The Case of Shirley Mason (AKA Sybil Dorsett)
In 1973 psychologist Dr. Cornelia Wilber was suddenly thrust into the spotlight for groundbreaking work she had done with Shirley Mason, known to the world as Sybil Dorsett. This work, published in a book by Flora Schreiber, documented the years of treatment Dr. Wilber had done with Mason for Multiple Personality Disorder, known today as Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID). This event brought the concept of multiple personalities into popular culture and kicked off an intense debate in contemporary psychology. Was this a mental illness brought on by severe trauma or something suggested to a vulnerable patient for the purpose of creating a human drama?