The girl who cried wolf: pseudologia phantastica and sexual abuse

There has been an explosion of interest recently in sexual abuse and incest, with reported causal links to a wide variety of psychiatric disorders. The integrity of Freud's seduction theory has been challenged by Jeffrey Masson and sexual abuse activists. What is the position of a therapist who finds out that a patient's reports of incest and sexual abuse turn out to be fabrications? These issues are presented and discussed in the context of a brief, illustrative case history. There is also a review of the concept of "pseudologia fantastica", as well as a brief review of a feminist critique of Freudian theory.