DIANETICS: INTRODUCING THE SCAM

 

The Dianetics Scam

DIANETICS:
INTRODUCING THE SCAM

Dianetics claims to be "The Modern Science of Mental Health," despite the fact that medical professionals were debunking its theories from the very beginning.  This section familiarizes the reader with this pseudoscience, shares a bit of its history, and explains its links with the sinister Church of Scientology.

a little background

The launching pad of Dianetics:
a cheap science fiction magazine!
(Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

Dianetics is a series of quack psychological theories that were launched by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard in 1950.  They were a product of their time -- the dawn of the atomic age made nothing seem impossible, and people eagerly awaited developments from the field of psychology, which was still in its infancy.  The setting was perfect for a huckster like Hubbard to move in, portray himself as a scientist and a genius, and market his new product.  His ideas were collected into the book Dianetics.

THE ANNOUNCEMENT OF
THE NEW "SCIENCE OF THE MIND"

The initial spread of Dianetics was not the result of publication in a scientific journal.  Instead, the bold and wild claims had their first major announcements in the entertainment magazine Astounding Science Fiction, complete with a half-man, half-monster on the cover. [1]  The therapy promised big results, and its accessibility meant anyone could perform it themselves, even in their own homes.  These factors combined to make it an American fad of the 1950s. [2]

unsubstantiated theories

Founder and university dropout L. Ron Hubbard.
(Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

The cornerstones of Dianetics theory are unsound.   In short, the book claims that the mind stores moments of pain, called engrams, in a part of the unconscious called the reactive mind.  Allegedly, these engrams can be re-stimulated later in life without the person being aware of it, causing inappropriate feelings or behavior. 

Dianetics practitioners engage in a type of talk therapy called auditing, which is supposed to address and release the effects of these engrams, leading users to better lives.  The ultimate goal of Dianetics is achievement of the state of clear [3], a supposed condition in which the person is freed from the negative effects of all their engrams and empowered with greatly improved mental abilities. [4]

today's practice of dianetics

Dianetics is Scientology!
(Credit: Wikimedia Commons)

The "Church of Scientology" is a huge practitioner of the ideas of Dianetics.  This should come as no surprise, because the organization shares the same founder, science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard.   The relationship between Dianetics and Scientology is a very close one, and many of the core ideas in Scientology are based off concepts within Dianetics. [5]  The Church of Scientology has a criminal history in many different countries [6][7] and is often classified as a destructive cult. [8]  The organization aggressively uses Dianetics as a secular recruiting tool.

Read Dianetics Part 2:  Empty Promises

Section References

[1] Kent, Stephen A. "The Creation of 'Religious' Scientology." Religious Studies of Theology, Dec. 1999. http://www.solitarytrees.net/pubs/skent/creation.htm

[2] Reitman, Janet. "Dianetics." Inside Scientology: The Story of America's Most Secretive Religion. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2011. Page 27. Print.

[3] Hubbard, L. Ron. "The Clear." Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. Los Angeles, CA: Bridge Publications, 2007. Page 24. Print.

[4] Hubbard, L. Ron. "Release or Clear." Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. Los Angeles, CA: Bridge Publications, 2007. Page 208. Print.

[5] Hubbard, L. Ron. "To the Reader." Foreword. Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. Los Angeles, CA: Bridge Publications, 2007. Print.

[6] "Operation Snow White." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Sept. 2012. Web. 11 Oct. 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_snow_white

[7] "Scientologists Convicted of Fraud." BBC News. BBC, 27 Oct. 2009. Web. 11 Oct. 2012. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8327569.stm

[8] Urban, Hugh B. "The 'Cult of All Cults'? Scientology and the Cult Wars of the 1970s and 80s." The Church of Scientology: A History of a New Religion. Princeton: Princeton UP, 2011. Print.