dissociative identity disorder

Dissociative identity disorder (DID), previously known as multiple personality disorder (MPD), is a dissociative disorder characterized by the presence of at least two personality states or "alters". The diagnosis is controversial and remains disputed. Proponents of DID support the trauma model, viewing the disorder as an organic response to severe childhood trauma. Critics of the trauma model support the sociogenic (fantasy) model of DID as a societal construct and learned behavior used to express distress; developed through iatrogenesis in therapy, cultural beliefs, and exposure to the behavior in media or online.

Public perceptions of the disorder were popularized by alleged true stories in the 20th century; Sybil influenced many elements of the diagnosis, but was later found to be fraudulent. After multiple personality disorder (MPD) was recognized as a diagnosis in DSM-III in 1975, an epidemic of the disorder spread across North America, closely tied to the satanic panic. Therapists began using hypnosis on patients, believing they were discovering alters and recovering forgotten memories of satanic ritual abuse. Psychologists familiar with the malleability of memory argued they were constructing false memories. Diagnoses reached 50,000 by the 1990s, but the FBI failed to validate allegations made against caregivers. Skepticism increased when MPD patients recovered from the behavior, retracted their false memories, and brought successful lawsuits against therapists. A sharp decline in cases followed, and the disorder was reclassified as "dissociative identity disorder" (DID) in DSM-IV. In the 2020s, an uptick in DID cases followed the spread of viral videos about the disorder on TikTok and YouTube.