Crazy Here Anyway? By D.L.

¶ … crazy here anyway?" By D.L. Rosenhan. Specifically it will summarize the important sections of the article. Ultimately, the article looks at normal vs. abnormal psychology, and what actually constitutes "abnormal." The author notes that answering that question can lead to a mental illness diagnosis and that can alter a person's life forever, and he wanted to find out of highly trained professionals could recognize normal behavior in an abnormal setting.

The first point is how the behavior is observed. There are many kinds of deviant behavior, as the author notes, but they must be taken in context. Basically, the author states that a behavior may be odd or bizarre, but if it does not impair your everyday life, then it probably is not mental illness. That, and that psychology is based on the judgement of the psychiatrist, is the background of the study. The study was conducted to determine if training and education was sufficient to allow psychiatrists and doctors in a mental hospital to recognize a "normal" patient when they encountered one. Rosenhan found mentally sound patients and asked them to check into a psychiatric facility and then behave normally, so he could study how the health care professionals behaved and if they could recognize a mentally sound person. Rosenhan's prior research was not discussed.

The study was carried out in several psychiatric facilities. Eight "pseudopatients," including the author, checked into a mental facility and spent a period of time there. They called and made an appointment, talked to a doctor saying their lives were "empty" and "hollow," and then were admitted to the facility. After their admittance, they acted normally and gave true information to all their caregivers. They also took notes, and the idea was to see how quickly they could be released. The length of stay ran anywhere from 7 to 19 days, and the key result was that none of the patients were discovered by hospital staff. Every one was diagnosed with schizophrenia in remission, they all were given medications (which they flushed down the toilet), and the hospital staff never figured out the ruse. The study was conducted in several hospitals, and the results were remarkably similar. In a later study, Rosenhan actually told the staff he was sending more pseudopatients during a particular time frame, and dozens of patients were questioned, when in fact, Rosenhan did not send one pseudopatient to the facility.

The author's hypothesis is that doctors and psychiatrists in mental facilities expect to encounter mental illness, so they do not look for normality. This has severe implications for those who might somehow end up in one of these facilities, without the wherewithal to get out. The hypothesis was clearly illustrated throughout the report, and it was supported by the experiences of the normal patients and how they were treated. No one caught on, which illustrates the clarity and truth of the hypothesis. In addition, when the patients attempted to ask normal, everyday questions of doctors and staff, they were consistently ignored or received bizarre responses, showing the staffs' lack of contact and emotional distance from the people they were supposed to be helping.