Facilitated Communication: a Cruel Farce

NOTES OF A FRINGE-WATCHER MARTIN GARDNER Facilitated Communication: A Cruel Farce y previous column was about males outnumber females four to one so upon a revolutionary new technique. the myth, so vigorously I shall use the pronoun "he" for any child Today he considers her his "dear friend" M promoted by Dr. Bruno with severe autism.) A therapist, usually a and mentor. Back at Syracuse, Biklen Bettelheim, that autism is caused by woman, is called the child's "facilitator." founded the Facilitated Communi "refrigerator mothers"—mothers with She asks the child a question, then grasps cation Institute, and quickly became the cold, unloving personalities. During the his hand, wrist, or elbow—usually the nation's top guru in promoting FC. past two decades other preposterous hand—while the child extends his index Thousands of therapists have been myths about autism have flourished. One finger and begins to type. The belief is trained in FC at his institute. is the widespread belief among agonized that the child has the ability to commu FC spread like wildfire across the parents that their child's autism is caused nicate intelligent thoughts by typing, but nation and abroad. Dozens of FC centers by early vaccinations. Because there is not lacks the muscular coordination needed were established around the U.S. where a shred of evidence for this, I shall not for finding the right keys. The facilitator parents, for a sizeable fee, could bring a waste space on it here. My topic is a assists him in locating the keys she is sure child with autism and have his normal much more pervasive, more cruel he intends to hit. mind released from the prison of his ter myth—the belief that hiding inside the A wondrous miracle now seems to rible disorder. head of every child with autism, no mat take place. Although the child has been You can imagine the excitement and ter how severe, is a normal child whose thought to be mentally retarded, unable euphoria of parents long desperate for intelligent thoughts can emerge through to read, write, or speak coherendy, he rational conversation with a loved child. a curious technique called facilitated types out lucid, sophisticated messages They often wept with joy when they communication (FC). that could only come from a normal, became convinced that their child could Here's how FC works. An autistic intelligent child. say to them through typing, "I love you, child is seated at a typewriter or com This amazing technique was discov mom" or "1 love you, dad." Not only puter keyboard, or perhaps just a sheet of ered in the early 1970s by Rosemary that, but they typed long meaningful sen paper with the keyboard drawn on it. Crossley, of Melbourne, Australia. tences, using words they were incapable (Although autism strikes both sexes, Educated only in the liberal arts, she and of speaking. Some even wrote poetry. her associates founded the Dignity This seemingly miraculous break Martin Gardner has two new books of Through Education and Language through was enthusiastically endorsed by essays: Did Adam and Eve Have Navels? Communication Center in Melbourne. the print and electronic media. Articles Discourses on Reflexology, Numerology, Crossley is the author of numerous praising FC appeared in newspapers and Urine Therapy, and Other Dubious papers in technical journals, and a book popular magazines. Readers Digest Subjects (WW Norton, 2000), based on tided Annie's Coming Out about one of (March 1993) published "The Secret his SKEPTICAL INQUIRER Notes of a Fringe- her patients. Life of Arthur Wold," a moving account Watcher columns; and From the Enter Douglas Biklen, a professor of of a child released by FC from the glass Wandering Jew to William F. Buckley Jr.: education at Syracuse University. When shell believed to have imprisoned his On Science, Literature, and Religion he first visited Crossley in the late 1980s mind. Movies and television shows (Prometheus Books, 2000), a collection of he was skeptical of her methods, but lauded the new technique. his other essays and reviews. soon became convinced that she had hit That something was terribly wrong SKEPTICAL INQUIRER J*nuiry/F*bruity 2001 17 with FC was obvious from the start to doubt that facilitators do the typing? turn. Overzealous facilitators, oblivious almost all psychiatrists, neuroscientists, Indeed, it is so ridiculously easy that pro to the fact they they were doing the typ and psychologists familiar with autism. moters of FC must be simple-minded ing, began to produce messages accusing For one thing, while the poor child was not to have thought of such simple tests. parents of sexually molesting their child! typing brilliant messages, he almost never In one early test, made by skeptics, die These messages often contained graphic looked at the keyboard. He would glance child and his facilitator wore head four-letter obscene words. It is hard to around the room, often smiling or gig phones. When a question was heard by believe, but uninformed police and gling as if having fun, sometimes scream both child and facilitator, the child typed judges, on the basis of such accusations, ing, sometimes closing his eyes. a reasonable response. But when only the actually arrested dozens of innocent and Skeptics checked with expert typists. child heard the question, while the facili astounded fadiers. Some even went to jail Not one was capable of typing a sentence tator heard only music, the child's answer for months, exhausting fortunes on legal with one finger unless he or she could see had no bearing on the question. defenses before enlightened judges tossed the keyboard. This made no impression A simple visual test was even more their cases out of court. on facilitators or parents eager to believe. dramatic. A picture on a cardboard folder A recent case in England, reported in Therapists made the absurd claim that was shown to both child and facilitator. London newspapers on July 12, 1999, their children had the wonderful ability The child accurately typed the target's involved a teenage boy with a mental age to memorize die keyboard so completely name when his hand was held. In a repeat of two who was suffering from extreme that diey did not need to see it when they test, the experimenter showed the facili autism and unable to speak. With a hand typed! Children with severe autism, tator a picture, but this time, as he turned guided by a facilitator he had typed accu unable to read, write, or speak clearly, die folder so only die child could see the sations of sexual abuse by his fifty-year- found themselves in schools where they target, he secredy moved a flap that cov old father. The boy was made a ward of passed examinations in literature, arith ered die first picture and exposed a dif the court until the court found no evi metic, and odier subjects provided, of ferent one. You can guess what happened. dence of abuse. The judge, Dame course, a facilitator was beside them, The child did not type the name of the Elizabeth Butler-Sloss, branded FC a guiding their hand! picture he saw. He typed the name of the dangerous, unverified technique that It quickly became obvious to everyone picture diat only die facilitator had seen. should never be used again in any British not caught up in the FC fad that the This definitive, unimpeachable test court to support sexual abuse charges. facilitators, although totally sincere, were was featured in a marvelous documen In 1992 a group of facilitators at the naive and poorly trained. They were tary, "Prisoners of Silence," aired by the University of Wisconsin, in Madison, unaware of the strength of what is called PBS series Frontline in October 1993. became convinced that some of their the Ouija (or ideomotor) effect. Many facilitators were devastated by children were gifted with psychic pow Unconsciously they were guiding a child's the revelation that they had been ers. For example, while they typed with finger to keys they imagined die child deceiving themselves for years. One their hand held, their sentences often was seeking. In brief, it was diey, not female therapist, interviewed by revealed what dieir facilitator was think their patients, who did the typing. Frontline, was in tears. ing. Suspecting ESP, the facilitators As one would expect, because guiding The Ouija effect is far more powerful began giving their children tests for a finger to a key is seldom accurate, die than most people realize. It explains why telepadiy. They would show a child a children's messages swarm widi typos. the planchette, in response to questions, picture, for example of an elephant. Here are some typical examples reported glides so smoothly over the Ouija board Another child, in a distant room, would by Biklen: to spell answers which seem to come type "elephant" when asked what picture I AMN NOT A UTISTIVC ON from spirits. It is die secret behind rotat the other child had seen. Of course both THJETYP. ing dowsing rods, table tipping, and facilitators knew die target was an ele automatic writing. Entire books have phant. The Madison facility was and is MY MOTHER FEELS IM STUPID BECAUSE IH CANT USE MY been written by hands diat seem to be headed by Anne M. Donnellan, a profes VOICE PROPERLY. moved by spirit controls. sor of education widi forty years of You can demonstrate the Ouija effect working with autistic children. I AM VERY UPSET BECAUSE I Convinced that her patients had psychic NEED FACIUTASION. I DONT easily by tying a ring, or some other small WANT TO DEPEND ON PEOPLE.

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