Colin A. Ross
Encyclopedia
Colin A. Ross is a psychiatrist
of Canadian
origin and professional training. Ross attended medical school at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
and completed his training in psychiatry at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
. He moved to Dallas, Texas
in the early 1990s where he took a position as Director of Dissociative Disorders at Charter Hospital of Dallas.
Ross specializes in posttraumatic stress and dissociative disorders
(e.g., dissociative identity disorder
) and has written many books and research papers.
Presently Ross works in the Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma
, a hospital in the Dallas, Texas
area. He also directs a trauma
program at Forest View Psychiatric Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan
. Most of the people the Ross Institute treats describe very traumatic and abusive childhoods
.
Dr. Ross has also produced several documentaries and educational films about dissociative identity disorder. In 1999, he teamed with producer James Myer
in the making of Personality: Reality and Illusion. The docu-drama featured Chris Costner-Sizemore
, the first woman thought to be diagnosed with MPD. Ms. Sizemore's life was portrayed by Joanne Woodward in the Fox motion picture, The Three Faces of Eve
.
In the past Ross was contractor of psycho-pharmaceutical companies; he has been called to participate in neuroleptic trials and continues to publish in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge with the claim that energy from his eyes could cause a speaker, receiving no other input, to sound a tone. In 2010, Dr. Ross published experimental data that supports his scientific hypothesis that the eyes emit energy that can be captured and measured in the Anthropology of Consciousness, a journal of the American Anthropological Association. During correspondence with Dr. Steven Novella
of The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe, he conceded that the equipment he was using was, in fact, a biofeedback
machine attached to his laptop, and that the laptop was responding in a well-understood way to an eye blink. However, he claimed that he could still send energy beams out of his eyes, and was working on modifying the software to ignore an eyeblink. His claim has not currently been tested by the JREF. In 2008, he was granted the tongue-in-cheek Pigasus Award
.
Psychiatrist
A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders. All psychiatrists are trained in diagnostic evaluation and in psychotherapy...
of Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
origin and professional training. Ross attended medical school at the University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
and completed his training in psychiatry at the University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Canada
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...
. He moved to Dallas, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
in the early 1990s where he took a position as Director of Dissociative Disorders at Charter Hospital of Dallas.
Ross specializes in posttraumatic stress and dissociative disorders
Dissociative disorders
Dissociative disorders are defined as conditions that involve disruptions or breakdowns of memory, awareness, identity and/or perception. See also dissociation. People with dissociative disorders are able to escape from reality involuntarily...
(e.g., dissociative identity disorder
Dissociative identity disorder
Dissociative identity disorder is a psychiatric diagnosis and describes a condition in which a person displays multiple distinct identities , each with its own pattern of perceiving and interacting with the environment....
) and has written many books and research papers.
Presently Ross works in the Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma
Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma
The Ross Institute for Psychological Trauma is a psychiatric hospital in Dallas, Texas in the United States founded by Colin A. Ross in 1991, treating adults suffering from depression, self-mutilation, suicide ideation, anxiety, dissociative schizophrenia, dissociation and substance abuse...
, a hospital in the Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
area. He also directs a trauma
Psychological trauma
Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event...
program at Forest View Psychiatric Hospital in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. Most of the people the Ross Institute treats describe very traumatic and abusive childhoods
Child abuse
Child abuse is the physical, sexual, emotional mistreatment, or neglect of a child. In the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Department of Children And Families define child maltreatment as any act or series of acts of commission or omission by a parent or...
.
Dr. Ross has also produced several documentaries and educational films about dissociative identity disorder. In 1999, he teamed with producer James Myer
James Myer
James Myer is an American documentarist and educational filmmaker. He produced Multiple Personality: Reality and Illusion, a documentary that chronicled the life of Chris Costner-Sizemore. Ms. Sizemore, who was depicted in the book and film The Three Faces of Eve, was diagnosed in the 1950’s...
in the making of Personality: Reality and Illusion. The docu-drama featured Chris Costner-Sizemore
Chris Costner-Sizemore
Chris Costner Sizemore is a woman who, in the 1950s, was diagnosed with Multiple Personality Disorder, now known as dissociative identity disorder. Her case, with a pseudonym used, was depicted in the 1950s book and film The Three Faces of Eve by her psychiatrists, Corbett H. Thigpen and Hervey M....
, the first woman thought to be diagnosed with MPD. Ms. Sizemore's life was portrayed by Joanne Woodward in the Fox motion picture, The Three Faces of Eve
The Three Faces of Eve
The Three Faces of Eve is a 1957 American film adaptation of a case study by Corbett H. Thigpen and Hervey M. Cleckley. It was based on the true story of Chris Costner Sizemore, also known as Eve White, a woman who suffered from Dissociative Identity Disorder formerly known as multiple personality...
.
In the past Ross was contractor of psycho-pharmaceutical companies; he has been called to participate in neuroleptic trials and continues to publish in the American Journal of Psychiatry.
Claims of paranormal ability
In 2008, Dr. Ross applied for the James Randi Educational Foundation'sJames Randi Educational Foundation
The James Randi Educational Foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 1996 by magician and skeptic James Randi. The JREF's mission includes educating the public and the media on the dangers of accepting unproven claims, and to support research into paranormal claims in controlled...
One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge with the claim that energy from his eyes could cause a speaker, receiving no other input, to sound a tone. In 2010, Dr. Ross published experimental data that supports his scientific hypothesis that the eyes emit energy that can be captured and measured in the Anthropology of Consciousness, a journal of the American Anthropological Association. During correspondence with Dr. Steven Novella
Steven Novella
Steven P. Novella is an American clinical neurologist, assistant professor and Director of General Neurology at Yale University School of Medicine...
of The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe, he conceded that the equipment he was using was, in fact, a biofeedback
Biofeedback
Biofeedback is the process of becoming aware of various physiological functions using instruments that provide information on the activity of those same systems, with a goal of being able to manipulate them at will...
machine attached to his laptop, and that the laptop was responding in a well-understood way to an eye blink. However, he claimed that he could still send energy beams out of his eyes, and was working on modifying the software to ignore an eyeblink. His claim has not currently been tested by the JREF. In 2008, he was granted the tongue-in-cheek Pigasus Award
Pigasus Award
The Pigasus Award is the name of an annual tongue-in-cheek honor recognized by noted skeptic James Randi. The awards seek to expose parapsychological, paranormal or psychic frauds that Randi has noted over the previous year...
.