Mass hysteria - Definition and Overview

In psychology collective hysteria is the name given to a phenomenon of the manifestation of the same hysterical symptoms by more than one person. It normally begins when an individual shows a hysteric manifestation in front of others who "contagiously" acquire the same symptoms. Examples include cases of accidents in which people act "irrationally", screaming, running in the wrong direction, etc; cases in which a person who is suspected of a crime is caught by a group and one of the members throws a stone or gives the first kick, and the rest join the action; etc.

See also

• Hysteria
• War of the Worlds
• New Delhi monkeyman
• Satanic ritual abuse
• Salem witch trials
• folie à deux

External links

• Mass Hysteria (http://www.selfhelpmagazine.com/articles/depress/antidprs.html)