Semmelweis reflex

The Semmelweis reflex or "Semmelweis effect" is a metaphor for the reflex-like tendency to reject new evidence or new knowledge
because it contradicts established norms, beliefs orparadigms.[1]

The term derives from the name of a Hungarian physician, Ignaz Semmelweis, who in 1847 discovered that childbed fever mortality
rates fell ten-fold when doctors washed their hands with a chlorine solution between patients—or, most particularly, after an autopsy
(at the institution where Semmelweis worked, a university hospital, physicians performed autopsies on every deceased patient).
Semmelweis's decision stopped the ongoing contamination of patients—mostly pregnant women—with "cadaverous particles".[2] His
fellow doctors rejected his hand-washing suggestions, often for non-medical reasons. For instance, some doctors refused to believe
that a gentleman's hands could transmit disease.

While there is uncertainty regarding the origin and generally accepted use of the expression, the expression Semmelweis Reflex has
been documented and at least used by the author Robert Anton Wilson.[3] In Wilson's book The Game of Life, Timothy Leary
provided the following polemical definition of the Semmelweis reflex: "Mob behavior found among primates and larval hominids on
undeveloped planets, in which a discovery of important scientific fact is punished". In section 3 of the preface to the fiftieth
anniversary edition of his book The Myth of Mental Illness, Thomas Szasz describes an early exposure to Semmelweis's life and the
[4]
reaction to his finding as giving him "a deep sense of the invincible social power of false truths".

See also
Belief perseverance
Confirmation bias
Conservatism (belief revision)
Cognitive dissonance
Paradigm shift
Schopenhauer

References
1. Mortell, Manfred; Balkhy, Hanan H.; Tannous, Elias B.; Jong, Mei Thiee (July 2013). "Physician 'defiance' towards
hand hygiene compliance: Is there a theory–practice–ethics gap?".Journal of the Saudi Heart Association. 25 (3):
203–208. doi:10.1016/j.jsha.2013.04.003(https://doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.jsha.2013.04.003) .
2. Levitt, Steven D (2009). "4".Super Freakanomics. William Morrow. ISBN 0-06-088957-8.
3. Wilson, Robert Anton (1991).The Game of Life. New Falcon Publications.ISBN 1561840505.
4. Szasz, Thomas (2010).The Myth of Mental Illness (50th Anniv. Ed.). Harper Perennial. ISBN 0061771228.

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Semmelweis_reflex&oldid=832627596

"

This page was last edited on 27 March 2018, at 02:55.

Text is available under theCreative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this
site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of theWikimedia
Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.