The Expert Witness and the Nonorganic Patient: Discovery, Documentation and Daubert

Ocular malingering is a phenomenon defined as the conscious and voluntary complaint of a visual disturbance that does not exist and is most commonly seen in military recruits and in individuals seeking financial gain in a lawsuit. It was estimated that attempted ocular malingering to avoid military service before World War II was approximately 7%. However, this percentage dropped to between 0.5-3% after Pearl Harbor and was felt to be due to greater patriotism. The number of malingerers in the military in more modern times has not been estimated, but appears to be less in a more volunteer service (personal experience).