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Mass Hysteria and Xenophobia: They’re Not in your Mind, or So Say Two New Books

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Abstract

Two recent books – The Slee** Beauties and other stories of mystery illness by Suzanne O’Sullivan (2021, Pantheon Books) and Of fear and strangers – a history of xenophobia by George Makari (2021, Norton) – offer interesting and provocative consideration of social problems that will be of interest to behavior scientists, especially those with interests in cultural practices. This review examines each book and explores shared themes, perspectives, and implications of analyses of these social disorders. Both provide detailed and fascinating accounts of behavior science explanations of pervasive social issues and raise questions for research and implications for practice. Both books are recommended for graduate courses and may enrich scholarly work in programs offering concentration in culturo-behavior science.

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Data Availability

Data sharing is not applicable to this article as this is a review of published books and no new data were created or analyzed in this study.

Notes

  1. https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/legislation/2021/10/08/bills-signed-s-1828-and-s-1917/

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Cleveland State University, Cleveland, OH, USA

    Richard F. Rakos

  2. Praxis2LLC, Reno, NV, USA

    Mark P. Alavosius

Authors
  1. Richard F. Rakos
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  2. Mark P. Alavosius
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Correspondence to Richard F. Rakos.

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Rakos, R.F., Alavosius, M.P. Mass Hysteria and Xenophobia: They’re Not in your Mind, or So Say Two New Books. Behav. Soc. Iss. 32, 435–445 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42822-023-00136-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s42822-023-00136-3

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