Norman Vincent Peale
(May 31, 1898 – December 24, 1993) was a Christian preacher and author (most notably of The Power of Positive Thinking) and a progenitor of the theory of "positive thinking". Peale was born in Bowersville, Ohio and died in Pawling, New York. He was educated at Ohio Wesleyan University, and Boston University.

Peale's works came under criticism from theologians, mental health experts, scholars, and even politicians like Adlai Stevenson who was famously quoted saying "I find Paul appealing and Peale appalling."[citation needed] These critics came out in the early 1950's after the publication of The Power of Positive Thinking to warn the public, claiming that Peale's message was dangerous and that he was a con man and a fraud.
 

A main criticism of Peale and "The Power of Positive Thinking" is that the book is full of anecdotes that are hard to substantiate. Some of the experts and many of the testimonials that Peale quotes directly as supporters are unnamed, unknown, or not sourced. Examples include a "famous psychologist" (p.52, Fawcett Crest: New York, 1990 edition), a two page letter from a "practicing physician" (p.149 -150), another "famous psychologist" (p. 169), a "prominent citizen of New York City" (p.88) and dozens more. Despite the repeated quotations, the reader can not find one example of a mental health expert, quoted, named and verifiable, who directly endorses Peale or his methods. Peale also refers to many studies which seem to support his cause but are not verifiable. As psychiatrist RC Murphy puts it "All this advertising is vindicated as it were, by a strict cleaving to the side of part truth," and Murphy calls the quoted material "implausible and woodenly pious." (Think Right: Reverend Peale's Panacea. Nation, May 7 1955,p. 399).

A second criticism of the Peale philosophy was that the "techniques," which Peale promises in book after book will give the reader absolute self confidence and deliver the reader from all suffering, are actually a form of self-hypnosis (autosuggestion). Critics claim that Peale is deceptively calling self-hypnosis by names such as "techniques," "formulas," "methods," "prayers," and "prescriptions" among other benign names to persuade the reader to practice them. Some mental health experts contend the hypnotic "techniques" not only don't work but are injurious to the mental health of the reader. They contend that the constant repetitions of these autosuggestions not only interfere with true thinking, but that they destroy self-knowledge and religious growth in the process.

Harvard Scholar Donald Meyer in his book "The Positive Thinkers" (Pantheon Books: 1965, p.264) called "The Power of Positive Thinking" the "Bible of American autohypnotism" and claims that Peale attempts to induce the reader into conditioning himself into a permanent state of hypnosis, which Meyer refers to as the "automatized power of positive thinking." (p.268). Meyer's research asserts that Peale knows he is using hypnosis to persuade his readers. Meyer also claims that Peale does not want the reader to know this. Not once in "The Power of Positive Thinking" does Peale call his "techniques" hypnosis.

Psychiatrist RC Murphy, in an article for "Nation" (Think Right: Reverend Peale's Panacea. May 7, 1955, pp. 398-400) wrote that "the cornerstone of Peale's philosophy is the reliance on self-hypnosis" and that "Self knowledge, in Mr. Peale's understanding is unequivocally bad; self-hypnosis is good." Comparing the Peale "techniques" with the worshipful meditation practices of sincere religious leaders like Gandhi, Murphy writes "But what separates Mr. Peale from these religious leaders is that they believed what they said, while he appears not to listen to his own words.... They held the human soul is too deep to be grasped by even a vigorously investigative mind in a lifetime of study. Mr. Peale thinks he has all the answers. This aura of finality makes the book not merely an incomplete presentation of religion, but a vigorous door shutting assault on it."
 

Psychologist Albert Ellis, the founder of cognitive therapy and one of the most influential psychologists of the 20th century, compares the Peale techniques with those of the hypnotist Emile Coue, and Ellis' writings through the years repeatedly warn the public not to follow the Peale message. Ellis calls the Peale approach dangerous, distorted, unrealistic, and says that the black or white view of life that Peale teaches is similar to that of borderline personality disorder patients. Ellis says of the Peale hypnotic techniques "In the long run they lead to failure and disillusionment, and not only boomerang back against people, but often prejudice them against effective therapy." (Overcoming Resistance: Rational Emotive Therapy With Difficult Clients. New York: Springer Publishing, 1985, p. 147).

The third major criticism of Peale and "positive thinking" is the underlying message that Peale is teaching is one of fear, hatred, and intolerance. Here Psychiatrist Murphy is worth quoting at length:

"A subtler influence is his denial of unpleasant unreality. With saccharine terrorism, Mr. Peale refuses to allow his followers to hear, speak or see any evil. For him real human suffering does not exist; there is no such thing as murderous rage, suicidal despair, cruelty, lust, greed, mass poverty or illiteracy. All these things he would dismiss as trivial mental processes which will evaporate if thoughts are simply turned into more cheerful channels. This attitude is so unpleasant that it bears some search for its real meaning. It is clearly not a genuine denial of evil but a horror of it. A person turns his eyes away from human bestiality and the suffering it evokes only if he can't stand to look at it. By doing so he affirms the evil to be absolute; he looks away only when he feels that nothing can be done about it.... The belief in pure evil, an area of experience beyond the possibility of help or redemption is automatically a summons to action: 'evil' means 'that which much be attacked.' Any thing which strengthens the belief that evil exists as a tangible force outside of oneself thereby endorses the cruelties which men commit against each other.... We are encouraged to give up our striving and feel free to hate as much as we like and wherever we see the work of Beezlebub, whether under our own roofs or on the other side of the ocean. Thus Mr. Peale's book is not only inadequate for our needs but even undertakes to drown out the fragile inner voice which is spur to religious growth. While people honestly seeking help will find it almost anywhere they look, the book as a whole is anything but friendly towards religious experience." (Reverend Peale's Panacea. Nation. May 7, 1955, pp. 398-400).

Harvard Scholar Donald Meyer agrees with Murphy's interpretation of Peale's message. In his not so subtly titled article "Confidence Man," (New Republic. July 11, 1955, pp. 8-10), Meyer says of Peale's claims that the reader can have absolute power to achieve anything he wants by using the Peale techniques, "In more classic literature, this sort of pretension to mastery has often been thought to indicate an alliance with a Lower rather than a Higher power." The mastery Peale speaks of is not the mastery of skills or tasks, but the mastery of "negative thoughts."

Meyer writes that the Peale view of life is actually a grim and depressing one, one afraid to take on the challenges of life, one resigned to the status quo, one resigned to frustration, anger and impotence. Negative realities can not be looked at, challenged, confronted, constructively changed, or even thought about. Peale's true view of the world at large and of his readers in particular could hardly be clearer, Meyer writes: "And battle it is; Peale, in sublime betrayal of the aggression within his philosophy of peace, talks of 'shooting' prayers at people." (Confidence Man. New Republic. July 11, 1955, pp. 8-10.)

Psychologist Martin Seligman, the originator of "positive psychology," and one of the world's leading experts on the scientific study of happiness, says "positive thinking" is unproven and dangerous, and he cautions readers not to confuse "positive thinking" with positive psychology. Speaking specifically about Peale, Seligman writes: "First, positive thinking is an armchair activity. Positive psychology, on the other hand, is tied to a program of empirical and replicable scientific activity.... Where accuracy is tied to potentially catastrophic outcomes (for example, when an airline pilot is deciding whether to de-ice the wings of her airplane) we should all be pessimists.... Positive psychology is a supplement to negative psychology, not a substitute." (Authentic Happiness. Free Press: New York, 2002, pp. 288-299)

One of Peale's supporters is the Rev. Billy Graham who said at the National Council of Churches on June 12, 1966 "I don't know of anyone who had done more for the kingdom of God than Norman and Ruth Peale or have meant anymore in my life for the encouragement they have given me. (Hayes Minnick, BFT Report #565 p. 28).

However, for the millions who believe and follow Peale's philosophy, it is a wonderful guide to leading a successful and happy life
 

Norman Vincent Peale Books

The Power of Positive Thinking, Ballantine Books; Reissue edition (August 1, 1996). ISBN 0-449-91147-0
Guide to Confident Living, Ballantine Books; Reissue edition (September 1, 1996). ISBN 0-449-91192-6
Six Attitudes for Winners, Tyndale House Publishers; (May 1, 1990). ISBN 0-8423-5906-0
Positive Thinking Every Day : An Inspiration for Each Day of the Year, Fireside; (December 6, 1993). ISBN 0-671-86891-8
Positive Imaging, Ballantine Books; Reissue edition (September 1, 1996). ISBN 0-449-91164-0
You Can If You Think You Can, Fireside Books; (August 26, 1987). ISBN 0-671-76591-4
Thought Conditioners, Foundation for Christian; Reprint edition (December 1, 1989). ISBN 99910-38-92-2
In God We Trust: A Positive Faith for Troubled Times, Thomas Nelson Inc; Reprint edition (November 1, 1995). ISBN 0-7852-7675-0
Norman Vincent Peale's Treasury of Courage and Confidence, Doubleday; (June 1970). ISBN 0-385-07062-4
My Favorite Hymns and the Stories Behind Them, Harpercollins; 1st ed edition (September 1, 1994). ISBN 0-06-066463-0
The Power of Positive Thinking for Young People, Random House Children's Books (A Division of Random House Group); (December 31, 1955). ISBN 0-437-95110-3
The Amazing Results of Positive Thinking, Fireside; Fireside edition (March 12, 2003). ISBN 0-7432-3483-9
Stay Alive All Your Life, Fawcett Books; Reissue edition (August 1, 1996). ISBN 0-449-91204-3