alleged phenomenon of humans being kidnapped and detained by the (apparently extraterrestrial)
occupants of unidentified flying objects (UFOS). Believers in the alien abduction phenomenon range
from self-described abductees to psychiatrists and professors at prestigious universities. Their critics—some with equally impressive scientific credentials, others simply professional naysayers—insist that such reports are the result of deliberate hoaxes or mental illness, with the latter (typically long-distance) diagnoses running the gamut from FALSE MEMORY SYNDROME to full-blown psychosis.
Reports of UFOs—which may be any airborne object unidentified by its immediate observers—are as old as human history. “Close encounters” with UFO pilots or passengers are a more recent phenomenon, with reports from Europe and North America apparently beginning in the 19th century. The best-known cases of alleged alien abduction include the following:
