Possession states have a remarkably broad transcultural distribution, and mirror the influence of a range of social variables. Encompassing a variety of individual patterns, as a class they virtually confound attempts at ...

Fifteen female multiple personality disorder (MPD) patients who had felt or been told they were possessed or had undergone exorcism were interviewed to study the sequelae of these events. Thirteen had suspected they were ...

This response offers brief critiques of the articles by Drs. Coons, Begelman, Bowman, and Fraser, all of which raise important issues concerning the development of dialogue between the psychiatric and religious communities. ...

Comments on the preceding papers on possession are made from a clinical/historical point of view. A definition of “possession” is proposed based on a phenomenological approach. Categories of possession likely to be ...