The Selection of Delusional Persecutors

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Abstract
The hypothesis tested in this study was that: The sex of a delusional persecutor will have a relationship to the sex of the most fear-inspiring parent or parent surrogate. Twenty-eight patients with delusions of persecution were evaluated by different interviewers who were unaware of what material to uncover in order to fulfil the hypothesis. It was found that when the father or father surrogate was most fear inspiring, the patient later would develop delusional fears of men only; that when the mother or mother surrogate was most fear inspiring, the patient would develop delusional fears of both men and women, but predominantly of women. The findings are discussed in relation to cultural studies of delusions, certain aspects of learning theory and the concepts of Freud relating homosexuality to paranoid delusions.

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