RESUMEN
The psychopathological interpretation of the European witch hunts of the 16th and 17th centuries, which has been prominent in histories of psychiatry, contends that demonology overwhelmed psychiatry in the late middle Ages, with the result that the mentally ill were executed by the thousands as witches. The author reviews the criticisms and contrary evidence that have been brought to bear on this paradigm in the past 20 years, including critiques of its data collection and interpretation, historical evidence which has failed to support its contentions, and questions about its implicit approach to the history and philosophy of science.
Asunto(s)
Magia , Trastornos Mentales/historia , Archivos , Recolección de Datos/historia , Recolección de Datos/normas , Europa (Continente) , Historiografía , Historia del Siglo XVI , Historia del Siglo XVII , Historia del Siglo XX , Humanos , Filosofía , Psiquiatría/historia , Ciencia/historiaRESUMEN
Historians of psychiatry have propagated the view that the witch hunts of sixteenth and seventeenth-century Europe were primarily a persecution of the mentally ill and that demonological concepts of possession and witchcraft impeded psychiatric progress for centuries. The author reviews the evidence marshaled by these historians and examines additional historical material bearing on the psychopathological view. He concludes that the role of mental disorder in the witch hunts has been overinflated by authors with an interest in promulgating the medical model of abnormal behavior. Furthermore, the psychopathological paradigm is based on an outmoded philosophy of science, which results in historical distortion and paradoxes, and on restriction and selectivity in the choice of evidence.