Mass Hysteria facts
While investigating facts about Mass Hysteria Definition and Mass Hysteria Examples, I found out little known, but curios details like:
The author of Jaws dedicated the last decade of his life to the preservation of sharks to make up for the mass hysteria he inadvertently helped create.
how mass hysteria works?
In May 2006, over 300 Portuguese school children received medical attention for an illness which caused rashes and shortness of breath. The illness was later cited as being a case of mass hysteria caused by an episode of a soap opera which dealt with a deadly virus outbreak in a school.
What causes mass hysteria?
In my opinion, it is useful to put together a list of the most interesting details from trusted sources that I've come across answering what does mass hysteria mean. Here are 31 of the best facts about Mass Hysteria Meaning and Mass Hysteria Examples 2018 I managed to collect.
what's mass hysteria?
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The original radio broadcast War of the Worlds In 1938 did not induce mass panic across the US as widely believed and that the hysteria was actually just an early example of fake news being reported by the newspapers.
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In 1844, in a case of mass hysteria, a convent of nuns began "meowing" together everyday for several hours. Eventually the neighbours complained and soldiers threatened to whip the nuns until they stopped meowing.
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The infamous radio broadcast "War of the Worlds" actually did not cause mass hysteria throughout the U.S., and when surveyed, only 2% of people claimed they were listening to the radio play.
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The CBS radio broadcast of H.G. Wells' "War of the Worlds" did not actually cause mass hysteria or panic
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In 2011 at a rural Western NY high school, 14 students came down with an illness: verbal outbursts, tics, seizures, and speech problems. Fears about the cause of the outbreak drew national media attention. One girl had Tourette syndrome. The rest had mass psychogenic illness: mass hysteria.
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Earth passed through a cloud of poisonous gas in 1910 from Halley's Comet causing mass hysteria
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"Puppy Pregnancy Syndrome," a form of mass-hysteria observed only in certain areas of India. After being bitten by a dog, sufferers believe they have been impregnated by the dog and now have puppies growing inside them.
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In 1986 a marching band competition in the UK was halted when almost 300 attendees began collapsing and falling ill. No definite cause was ever discovered but an official enquiry blamed mass hysteria
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In 1962, a laughter epidemic spread out in Tanganyika, Tanzania that caused 14 schools to shut down and affected 1000 people. The phenomenon started in a school for girls and is considered as an outbreak of mass hysteria.
Why is mass hysteria dangerous?
You can easily fact check why does mass hysteria occur by examining the linked well-known sources.
About Mumbai "sweet" seawater incident during which residents of Mumbai claimed that the water at Mahim Creek had suddenly turned sweet. This caused a mass hysteria among people who started coming in large numbers to drink the sea water.
Between the 14th and 17th centuries, groups of people would break out and dance eratically, sometimes thousands at a time. It was known as Dancing Mania, a social phenomenon that occurred primarily in mainland Europe. To date there is no explanation for what caused the outbreaks of mass hysteria - source
The Mad Gasser of Mattoon, an alleged maniac who may have carried out over 20 gas attacks in Mattoon, Illinois in 1944. Other theories on the attacks include mass hysteria and chemicals released by near by industrial plants.
There is a mass hysteria called "puppy pregnancy syndrome", causing people to believe they are pregnant with puppies after being bitten by aroused dogs - source
When did mass hysteria start?
In 1962 there was an outbreak of mass hysteria in the nation of Tanzania where Thousands of people would laugh for days or even weeks and spread to Uganda. Blood tests were sent to Europe and concluded nothing abnormal. Some say this is called the Nocebo affect.
How to prevent mass hysteria?
The 1998 East Java Ninja Scare, in which the deaths of religious leaders were ascribed to mysterious sorcerer-assassins wearing black, resulting in mass hysteria.
The 'Soap Opera Virus', an episode of mass hysteria saw 300+ students in 14 high schools in Portugal think they had symptoms of a fictional disease from a recent episode of Morangos com Açúcar, a tv show aimed at teenagers. Some schools had to close during the 'outbreak'.
In the 1980s and 1990s, there was a mass hysteria over day-care providers that sexually abused children, and in some cases, engaged in Satanic ritual abuse
An outbreak of mass hysteria in a French convent caused all the nuns in a convent to spend hours every day mewoing together until the nearby village called in soldiers who threatened to beat them unless they stopped.
The population of the town of Halifax, England, collectively imagined a non-existent knife attacker, dubbed the 'Halifax Slasher', terrorizing the town in an incident of mass hysteria following the Second World War.
