Annette, Jim, Tipsfolk, I thought that the longest lived ethnic population were older, white, Mormon males? Second, my guess of why psychoanalysts live so long is not because of psychoanalysis itself but rather SES. Because they hook patients for a long period of analysis, they are earning high level incomes for a long period of time. With better income, you have better health care. In addition, studies of longevity point to less cognitive decline for academic-types because they continue to use their brains. It's entirely possible that the engaging process of analyzing dreams and fantasies keep these psycho-types mentally alert. As for long-lived Jews, this goes back to some health issues. During the Plague, for example, Jews were targeted because the death rate was lower in Jewish communities. Jews had religious mandates on cleanliness and diet (the whole kosher thing). Now, I am not saying that Jewish psychoanalysts are cleaner but rather that there is a concern for health embedded in the culture. Of course, this can be dismissed with a steady diet of cream cheese and bagels, kugel, and gribenes (fried chicken skin). Oy! Rob ( Ruvain Shimon) Weisskirch Rob Weisskirch, MSW, Ph.D. Department of Child and Adolescent Studies California State University, Fullerton P.O. Box 6868 Fullerton, CA 92834-6868 (714) 278-2896 http://faculty.fullerton.edu/rweisskirch
