General Interest > Feed Your Head
APA Task Force Report: ENCOUNTER GROUPS AND PSYCHIATRY
psy:
--- Quote from: "Whooter" ---I think there was a very small percentage of people who benefited long term in that it changed their direction in life.
--- End quote ---
So you admit the encounter group methods used by programs only changes most people temporarily? Would you aslo admit that these confrontational techniques can cause harm in a number of people, especially when combined with other elements of program thought reform?
See. The issue with encounter groups and attack therapy is that it is only appropriate, if at all, for a very small number of people. Mostly those who have already established a strong core identity, who can stand up for themselves, and who can leave if it gets too much for them. None of these things apply in most programs where these encounter groups are central to the program (raps or group are normally a daily occurrence). I've personally seen a guy totally freak out in an LGAT and i've seen many utterly decimated by constant attacks in encounter groups -- to the point where they were basically dead inside and had no will of their own left to resist.
Sometimes the encounter groups were more moderate and it was just a circle of chairs discussing and attacking and just random stuff but if staff felt it necessary, if for some reason they thought you weren't "real" enough, or if you did something against the every changing, subjective and arbitrary rules, they would put you in the center of the room and that circle of chairs would become a 360 degree verbal firing squad. It would not stop until either the time ran out or they felt you were sufficiently changed or repentant or whatever the particular goal was. If you managed to outlast the time, they would bring you in the next day and the process would start all over again, meanwhile you would be on "bans" so you weren't allowed to talk to anybody or decompress (not that there was anybody you could trust to talk to anyway).
These techinques may not harm some people, but I have seriously doubts that they help anybody and I know from personal experience that they harm a lot of the kids that these programs claim to serve (aspergers, anxiety attacks, depression, etc). They're simply not appropriate and the "one size fits all" approach most programs do harm many kids (even if they "claim" to provide "individuals educational plans" or some bullshit like that). This isn't to imply that the techniques are appropriate for anybody, mind you, just that for some people they are more harmful than others.
heretik:
--- Quote from: "psy" ---
--- Quote from: "Whooter" ---I think there was a very small percentage of people who benefited long term in that it changed their direction in life.
--- End quote ---
So you admit the encounter group methods used by programs only changes most people temporarily? Would you aslo admit that these confrontational techniques can cause harm in a number of people, especially when combined with other elements of program thought reform?
See. The issue with encounter groups and attack therapy is that it is only appropriate, if at all, for a very small number of people. Mostly those who have already established a strong core identity, who can stand up for themselves, and who can leave if it gets too much for them. None of these things apply in most programs where these encounter groups are central to the program (raps or group are normally a daily occurrence). I've personally seen a guy totally freak out in an LGAT and i've seen many utterly decimated by constant attacks in encounter groups -- to the point where they were basically dead inside and had no will of their own left to resist.
Sometimes the encounter groups were more moderate and it was just a circle of chairs discussing and attacking and just random stuff but if staff felt it necessary, if for some reason they thought you weren't "real" enough, or if you did something against the every changing, subjective and arbitrary rules, they would put you in the center of the room and that circle of chairs would become a 360 degree verbal firing squad. It would not stop until either the time ran out or they felt you were sufficiently changed or repentant or whatever the particular goal was. If you managed to outlast the time, they would bring you in the next day and the process would start all over again, meanwhile you would be on "bans" so you weren't allowed to talk to anybody or decompress (not that there was anybody you could trust to talk to anyway).
These techinques may not harm some people, but I have seriously doubts that they help anybody and I know from personal experience that they harm a lot of the kids that these programs claim to serve (aspergers, anxiety attacks, depression, etc). They're simply not appropriate and the "one size fits all" approach most programs do harm many kids (even if they "claim" to provide "individuals educational plans" or some bullshit like that). This isn't to imply that the techniques are appropriate for anybody, mind you, just that for some people they are more harmful than others.
--- End quote ---
Psy,
Two sets of circumstances, one group (whooter is talking about) comes to the table willingly seeking knowledge or just a experience, the group (you are referring to (kids in a program)) are forced to the table and punished with the identical experiential tool. Unbelievable.
There is no wiggle room here at all the "encounter groups" being used (from what I have read) in programs can only produce negative results. This is putting it kindly.
Whooter, are you getting this or are you still wanting to compare to the 70's when your wife was experimenting.
Whooter:
--- Quote from: "heretik" ---
Psy,
Two sets of circumstances, one group (whooter is talking about) comes to the table willingly seeking knowledge or just a experience, the group (you are referring to (kids in a program)) are forced to the table and punished with the identical experiential tool. Unbelievable.
There is no wiggle room here at all the "encounter groups" being used (from what I have read) in programs can only produce negative results. This is putting it kindly.
Whooter, are you getting this or are you still wanting to compare to the 70's when your wife was experimenting.
--- End quote ---
I see your point on the differences and about going into it willingly. But we also need to realize that encounter groups can vary vastly from one model to the next ranging from 90 minutes to several days. People with a psychosis of some type could be damaged by the process as well as aspergers (in my opinion).
...
Awake:
… and we shouldn't discount the widespread proliferation of sensitivity training, or encounter groups, being due to selling the, supposed, keys to unlocking peoples unlimited human potential ( the Human Potential Movement), the cover under which many modern encounter sessions operate under (est and lifespring among the most popular).
… Are you living up to your full potential? I don’t think so. But you are accountable for that, no one else. What is stopping you from being the best you you can be? What is keeping you from being the life of the party? What about you is stopping you from getting the wealth you deserve? Are you one of those people that isn’t having great sex?!!
The only thing keeping you from getting those things is that you don’t believe in yourself enough to get what you want! But you know what, you ARE good enough and you CAN do it. It’s clear your family and friends are not supporting you, and you are not supporting them. Make the commitment for yourself, and your relationships, to come to my seminar and get the life you REALLY want! (You know who you are)… -- MindLifeDynamaSpringEstEncounereminarsTraining--- Making you real again.
Whooter:
--- Quote from: "Awake" ---… and we shouldn't discount the widespread proliferation of sensitivity training, or encounter groups, being due to selling the, supposed, keys to unlocking peoples unlimited human potential ( the Human Potential Movement), the cover under which many modern encounter sessions operate under (est and lifespring among the most popular).
… Are you living up to your full potential? I don’t think so. But you are accountable for that, no one else. What is stopping you from being the best you you can be? What is keeping you from being the life of the party? What about you is stopping you from getting the wealth you deserve? Are you one of those people that isn’t having great sex?!!
The only thing keeping you from getting those things is that you don’t believe in yourself enough to get what you want! But you know what, you ARE good enough and you CAN do it. It’s clear your family and friends are not supporting you, and you are not supporting them. Make the commitment for yourself, and your relationships, to come to my seminar and get the life you REALLY want! (You know who you are)… -- MindLifeDynamaSpringEstEncounereminarsTraining--- Making you real again.
--- End quote ---
If anything it isnt designed to lower a persons self esteem or to be abusive it is quite the opposite.
...
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