Abstract Details

Title The ANA’s book “Eugenical Sterilization: A Reorientation of the Problem” through the lens of contemporaneous book reviews

Topic Research Methodology, �鶹��ýӳ��, and History

Presentation(s) P7 - Poster Session 7 (5:30 PM-6:30 PM)

Poster/Presentation
Number 6-008

Objective

To investigate the influence of the American Neurological Association’s (ANA) book “Eugenical Sterilization: A Reorientation of the Problem” through the lens of contemporaneous book reviews.

Background In 1936, the ANA published the book “Eugenical Sterilization: A Reorientation of the Problem.” As is customary, the book was reviewed. Those reviews make evident a positive opinion of the ANA’s book’s authors’ recommendations including the “selective sterilization” of patients with conditions including Huntington’s disease, Friedreich’s ataxia, and epilepsy. In addition, reviewers highlighted the book’s authors’ assessment that “the feebleminded [breed] docile, servile, useful people who do the dirty work of the race, [as] its servants [thus] fulfilling a social function.”

Design/Methods

Reviews of the ANA’s book were sought using PubMed, Google Scholar, and Embasa. Also, the book’s title was used to search the World Wide Web.

Results The search yielded 4 reviews, all published in 1937. The first reviewer highlighted the book’s authors’ position on “selective sterilization” and the “breeding of the feebleminded.” The second reviewer used the book as a backdrop to suggest that eugenics “has suffered numerous misinterpretations and misapplications.” The third reviewer indicated that the book’s authors’ position on the “breeding of the feebleminded” was a finding “on the positive side.” The fourth reviewer called the authors “biased” without indicating why, but complimented them “for presenting a difficult subject in a way that will cause a great deal of thought.”

Conclusions While the ANA’s book’s authors didn’t advocate for all-out eugenical sterilization, they did little to counter the popular opinion that patients with certain neurological diseases were a drain on society. In addition, they espoused a positive vision for the role of the feebleminded as “servile, useful people who do the dirty work of the race.” Their abhorrent message was disseminated to other disciplines through book reviews.

Authors/Disclosures
Pedro Weisleder, MD, PhD, F�鶹��ýӳ�� (Nationwide Children'S Hospital) PRESENTER	Dr. Weisleder has received personal compensation in the range of $5,000-$9,999 for serving as an Editor, Associate Editor, or Editorial Advisory Board Member for Elsevier .