Everything Everywhere Daily · Sunday, July 12, 2026
In David Rosenhan's 1973 experiment, the hospital staff failed to recognize the pseudopatients as sane individuals. However, other real patients within the psychiatric hospitals were able to identify the imposters, often guessing they were journalists or professors due to their note-taking and behavior.
“Although the hospital staff did not identify the imposters, there were people who did.”
“The patients.”
“Many fellow patients approached the imposters and told them that they were likely journalists or professors checking up on the hospital.”