Margaret Singer

Margaret Thaler Singer (July 29, 1921 – November 23, 2003) was an American

In the scientific community, Singer was best known and respected for her studies in schizophrenia and family therapy.^[6] She conducted research with the National Institute of Mental Health, the United States Air Force, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.^[4] Singer was a guest lecturer of psychology at University of California, Berkeley, from 1964 to 1991, and she served as a faculty member and lecturer at other University of California campuses as well as the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, the University of Rochester, and other institutions.^[7]

Singer's work on family communication won her a place as one of the pioneers in the developing field of family therapy.^[8] As noted in one obituary, her collaboration with Lyman Wynne was particularly important.

Singer began to study

Singer testified as a brainwashing expert at the trial of Patty Hearst, presenting her conclusions that Hearst had been brainwashed, but outside the jury's presence.^[4] Singer described Hearst as "a low-IQ, low-affect zombie" and testified that by using speech patterns, she determined that Hearst was reading statements prepared by her captors.^[4] Prosecutors argued that Singer's testimony should not be presented to the jury because brainwashing had never before been accepted as a field of expertise upon which expert testimony could be presented.^[4] The judge decided in favor of the prosecution, and Hearst was convicted.^[4] Singer's testimony was widely reported, which increased her reputation as a brainwashing expert.^[4]

Singer played a role in the "

Her expert testimony was no longer accepted after the report of the APA Task Force on Deceptive and Indirect Methods of Persuasion and Control, of which she was chair, was rejected by the Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology (BSERP) of the American Psychological Association.^[13] Melton has written that afterward, courts began to shift toward accepting the position held by the great majority of scholars studying new religious movements, moving away from the minority perspective of Singer and others sympathetic to her brainwashing claims.^[14] According to Melton, this had significant consequences later on, since it meant that brainwashing could no longer be used as a defense for the practice of deprogramming.^[14]

DIMPAC task force controversy and aftermath

In the early 1980s, some American mental health professionals became well-known figures due to their involvement as

The American Psychological Association (APA) in 1983 asked Singer, who was one of the leading proponents of coercive persuasion theories, to chair a taskforce to investigate whether brainwashing or "coercive persuasion" did indeed play a role in recruitment by such groups. The task force was called the APA Task Force on Deceptive and Indirect Methods of Persuasion and Control (DIMPAC). The task force completed its final report in November 1986. In May 1987 the APA Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology (BSERP) rejected the DIMPAC final report, stating that the report "lack[ed] the scientific rigor and evenhanded critical approach necessary for APA imprimatur," and also stating that the BSERP did "not believe that we have sufficient information available to guide us in taking a position on this issue."^[15]

Singer and her associate, sociologist

Singer was subsequently not accepted by judges as an expert witness in four cases alleging brainwashing and mind control.[19]^[20][21][22]

After the report was rejected, Singer reworked much of the rejected material into the book

Harassment and death threat complaints

Singer faced harassment, including death threats and dead animals placed on her doorstep, from groups that disagreed with her views on cults.^[4][7] According to Richard Behar's article in Time magazine, Singer was an outspoken critic of Scientology and was known to travel under an assumed name to avoid harassment.^[26]

Her criticism of cults and their brainwashing tactics resulted in harassment of Singer's family and students as well, including breaking into Singer's office, stealing students' term papers and sending notes to Singer's students.^[9] According to the Los Angeles Times, other examples included cult "operatives" going through Singer's trash and mail, picketing her lectures, hacking into her computer, and releasing live rats in her house.^[4][26]

Honors and awards

• Hofheimer Prize, American College of Psychiatrists, 1966^[4]
• Stanley R. Dean Award, American College of Psychiatrists, Research in Schizophrenia, 1976^[4]
• Achievement Awards, Mental Health Association of the United States^[12]

Personal life

Singer was married to Jerome R. Singer, a physicist and professor at University of California, Berkeley.^[4] The couple had two children.^[4]

Death

Margaret Singer died of

Alta Bates Medical Center at the age of 82. Singer was survived by her husband, two children, and five grandchildren.^[5][7]

Books

• Singer, Margaret Thaler; Lalich, Janja (September 27, 1996).
  ISBN 978-0-7879-0278-0
  .
• Singer, Margaret Thaler; Lalich, Janja (March 1, 1995).
  ISBN 978-0-7879-0051-9
  .
• Singer, Margaret Thaler; Nievod, Abraham (2003). Lilienfeld, Scott O.; Lynn, Steven Jay; Lohr, Jeffrey M. (eds.). Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology (Pbk. ed.). New York: Guilford Press. pp. 176–204.
  ISBN 978-1-59385-070-8
  .

References

1. ^ "Biography". berkeley.edu. University of California. January 3, 2007. Retrieved June 12, 2019.
2. ^ "Lyman Wynne". isps.org.
3. OCLC 31170479.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
   )
4. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q} McLellan, Dennis (November 28, 2003). "Margaret Singer, 82; Expert on Brainwashing, Cults Testified at 1976 Trial of Patricia Hearst". Los Angeles Times Articles. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
5. ^
   S2CID 40822752
   .
6. ^ "Margaret Singer, Expert On Cults, Brainwashing". Sun Sentinel. November 29, 2003. Archived from the original on February 20, 2015. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
7. ^ ^{a b c} O'Connor, Anahad (December 7, 2003). "Margaret Singer, a Leading Brainwashing Expert, Dies at 82". The New York Times. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
8. ^ Nichols, M., & Schwartz, R. (2005). Family Therapy: Concepts and Methods (7th Ed.). New York: Prentice Hall.
9. ^ ^{a b} Fagan, Kevin (May 26, 2002). "PSYCH SLEUTH / Margaret Singer has made history delving into the psychology of brainwashing". SFGate. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
10. ^ ^{a b c} Lilienfeld, Scott O. (November 23, 2003). "In Memoriam: Dr. Margaret Thaler Singer". The Scientific Review of Mental Health Practice. 3 (1).
11. PMID 4810834
    .
12. ^ ^{a b} Rubenstein, Steve (November 25, 2003). "Margaret Singer -- expert on brainwashing". SFGate. Retrieved February 20, 2015.
13. ^ J. Gordon Melton, "Anti-cultists in the United States: An historical perspective," in New Religious Movements: Challenge and Response, edited b Bryan R. Wilson and Jamie Cresswell, 213–33. London and New York: Routledge, 1999. p. 227.
14. ^
    ISBN 978-0275987121
    .
15. ^ "CESNUR - APA Memo of 1987 with Enclosures". www.cesnur.org. Retrieved August 3, 2022.
16. ^ Dr. Margaret Singer and Dr. Richard Ofshe Sue Associations, The Cult Observer, Vol. 9 No. 8, 1992
17. ^ Case No. 730012-8, Margaret Singer, et al., Plaintiff v. American Psychological Association, et. Al., Defendants
    "This case, which involves claims of defamation, frauds, aiding and abetting and conspiracy, clearly constitutes a dispute over the application of the First Amendment to a public debate over matters both academic and professional."
18. ^ Allen. Charlotte, Brainwashed! Scholars of Cults Accuse Each Other of Bad Faith, December 1998. Available online
19. ^ District of Columbia Court of Appeal, case 853 F.2d 948, Kropinski v. World Plan Executive Council.
    "Kropinski failed to provide any evidence that Singer’s particular theory, namely that techniques of thought reform may be effective in the absence of physical threats or coercion, has a significant following in the scientific community, let alone general acceptance.
20. ISBN 0-19-514986-6
21. ^ Boyle, Robin A., Women, the Law, and Cults: Three Avenues of Legal Recourse—New Rape Laws, Violence Against Women Act, and Antistalking Laws, Cultic Studies Journal, 15, 1–32. (1999) in reference to United States v. Fishman, United States District Court of California, CR–88-0616; DLG CR 90 0357 DLG
22. ^ Jane Green and Patrick Ryan v. Maharishi Yogi, US District Court, Washington, DC, March 13, 1991, Case #87-0015 OG
23. Reed Business Information
    , Inc.
    In 1992, Singer (emeritus adjunct, psychology, Univ. of California at Berkeley) unsuccessfully sued the American Psychological Association and the American Sociological Association, alleging conspiracy to discredit her research and destroy her reputation.
24. ^ ^{a b} Scioscia, Amanda (October 19, 2000). "Drive-thru Deliverance". Phoenix Times. Archived from the original on October 16, 2006.
25. ^ Singer, Margaret. "STATEMENT BY MARGARET SINGER" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 3, 2008. Retrieved July 31, 2008.
26. ^ ^{a b} Behar, Richard (May 6, 1991). "Scientology: 'Religion' a Thriving Cult of Greed, Power". Time. Archived from the original on February 25, 2007. Retrieved February 20, 2015.

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