Research Catalog

Title

Little green men, meowing nuns, and head-hunting panics : a study of mass psychogenic illness and social delusion / Robert E. Bartholomew ; foreword by Erich Goode.

Author

Bartholomew, Robert E.

Publication

Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland, 2001.

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Holdings

Details

Description

viii, 293 p. : ill.; 23 cm.

Summary

"Many cases of what has traditionally been called "mass hysteria" are examined in this study. Beginning with a concise history of mass hysteria and social delusions, the author differentiates between the two and investigates cases, both in closed settings (such as work and school) and in communities. Cases throughout history are discussed, from medieval dance manias to the 1997 "Pokemon panic" that hospitalized children in Japan. Also examined are collective delusions, including urban legends and mass panics. The book ends with a look toward the future of this subject."--Jacket.

Subject

• Hysteria (Social psychology)
• Panic
• Social psychology

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references and index.

Processing Action (note)

• committed to retain

Contents

Foreword / Professor Erich Goode -- Broad Overview -- Mass Hysteria and Social Delusions: A Concise History -- Mass Hysteria in Closed Settings -- Epidemic Hysteria in Schools -- Epidemic Hysteria at Work -- Mass Hysteria in Communities -- The Mad Gasser of Virginia -- The Mad Gasser of Mattoon -- Pokemon TV Show Sickens Thousands in Japan -- Rethinking the Medieval Dancing Mania -- Collective Delusions -- Penis Panics: Collective Delusions Outside the West -- Imaginary Air Raids on Canada: Xenophobia During World War I -- The Phantom Sniper of Esher, England: How a Community Created an Imaginary Assailant -- The Ghost Rockets: Anatomy of a Moral Panic -- The Wish Mania as a Moral Panic in Reverse -- Before Roswell: The Meaning Behind the Crashed-UFO Myth -- The Martian Invasion Panic -- Major Issues and Future Directions -- From Demon Possession to Environmental Fears: The Changing Face of Mass Delusions and Hysterias.

ISBN

0786409975 (alk. paper)

LCCN

^^2001018029

Owning Institutions

Harvard Library