This Article  • Full text  • PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on ISI (90)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in JAMA  Topic Collections  • Nursing Care  • Alert me on articles by topic

Linda Rosa, BSN, RN; Emily Rosa; Larry Sarner; Stephen Barrett, MD

JAMA. 1998;279:1005-1010.

Context.— Therapeutic Touch (TT) is a widely used nursing practice rooted in mysticism but alleged to have a scientific basis. Practitioners of TT claim to treat many medical conditions by using their hands to manipulate a "human energy field" perceptible above the patient's skin.

Objective.— To investigate whether TT practitioners can actually perceive a "human energy field."

Design.— Twenty-one practitioners with TT experience for from 1 to 27 years were tested under blinded conditions to determine whether they could correctly identify which of their hands was closest to the investigator's hand. Placement of the investigator's hand was determined by flipping a coin. Fourteen practitioners were tested 10 times each, and 7 practitioners were tested 20 times each.

Main Outcome Measure.— Practitioners of TT were asked to state whether the investigator's unseen hand hovered above their right hand or their left hand. To show the validity of TT theory, the practitioners should have been able to locate the investigator's hand 100% of the time. A score of 50% would be expected through chance alone.

Results.— Practitioners of TT identified the correct hand in only 123 (44%) of 280 trials, which is close to what would be expected for random chance. There was no significant correlation between the practitioner's score and length of experience (r=0.23). The statistical power of this experiment was sufficient to conclude that if TT practitioners could reliably detect a human energy field, the study would have demonstrated this.

Conclusions.— Twenty-one experienced TT practitioners were unable to detect the investigator's "energy field." Their failure to substantiate TT's most fundamental claim is unrefuted evidence that the claims of TT are groundless and that further professional use is unjustified.

From the Questionable Nurse Practices Task Force, National Council Against Health Fraud Inc (Ms L. Rosa), and the National Therapeutic Touch Study Group (Mr Sarner), Loveland, Colo; and Quackwatch Inc, Allentown, Pa (Dr Barrett). Ms E. Rosa is a sixth-grade student at Loveland, Colo.

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

The Effect of Therapeutic Touch on Pain and Fatigue of Cancer Patients Undergoing Chemotherapy
Aghabati et al.
Evid Based Complement Alternat Med 2008;0:nen006v1-nen006.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Guest editorial: caught on the horns of a conundrum.
Cox
J Holist Nurs 2006;24:228-230.
 

Sacred journeys of nurse healers.
Hemsley and Glass
J Holist Nurs 2006;24:256-268.
ABSTRACT  

Complementary and Alternative Therapy for Epilepsy: Much Less Than Meets the Eye
Roach
Arch Neurol 2005;62:1475-1476.
FULL TEXT  

Complementary and Alternative Therapies for Cancer
Cassileth and Deng
The Oncologist 2004;9:80-89.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Evaluating Complementary and Alternative Medicine: The Limits of Science and of Scientists
Hufford
J Law Med Ethics 2003;31:198-212.
 

Mistakes in Research: An Appeal for Tolerance
Todaro-Franceschi
Nurs Sci Q 2003;16:110-113.
 

Complementary medicine and the scientific method: Mainstreaming proven "alternative" therapies
Baumrucker
AM J HOSP PALLIAT CARE 2002;19:369-371.
 

Complementary, Alternative, Integrative, or Unconventional Medicine?
Penson et al.
The Oncologist 2001;6:463-473.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Spirituality in medicine: what is to be done?
Yawar
JRSM 2001;94:529-533.
FULL TEXT  

The Efficacy of "Distant Healing" A Systematic Review of Randomized Trials
Astin et al.
ANN INTERN MED 2000;132:903-910.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Complementary and Alternative Cancer Medicine
Cassileth
JCO 1999;17:44-52.
FULL TEXT  

A Close Look at Standards for Therapeutic Touch
Good et al.
JAMA 1999;282:135-135.
FULL TEXT  

An Even Closer Look at Therapeutic Touch
Freinkel et al.
JAMA 1998;280:1905-1908.
FULL TEXT  

Physicians' Ethical Obligations Regarding Alternative Medicine
Sugarman and Burk
JAMA 1998;280:1623-1625.
FULL TEXT  

Alternative Neurology: The Ketogenic Diet
Roach
Arch Neurol 1998;55:1403-1404.
FULL TEXT  

Beyond Complementary and Allopathic Medicine
Elpern
Arch Dermatol 1998;134:1473-1476.
FULL TEXT  

Alternative Medicine and Surgery
Organ
Arch Surg 1998;133:1153-1154.
FULL TEXT