[Image: A black and white photo of a balding John Mitchell in a suit with a pipe walking past. In the foreground is Martha Mitchell, turning to face the camera, mouth open as if she is mid-sentence. She is wearing big cat eye sunglasses, pale gloves and a 1960s style short sleeved dress with a bow at the neck and a pearl necklace.] The ‘Martha Mitchell effect’ is the process by which a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other mental health clinician mistakes the patient’s perception of real events as delusional and misdiagnoses accordingly. Psychologist Brendan Maher named the effect after Martha Beall Mitchell. Martha was the wife of John Mitchell, Attorney-General in the Nixon administration. When she alleged that White House officials were engaged in illegal activities, her claims were attributed to mental illness. Ultimately, however, the facts of the Watergate scandal vindicated her and garnered the label, “The Cassandra of Watergate”. 

[Image: A black and white photo of a balding John Mitchell in a suit with a pipe walking past. In the foreground is Martha Mitchell, turning to face the camera, mouth open as if she is mid-sentence. She is wearing big cat eye sunglasses, pale gloves and a 1960s style short sleeved dress with a bow at the neck and a pearl necklace.]

The ‘Martha Mitchell effect’ is the process by which a psychiatrist, psychologist, or other mental health clinician mistakes the patient’s perception of real events as delusional and misdiagnoses accordingly.

Psychologist Brendan Maher named the effect after Martha Beall Mitchell. Martha was the wife of John Mitchell, Attorney-General in the Nixon administration. When she alleged that White House officials were engaged in illegal activities, her claims were attributed to mental illness. Ultimately, however, the facts of the Watergate scandal vindicated her and garnered the label, “The Cassandra of Watergate”. 

Notes

  1. journeeys reblogged this from mindovermatterzine
  2. psych-ogen reblogged this from mindovermatterzine
  3. yesysabella reblogged this from mindovermatterzine
  4. whatthedormousesaid reblogged this from mindovermatterzine
  5. mindovermatterzine posted this