Is it true that the Bell Witch came into existence as the result of Betsy Bells having been physically abused by her father?
There is no proof that suggests such action took place. Despite the lack of real, physical evidence, the “abuse theory” has been popularized by several books, magazines, and Web sites which, in my personal opinion, are looking for an easy and convenient closure to the legnd. The theory that a poltergeist can in some cases be evoked by recurrent spontaneous psychokinesis (mind over matter in an involuntary sense) was developed in large part by Dr. Nandor Fodor, a psychologist. The theory states in a nutshell that a poltergeist can be evoked as the result of severe emotional trauma, usually on the part of a teenager with repressed psychokinetic energy. Much emotional trauma was present during the John Bell era and was shared among many people, not just the Bell family. In addition, “Kate” displayed the characteristics of a poltergeist for only a short time — at the beginning of the disturbances. The “abuse theory” as it pertains to the Bell Witch legend is a speculative and presumptuous
