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NZ Listener
November 22-28, 2003
(Published Nov 15, 2003)
Child abuse and the experts
Letter to
the Editor
by Michael Corballis,
Auckland
Sue Fitchett (Letters, November 1) thinks it
unscientific of me to state that a number of members of the NZ Psychological
Society tried to stop Elizabeth Loftus from giving a keynote address at their
annual conference. I quote from the Dominion, August 5, 2000: "A row
over academic freedom has erupted after attempts by a group of child sexual
abuse campaigners to have a leading US academic stopped from giving a
keynote speech to the NZ Psychological Society's annual conference this
month. The dispute is so bitter that an executive member of the society, John
Read of Auckland University, has resigned in protest at the society's refusal
to revoke its invitation to Elizabeth Loftus of the University of Washington
in Seattle …"
In an interview with Kim Hill at the time, Read referred to "the many,
many people who were opposed to Loftus being a keynote speaker". In
fact, Read did not resign from the society itself, but his resignation as
director of scientific affairs is ironic, given the honours Loftus has
received for her scientific work, including outstanding recognition by the
British Psychological Society and the American Psychological Association. As
I noted in my article ("Memory and the law", September 13), though,
the NZ Psychological Society does deserve credit for allowing Loftus's
address to go ahead, despite the dissenters.
It is time to stop the dissembling and ad-hominem attacks, and address the
real issue as to whether the evidence that led to Peter Ellis's conviction
was properly informed. Lynley Hood's excellent book A City Possessed has
little to do with the flatness of Christchurch, and her adversaries would do well
to actually read it.
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