), who views spirit 'attacks' as functional and cathartic, allowing the oppressed to temporarily circumvent their position by inverting the normal social order.…”

Section: Why Are Women Over-represented In Ompi?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Occupational Mass Psychogenic Illness: A Transcultural Perspective

Bartholomew

Sirois²

2000

Transcult Psychiatry

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Reports of occupational mass psychogenic illness (OMPI) in the scientific literature were examined to describe underlying presentation patterns and explain their sporadic appearance in the literature. Three distinct patterns were identified: (i) mass anxiety hysteria is precipitated by the sudden appearance of an anxiety-generating stimulus following the redefinition of an innocuous or imaginary odour or agent that is perceived as an immediate threat; (ii) mass motor hysteria is characterized by internalized conflict which fosters dissociation, histrionics and psychomotor agitation. Episodes are typified by an atmosphere of pre-existing tension and employee dissatisfaction with restrictive management practices coupled with inhibited negotiation channels; (iii) a third presentation pattern involves the relabelling of endemic symptoms and the occasional appearance of conversion reactions, which are reinforced by a hypervigilant medical community and exacerbating factors. Social factors may explain the irregular appearance of reports.

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Epidemic Hysteria: A Dialogue with François Sirois

Cited by 6 publications

References 7 publications

Epidemic Hysteria: School Outbreaks 1973–1993

Epidemic Hysteria: School Outbreaks 1973–1993

Evaluation and Management of Psychogenic Nonepileptic Attacks

Occupational Mass Psychogenic Illness: A Transcultural Perspective

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