Psychotherapy Volume 26/Spring 1989/Number 1

IRON FISTS/VELVET GLOVES: A STUDY OF A MASSMARATHON PSYCHOLOGY TRAINING

PHILIP CUSHMANOakland, California

This study was undertaken in order tobetter understand the psychologicaldynamics involved in mass marathontraining programs. Interviews fromeighteen graduates of the introductorytraining of one such program includedboth their descriptions of and theiremotional responses to the training. Aworking model of the recruitment-indoctrination process was preparedand evaluated. The data stronglysupported all aspects of the workingmodel: the training consists of apremeditated attack upon the self of theparticipant. This attack results in asevere narcissistic crisis and identityimpasse which are abated only byconverting to the organization. Thecentral core of the training is thereforecomposed of an iatrogenic dynamic.Implications related to treatment issuesand public policy dilemmas are alsoexplored.

Since the late 1960s authoritarian religiousgroups that use behavioral and ideological restric-tions have become increasingly popular. Validcriticism of these groupsUnification Church,Hare Krishna, and otherscenters not upon theirunusual belief systems but on their use of behavioralrestriction and coercive influence techniques thatinduce radical personality change and psychiatriccasualties (Clark, 1983; Conway & Siegelman,

Correspondence regarding this article should be addressedto Philip Cushman, 5480 College Avenue, Oakland, CA 94618.

1978; Singer, 1979). Recent years have seen thegrowing prominence of a new kind of restrictivegroup, selling not religious but psychological sal-vation (see Hochman, 1984; Temerlin & Temerlin,1982).

One type of psychological group is the massmarathon psychology organization. They offer aseries of large group workshops that they describeas "educational" in nature. Although participantsreport positive benefits (Ross, 1984), outside re-searchers have often described the training as au-thoritarian and dogmatic (Brewer, 1975; Kirsch& Glass, 1977; Kornbluth, 1975). The first trainingin the series usually requires 50 to 60 hours ofparticipation, including up to 14 hours a day onweekends (Bry, 1976). The format utilizes aschedule of didactic and experiential events duringwhich participants must comply with the demandsof the leader, called the trainer. As participantsfinish one workshop they are usually pressured toenroll in the next in the series. Among them theseorganizations have trained well over one millionparticipants. These groups and their supportersclaim that the organizations are the heirs of recentpsychological innovations, the 1960s PeaceMovement, and "New Age" theology (see Kil-bourne & Richardson, 1984).

A close examination of one such training pro-gram reveals deceptive recruitment techniques andauthoritarian, restrictive indoctrination processesthat are exploitive, psychologically brutal, andpotentially damaging. Although they describethemselves as using a gentle touch, there is, inactuality, an iron fist inside the velvet glove.

In this study interviews were conducted with18 participants of the beginning training programof one of the more prominent and successful ofthe mass marathon organizations (Cushman,1986a). For legal reasons the real name of thetraining program has been withheld; throughoutthis article it is referred to as the "Vitality Initial

23

Philip Cushman

Training." The interviews were conducted in orderto describe the recruitment-indoctrination processand explain the contradiction between how par-ticipants described the training and how outsideresearchers evaluated the training. It was hopedthe results would aid in understanding what thiscontradiction implied about the training itself andultimately about the uses and functions of psy-chological theories in an advanced consumer so-ciety.

Rationale for the StudyThe popularity of mass marathon psychology

organizations, the techniques they use, and thepsychological impact they create raise significanttreatment issues and pose public policy dilemmasthat need to be faced by the field of psychology.Most important for psychotherapists to considerare a series of issues related to treating clientswho have participated in or wish to participate ina training. Many organizations insist on receivingwritten permission from the participants' therapistsbefore admittance. For this reason therapists needto be able to assess the effect the training willhave on their clients' everyday lives, their work,their personal relationships, and their response totherapy. If individuals have at one time participatedbut have since left the group, therapists need toassess what psychological problems they mightbe experiencing as a result of participation, orwhat problems they might be experiencing as aresult of refusing to participate further. If a recruitis already in treatment, the therapist needs to de-termine what to say when asked by the organizationto give written permission releasing their clientto participate in the training. Also, there is a ques-tion as to how the profession as a whole shouldevaluate therapists who actively recruit their clientsto participate in a mass marathon training.

There are also questions related to the exactnature of the training itself and what it accom-plishes. Four studies, commissioned by the or-ganization in the studies, did not find evidenceof psychiatric casualties that could be conclusivelytraced to the influence of the trainings (Lieberman,1987; Lieberman & Yalom, 1984; Ross, 1984;Shostrom, 1978). However, it is also importantto consider the psychological consequences thatmay be caused by the training that are not coveredby the specific category "psychiatric casualty."For instance, mass marathon psychology partic-ipation is often characterized by a kind of truebelievership in part marked by narcissistic trans-

ference reactions and borderline symptoms, cog-nitive rigidity, lack of critical thinking, impairedreality testing, grandiosity, euphoria, evangelicalfervor, a lack of impulse control, and abrupt per-sonality and lifestyle change. Although these be-haviors may not qualify the subject for the narrowcategory of "psychiatric casualty" as defined byone research team (see Lieberman, 1987; Lie-berman & Yalom, 1984), what clinical picturedo they in fact portray? What is the field to thinkabout training programs that elicit these behaviors?If most participants cannot be considered psy-chiatric casualties, then what kind of casualtiesare they?

Recently questions have been raised as towhether "education" is an accurate label for massmarathon trainings. If these trainings use psy-chotherapeutic techniques, are they conductingpsychotherapy without a license and withoutprofessional training? And if that is in fact thecase, what is psychology's responsibility as aprofession regarding how they advertise, whatthey promise, what safeguards they provide? Inother words, does the field of psychology have a"duty to warn" the public? The research reportedin this article was undertaken in order to collectdata to help answer these questions.

Research DesignThe intention of the study was to develop and

evaluate the proposed working model of the re-cruitment-indoctrination process by using thesubjects' reports to determine the model's degreeof viability. Eighteen subjects, all Vitality grad-uates, were interviewed. Three subjects (referredto as "technique" subjects) were interviewed todetermine the structure of the training, and 15subjects (referred to as "feeling" subjects) wereinterviewed to determine their responses to thetraining. Research guidelines outlined by Lofland(1971) and Kidder (1981) were carefully followed.The participant observation method was originallyplanned but not undertaken because the organi-zation refused to allow specific behavioral de-scriptions of the training to be reported to thepublic. The working model was used to developresearch propositions that are detailed descriptivestatements about the recruitment-indoctrinationprocess in the Initial Training. Seven statementsdescribe Vitality's employment of certain behav-ioral techniques, 14 describe the participants' re-sponses to those techniques, and three describethe demographic characteristics of the participants.

24

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

The 24 descriptive statements were developedin order to evaluate the working model in greaterbehavioral detail. They were a way of operation-alizing the model. An assumption was made thatif the model were an accurate depiction of therecruitment-indoctrination process, participantswould report that the training was composed ofcertain types of techniques and that certain kindsof feelings were evoked in them as a result ofthose techniques. Two semistructured interviewguides for face-to-face interviews were developedthat were evocative and nonjudgmental (seeCushman, 1986a, pp. 424-444). One guide wasused to interview the three "technique" subjects,the other was used to interview the 15 "feeling"subjects. Responses were then compared with the24 descriptive statements.

The Working ModelA working model of the recruitment-indoctri-

nation process was adapted from previous researchand clinical experience (see Cushman, 1986a,b,for a more detailed explanation of the model).The revised model stated that the recruitment-indoctrination process in the Vitality Initial Trainingconstitutes an iatrogenic dynamic that features anattack on the self of the recruit. This attack iscomposed of a) various manipulative and restrictivegroup techniques that cause or exacerbate in par-ticipants performance anxiety and self-presentationconcerns (magnifying the power of demand char-acteristics and the group norm); b) thought reformand hypnotherapy techniques that encourage psy-chological regression and behavioral compliance,discredit the recruits' frame of reference, disrupttheir personal identity, attack their self-cohesion(causing disorientation, dissociative states, un-conscious fears of psychological abandonment,and narcissistic transference reactions); c) groupprocesses that cause participants to behave in waysthat conflict with their self-concept (thus causinga severe self-image management identity impassethat must be resolved by developing a new self-concept; d) the covert encouragement of and in-struction in the unconscious use of perceptual dis-tortions of thought, sensation, and memory thatresult in a cathartic epiphany that justifies a newself-concept more compatible with the traininginduced behaviors; e) structures that ensure a re-capitulation of the attack-cure cycle through con-tinued contact with the Vitality organization bymeans of repeated enrollments in new workshops(i.e., serial indoctrination) and active recruitment

of friends and relatives (i.e., evangelical prose-lytizing).

The central event the model attempts to explainis the moment of the "conversion" experience.The model suggests that the thought reform milieucauses a narcissistic crisis that disorients recruitsand produces strange perceptual experiences andintense emotional needs to overidealize, mergewith, and exhibit in front of the trainer, otherparticipants, and the organization (for an expla-nation of narcissistic transference reactions andtheir role in the leader-follower dynamic seeCushman, 1984; Kohut, 1976; Strozier, 1978).The organization then takes advantage of the re-cruits' disorientation and dependence by demandingthat they do things in public that are unusual andego dystonic. Recruits thus face a dilemma whichthe model refers to as the self-image managementimpasse (See Greenwald & Ronis, 1978 for theoriginal formulations of this theory). The recruitis placed in this position: / am saying that I believein X idea and I am performing X behavior eventhough / am the type of person who believes thatX idea is incorrect and X behavior is sociallyunacceptable or immoral. And yet I am neitherincorrect nor immoral. One subject described herreluctance to comply with the demands of theemotionally expressive exercises:The last thing I do in my life is let go of feelings like that,even in private. I always knew I was burying memories, Iknew I was controlled and distant. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 322)

The organization helps the recruits resolve theimpasse by explaining to them that behaviors andemotions are not "caused" by outside forces (e.g.,the demands of the organization) but emerge fromindividuals as natural expressions of their valuesand their true nature. Vitality often instructs recruitsto let their true feelings "just bubble up" intoconsciousness. The recruits then creatively usethe cues from the group and the group-induceddissociative states and narcissistic transference re-actions to resolve the impasse by deciding: / ex-hibited X behavior because I believe in X value.Why do I believe in X value now when I neverdid before? It must be BECAUSE I HAVE BE-COME A CHANGED PERSON (i.e., "trans-formed, " "spiritually evolved," "returned to mytrue nature"). In my new evolved state I am nowable to understand many great truths incompre-hensible to me before, including why X belief andX behavior are actually not only acceptable butpreferable. A female subject described her ex-perience on the last day of the training:

25

Philip Cushman

At the graduation ceremony I was hugging everyone, I washigh. What I had resented at the beginning of the training,now I was more comfortable with. I decided I was becominga more open and accepting person, and that's why I liked it[the hugging] now. Somewhere along there my feelings aboutmyself changeda major place. . . . I felt elated and giddy.I realized that I was a loving person. . . . I "got" from thetraining that I was, no, am, a loved, OK person. (Cushman,1986a, p. 321)

The indispensable elements in a radical identitychange process are the self-serving perceptual dis-tortions that are reframed by the group and/or therecruits in such a way as to make it possible forthe recruits to honestly believe that they are radicallychanged individuals. If they did not believe theywere being honest, their self-esteem would bediminished and the impasse would not be resolved.Distortions of perception or memory are by nowwell known in social psychology (see Greenwald,1980; Greenwald & Pratkanis, 1984; Hales, 1985,1986; Pratkanis & Greenwald, 1985). In order tosufficiently demonstrate their transformed identityto others and to protect their internal self-esteem,recruits have to distort reality unconsciously bygenerating or selectively recalling or evaluatinginformation from the past, selectively perceivingincoming stimuli, or selectively evaluating internalsensations. The training-induced dissociations,altered states of consciousness, and narcissistictransference reactions aid in this process becausethey are composed of perceptual distortions andkinesthetic sensations that are unusual, exciting,frightening, and bizarre. Participants thus uncon-sciously use these experiences to proclaim: / canprove in a way impossible to refute that I am atransformed person, because I have seen a signor experienced a unique, personal feeling thatdemonstrates to me that a miracle or epiphanyhas occurred and I am completely new inside. Amale subject experienced these memories duringa guided fantasy exercise:

During the "remembering" process, I discovered incrediblywarm images of my father. This is shocking because my fatheris a strikingly angry man . . . people just don't like him. Iwas carrying with me harsh, disdaining memories. I didn'tremember how terrific he was to me as a kid. It was such asurprise. . . . This permanently altered my consciousness.. . . I realized: "I am a person who was loved!" (Cushman,1986a, p. 308)

Another subject described his moment of under-standing:Even though I had been to other [New Age] workshops, theunderstanding I gained in the "family roles" process wasnew. . . . I figured either I have new things to learn or Vitality

is very powerful. Either way I was more committed to thetraining. The same thing happened with the esp exercise. Icould read minds. I let myself realize it. I guess I could doit before but I didn't admit it. . . . I got a greater sense ofmy own power, the possibilities for me. . . . "Yeah, I cando this, I am a very powerful person. Vitality is right." Idecided I'm going to take more of these trainings. (Cushman,1986a, p. 308)

The organization's tactics have converged atthis one moment, and the "conversion" has beenaccomplished. The recruits' conflict betweengroup-induced behavior and self-concept has beenresolved by altering their self-concept. Throughthe trainer's teachings, suggestions, and demands,and the participants' own need to maintain aninner honesty, participants have unconsciouslymanufactured perceptual distortions that helpedthem believe they had become changed persons.Thus, the impasse was resolved.

Methods

SubjectsAll 18 subjects were located through an ad-

vertisement in a popular areawide weekly news-paper and through word of mouth. "Technique"subjects, two female and one male Caucasians,were between the ages of 30-39. They were allpsychotherapists; two have Ph.D. degrees and onehas an M.A. degree. "Feeling" subjects, 11 femaleand 4 male Caucasians, were between the agesof 25-51. Their mean age was 31.6. Eight werebetween the ages of 30-39, and six were between20-29. Eight earned B.A. degrees as their highestdegree, one had an M.S.W., and one an M.D.

All 18 subjects were cooperative within theinterview setting. All 15 "feeling" subjects wereinitially intent upon presenting a positive portraitof the training. Each of them assumed that theinterviewer was a Vitality graduate; those whofound out otherwise immediately attempted to re-cruit the interviewer. Two subjects, although ini-tially positive, appeared to change their evaluationof the training after listening to their own storiesduring the course of the interview. The remaining13 subjects left the interview believing that theyconveyed a positive image of Vitality and thatthe results of the study would be very helpful toVitality. All 18 subjects left the interview ex-pressing positive feelings about the interview pro-cess and appreciated the opportunity to rememberand think about their experiences with Vitality.They all stated that the interview had been con-ducted in a nonjudgemental and accepting manner.

26

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

In general, subjects reported that the VitalityInitial Training was composed of six days andnights, totaling approximately 60 hours. Trainingusually took place in the convention facilities oflarge, well-appointed hotels. A training was usuallycomposed of approximately 250 participants, manyVitality volunteers, several official Vitality staffmembers, an assistant trainer, and a head trainer.

Subjects reported that the events of the trainingand its environmental milieu were carefully con-trolled by the Vitality organization. The trainingwas composed of a coordinated, rapidly movingseries of intense emotional experiences. There arethree main types of events: large lectures, smallgroup or dyadic interpersonal exercises, and formalhypnotic inductions. The exercises were intro-ducted, monitored, and managed from beginningto end by the trainer and his staff. Trainers, inturn, appeared to follow an extensive script whichguided the staff and the trainer in both the largeagenda (e.g., the order and content of the exercises)and the small details (e.g., the correct song toplay or the proper deployment of the staff duringa specific event).Results

In this section, each of the seven descriptivestatements developed from the working modelthat deals with the behavioral structure of thetraining are briefly described. Each descriptivestatement will be illustrated by quotations rep-resentative of subjects' responses. It is not possibleto reproduce in this article four of the five datasections of the original study. The narrative, lineardescription of the training, the 14 descriptivestatements relating to the thoughts and feelingsof the participants, the four case studies, and thephase analysis are not included due to restrictionsof space. Also, the three descriptive statementsrelating to the demographic characteristics of theparticipants are also not reported in this article,since they pertain to broad, psychohistorical issuesnot relevant to the concerns of this journal.

Research Proposition la: All eight themes andtechniques of the "thought reform" process willbe actively used in the Vitality Initial Training.In his study of the reeducation camps in post-revolutionary China, Lifton (1951) identified aset of psychological themes and behavioral tech-niques that comprised what he described as thethought reform milieu. They are: "milieu control,""mystical manipulation," "the demand for purity,""the cult of confession," "the sacred science,"

"loading the language," valuing "doctrine overperson," and "the dispensing of existence" (pp.419-437). Each of the three "technique" subjectsreported the extensive use of techniques that clearlyfit each of Lifton's categories. Additionally, eachof the 15 "feeling" subjects independently cor-roborated the reports obtained from the three"technique" subjects.

By "milieu control" Lifton meant that an or-ganization that practices thought reform must ofnecessity take control over the entire milieu (e.g.,food, rest, time structuring, and especially humancommunication). One subject reported:I was struck by how much in control he [the trainer] was,even in that first day. People were so polite, even when theywere really mad! They had this rule they made everybodystick to: if you wanted to talk you had to raise your hand andwait to be called on. Then they brought the microphone overand you talked through it. Then the trainer responded. Whenhe didn't want to talk to you anymore, he said "Thank you,"everybody clapped (that was part of the rules, too) and themicrophone was taken away. He was in complete control.(Cushman, 1986a, p. 243)

By "mystical manipulation" Lifton meant "ex-tensive personal manipulation" by the controllingorganization that provokes within the prisonerspecific behaviors or emotions that seem to appear"spontaneously." These purposely evoked re-sponses are then explained by the organization insuch a way as to demonstrate the universal truthof the organization's doctrine and thereby the in-fallibility of the organization. One subject reported:Well, people got so tired and exhausted they lost any will toresist. They stopped going by their old social rules of what'sappropriate. When that happened people regressed. They actedpretty weird. They were crying and laughing hysterically andgetting strange ideas. They got these insights that blew themaway. Then the trainer acted pleased. He called this "lettinggo." He said, "If you surrender to the training the results areincredible!" And that's the way some people were acting: likesomething incredible was happening to them. (Cushman, 1986a,p. 244)

By the demand for purity Lifton meant that thethought reform environment institutionalizes anexpectation for the prisoners that is impossible tofulfill: perfection. As a result, prisoners never feelsatisfied or competent. This causes them to increasetheir reliance on the leader and the official ideologyto guide them. Subjects reported:He was always saying things like "peel the onion," "go deeper,""completely surrender." He kept pushing. (Cushman, 1986a,p. 245)The "wanting-getting" exercise was real demanding. Partnerskeep asking louder and louder. They don't stop until you are

27

Philip Cushman

"completely clear." People seemed very frustrated. It wasjarring and disorienting. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 246)

The trainer promised unrealistic, grandiose re-wards if only participants will flawlessly do whatis demanded of them. One subject reported:The trainer claimed that living according to the philosophymeans you realize "You are the source of everything. No onecan victimize you. Everything is choice." (Cushman, 1986a,p. 246)

Even graduating from the Initial Training doesnot satisfy the organization. Before the trainingends Vitality representatives begin pushing par-ticipants to enroll in Training II, the second inthe Vitality series. One subject reported:I resented the hard sell on Sunday. A whole bunch of Sundaywas wasted on immediately enrolling people into II. The trainersaid, "Continued growth is everything. Don't stop now. Gofor it." (Cushman, 1986a, p. 247)And even that does not satisfy them. One subjectreported:I know for a fact they don't stop with II. They keep pushing.If it's not II it's "the mastery course," or "family course," orsome other workshop. They never stop. (Cushman, 1986a,p. 247)

By "the cult of confession" Lifton meant theendless public humiliation that is done to degradeand make the prisoners subservient and compliant.It creates scenes of "symbolic self-surrender" andencourages sadomasochistic tendencies. Subjectsreported:The training is just one long confessional. People just spillingtheir guts. I mean sometimes it was embarrassing. I hate itwhen people degrade themselves like that. (Cushman, 1986a,p. 247)One woman stood up and told about how she was responsiblefor her rape. How she had set it up because she wanted it. Itwas crazy. And everybody just watched her do it. She saidshe was eight years old when it happened. (Cushman, 1986a,p. 248)

By "the sacred science" Lifton meant that theorganization has developed an ideology that itbelieves embodies a universal truth, and its au-thority comes from a source that transcends hu-mankind. It is considered to be sacred and flawless.Therefore, the act of questioning, doubting, ordisagreeing is prohibited; it is considered to bean indication of a personality flaw or an essentialunworthiness. Subjects reported:The trainer really gave it to these people who argued withhim. When they disagreed with him, he'd just interpret theiridea so that it would serve his purpose, which was to geteveryone to agree with him. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 249)

I noticed he never once changed his mind, agreed with anotherpoint of view, allowed himself to be persuaded by someoneelse. He never once apologized or admitted he was wrong,or even that someone else could be right. (Cushman, 1986a,p. 249)

By "loading the language" Lifton meant thetechnique of speaking in "thought-terminatingcliches." The new language serves to create in-tellectual confusion, maintain group cohesiveness,keep outsiders from making meaningful contactwith the prisoners, or seal the doctrine againstcriticism. Subjects reported:One thing that I noticed that's like a cult is Vitality's tendencyto create all these new words. Or, to create new meaningsfor old words. I noticed before I took the training I couldn'tunderstand my friend [his recruiter]. Then, after I graduated,lots of people in my life couldn't understand me. (Cushman,1986a, p. 250)They use "unreasonable" a lot. I think I know what this meansto them: it means he [the trainer] gets to do whatever suitshim, and you don't even get to complain. Whenever I heardthat word I thought "Uh-oh, somebody's going to eat shitagain!" (Cushman, 1986a, p. 250)

By "doctrine over person" Lifton meant thatthe organization respects and values its doctrineand objectives more than individuals. Thereforethe brutalization of the individual is condoned andeven encouraged. One subject reported:Sometimes I think he enjoyed it, watching people squirm.But what really bothered me is that people condoned it, theylet him do it and they condoned it. They started thinking likehim: it's worth it. He told this story, something about thetraining being like a ladder. Instead of being worried aboutone rotten rung, look at where the ladder will get you. No,wait, I guess it was about relationships, but the idea is stillthe same. The whole training's about this: take the abuse,don't complain and it will get you something wonderful. It'llbe worth it. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 251)

By "the dispensing of existence" Lifton meantthat the totalistic milieu stimulates the fear ofextinction. Threats to existence in the VitalityTraining did not approach the life-or-death con-frontations of the prison system Lifton described.However, the training is set up in such a way asto make the trainer's grandiose promises so se-ductive that participants want desperately to beallowed to stay in the training, receive approvalfrom the trainer, and learn the psychological secretsthat will "transform" them. Being ridiculed orabused by the trainer or the other participantstakes on a devastating meaning within the thought-reform milieu. Subjects reported:At some point the trainer I guess had enough from one person.He just wheeled around and said real coldly: "Then get out.

28

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

Just get out\" It was eerie, weird. The room was silent. Thisguy got up and walked out; you could tell he was upset.(Cushman, 1986a, p. 252)I know this one person, the one who recruited me, who startedsaying she thought the world would be better off if everyonetook the training. That's OK, but then she started accusingher friends of not contributing to the world because theyweren't enrolling. Then she said she didn't want to hang outwith "victimized" people [non-Vitality-trained people]. It waswild. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 252)

In summary, the above quotations are indicationsthat all eight thought-reform techniques were ex-tensively used in the training. These techniquescontrol the environment, emotionally manipulatethe participants and reframe their experiences,demand the unachievable, and force participantsto publicly confess to personal feelings and mis-takes. The training severely limits the participants'ability to think independently or critically by cre-ating a "mystical aura" of sacredness around theorganization and by inventing a new jargon. Thetrainer does not allow a concern for the participants'health or comfort to stand in the way of sellingthe training's ideological message. The traineralso decides who can continue in the training,who can be praised, and who can graduate to thenext training (i.e., who can be saved).

Research Proposition lb: Hypnotherapy tech-niques will be repeatedly used to disorient par-ticipants, weaken their ability to think critically,and increase their suggestibility to the Vitalityideology. Hypnotic trance is currently thought tobe induced by two types of techniques: formaland informal (Erickson & Rossi, 1979). In formalinduction individuals are led through a series ofexercises that lead to a progressive relaxation andattenuation of their focus of awareness. Whensubjects are in such a dissociative state they arethought to be highly suggestible. Subjects mightbe instructed to remember scenes from their pastor create scenes about the future, and change thescenes in some approved-of way. When subjectsare in trance this technique leads them to feel asthough the hypnotist is in a magical harmony withthem and that he or she can control their future.Or they might be instructed to imagine a neutralscene and supply important details from their ownlives; this leads subjects to believe that the hypnotistcan actually read their minds, perceive the past,or predict the future. It forms an emotional bondbetween the subjects' private, inner life and thehypnotist's optimism and forcefulness. Certainwords that have special ideological meanings canbe introduced and linked to the pleasant sensations

of the trance. Informal induction is accomplishedwhen the hypnotist does not announce his or herintentions and uses speech and body movementsto create paradoxical content, soothing or unusualrhythms, or confusing or bizarre messages to inducetrance.

Each of the three "technique" subjects reportedthe extensive use of hypnotherapy techniques.Additionally, each of the 15 "feeling" subjectsindependently corroborated the reports obtainedfrom the three "technique" subjects. Of the 44formal events of the training reported by the sub-jects, eight were formal trance inductions, whichVitality referred to as "closed-eye processes." Eachof these exercises began with a ritualized bodyrelaxation, progressed to a deepening induction,intensified emotionally with a psychotherapeuticexercise of some sort, climaxed with the deliveryof a specific ideological message, and closed witha pleasant lifting of the trance. Subjects reported:The closed-eye processes were relaxing and pleasant. Such arelief from the difficulty of the dyads and especially the lectures.It was always so nice. The trainer's voice was very practicedand smooth. He'd say, "Just get in touch with your body.Find a place in your foot. Just let it be" and so on. He'd say,"Your body has a message for you. Be aware of it." Thenhe'd have us see colors. He'd say, "Listen to your questions"and "Let the answers come, bubble up." Oh yeah, in betweensomewhere he wanted us to hover somewhere outside ourbodies, looking down at us. That was fun and kind of spacey.(Cushman, 1986a, pp. 255-256)The closed-eye processes are, of course, hypnosis. I knowabout hypnosis and they are, definitely, hypnosis. The trainerwas very good at that night-club type of induction. I enjoyedit, it was restful, a relief from the other stuff that was goingon. [pause] Hmmm, thinking back on it, I'm surprised at thegaps in what I remember. Maybe I was less conscious, maybeit affected me more than I realized. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 256)

Informal trance was accomplished through theuse of paradox, confusion techniques, metaphors,voice cadence, and visual clues. Paradox is oftenused in the form of idiomatic sayings, definitionsof terms, or verbal confrontations. For instance,participants are often told seemingly contradictorythings about how to live an enlightened life:"being at cause" versus "being surrendered""being totally responsible" versus "letting go""There is no right way to do the training" versus "I will tellyou what to do and you will do it""The extent to which you are willing to be an asshole is theextent to which it will not be necessary."

Two of the three "technique" subjects reportedthat a banner was hung on the wall facing theparticipants throughout the training. Each day of

29

Philip Cushman

the training it increased in size. It read: "Whatam I pretending not to know?" Subjects reportedthat this reinforced the pervasive feeling of beingwatched and blamed.

Although it cannot be disclosed in the article,the organization's name itself appears to have adouble meaning and functioned as a kind of in-formal trance-induction device. It conveyed anideological message that aided in recruiting forfuture trainings.

In summary, the above quotations are indicationsthat both formal and informal hypnotherapy tech-niques were repeatedly used in the training tosoothe and relax participants, make them moresuggestible and dependent, and communicate thedoctrine through imagery, slogans, formulaicexpressions, and embedded messages.

Research Proposition lc: A self-sealing doc-trine will be used in tandem with a form ofpseu-docognitivism to minimize the ability of participantsto think critically and autonomously. Self-sealingdoctrines are considered by their followers to becompletely true and universally applicable (seeRiebel, 1979). This makes it extremely difficultfor recruits to publicly question or doubt the doc-trine or the effectiveness of the group's techniques.If information is presented that contradicts a self-sealing theory, the group's spokesperson simplyinvalidates the information by impugning thequality of the datum, discrediting its source (i.e.,the ad hominem attack), or by distorting the datumto make it appear as though it substantiates thedoctrine.

In a mass marathon training the doctrine is partof the overall recruitment plan. Therefore the trainerrecruits participants in part by reinterpreting theparticipants' behavior in such a way as to provethe applicability of the doctrine. This is accom-plished by describing the participants' behavior(especially public displays of skepticism, dis-agreement, or rebellion) as a "problem" that mustbe "solved" by the application of the group'sideology and techniques.

Of course, the trainer must somehow explainaway instances in which the techniques have failedto produce the desired effects, (i.e., when theparticipants' "problems" have not been "solved").If the doctrine is universally perfect, and yet theparticipant continues to remain imperfect, it mustbe the participant who is at fault (i.e., the adhominem response to contradictory data).

Each of the three "technique" subjects reportedthe extensive use of a self-sealing, pseudocog-

nitivist ideology during the training. Additionally,each of the 15 "feeling" subjects independentlycorroborated the reports obtained from the three"technique" subjects.

Sealing the doctrine from criticism through thetechnique of "blaming the victim" seems to be acommon Vitality technique. One subject reported:People were sometimes feeling disappointed because they werenot "popping" or "getting" the training as dramatically as theythought they should. The trainer always treated these statementsthe same way. He would say, "Look, what you resist you arestuck with" or "Dig deeper." He never thought that maybehe should try a different technique or something. He wouldgo right up to a couple of people during the question andanswer periods, got right up in their faces. He kind of beaton their resistances until they broke. He kept saying, "You'renot surrendered. You know it and I know it. If you don't letgo, you're just wasting your money. (Cushman, 1986a, p.261)

Some doctrines fit the thought reform milieubetter than others. Vitality appears to use a formof extreme or pseudocognitivism (see Sampson,1981) that aids the restrictive milieu by arguingthat the external world has little or no control orinfluence over the individual. This doctrine there-fore undermines the participants' ability to protestVitality's abusive and restrictive techniques bydevaluing the external world and reducing it to ahallucination or at best an insignificant irritationthat can be dismissed by thinking "correctly" aboutit. One subject reported:I don't know why this is, but the trainer just won't tolerateanyone thinking some external force caused something tohappen to them. He even said he believes he chose everythingin his life, including his parents, and when he dies. And hewants us to believe it, too.

Well, they're right in a way. It is good to look at your behaviorand ask yourself what you did to cause it. That's what we doin therapy, you know? But Vitality is too extreme. They blameeverything on the individual. I don't agree with that. It's tooextreme, it's kind of delusional, in fact. Like this older womanwho was a concentration camp survivor. The trainer tried toconvince her she chose that. It was disgusting. (Cushman,1986a, p. 263)

In summary, the above quotations are indicationsthat Vitality used a self-sealing doctrine, in con-junction with a form of pseudocognitivism, inorder to minimize the participants' abilities tothink critically and act autonomously.

Research Proposition Id: The participants'cultural frame of reference will be repeatedly at-tacked. One's cultural frame of reference plays acentral role in the formation and maintenance ofone's sense of self (Geertz, 1973; Mead, 1934).This frame consists of such items as values, beliefs,

30

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

language, peer recognition patterns and ritual ex-change, clothing, religious rituals, oral and writtentraditions. When individuals are forcibly separatedor deprived of their cultural frame, they are throwninto a severe psychological crisis (see Achebe,1959; Beahrs, 1982); identity confusion and dis-sociative episodes sometimes result (Galper, 1983;Singer, 1983; Zeitlin, 1985). When individualssuffer from the loss of their cultural frame theybecome easily confused, disoriented, and desperatefor guidance and a new frame of reference. In-dividuals in this situation often become vulnerableto charismatic leadership and the promise of uni-versal truths, simple demands, and instant answers.

Each of the three "technique" subjects reportedcontinual incidents in which the participants' cul-tural frames of reference were attacked. Addi-tionally, each of the 15 "feeling" subjects inde-pendently corroborated the reports obtained fromthe "technique" subjects. Subjects reported:His [the trainer's] major point, throughout the training wasso bizarre it was confusing or disquieting. It was so differentfrom anything I'd read before I just felt oddlike I was alittle off. The idea "you are in control of everything," well,that's different. It calls everything into question, all the rulesone normally lives by. It makes my head swim, thinking aboutit. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 264)The most unusual thing to me was the roomful of adultsmaking such private and emotional noises in public. Peoplewere crying and moaning and acting angry, all out loud. I'veinterned at a mental hospitalcan you imagine what thetraining is like for someone who is not in the field? It wouldbe bizarre. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 264)As an adult, when someone is constantly treating you like achild, it's kind of disorienting. It's so strange. Like thoseexercises where you had to go up to people you disliked andtell them why, and then the people you liked and tell themwhy; it was like grade school. I felt like a kid a lot. Infantilized.I wasn't used to it. (Cushman, 1986a, pp. 264-265)

In summary, these quotations are indicationsthat the structure of the training is shaped so thatthe participants' cultural frames of reference wererepeatedly discredited. Through ridicule, philo-sophical debate, verbal abuse, extreme changesin the rules of social interaction, and the evocationof dissociative states, the participants' habitualways of framing experience and maintaining asense of self were broken down. This made themvulnerable to exploitation by Vitality's totalisticideology, charismatic leadership style, and au-thoritarian processes.

Research Proposition le: A rigid reinforcementprogram will be communicated to participants.This program results in social rewards for par-

ticipants who conform to the expectations of thetrainer, and punishments for participants who de-viate from or refuse to conform to the norm. Obe-dience to authority and compliance to group normsin public settings has long been the subject ofsocial psychology research. Recently, self-imagemanagement theory has summarized and unifiedseveral midlevel theories into one larger whole(see Greenwald & Ronis, 1978; Hales, 1985).There is little doubt that in our society groupnorms and the expectations of others, especiallya group leader, is a compelling determinant ofindividual behavior (see Asch, 1952; Cartright,1951; Janis, 1973, Kelman, 1973; Lewin, 1958;Milgram, 1963; Schacter, 1951; Sherif, 1935;Weary, 1978). This is an important aspect of therestrictive milieu, since the working model suggeststhat behavioral compliance with the techniquesof the group will inevitably cause self-image man-agement dilemmas and fragmentation experiencesthat ultimately make the conversion experienceso compelling.

Further, severe punishment and lavish praisein a group setting can cause or contribute to psy-chological regression and stimulate separation-individuation or narcissistic conflicts (see Bion,1961; Cushman, 1984; Kernberg, 1980; Kidder,1972; Kohut, 1976; Strozier, 1978). In an attemptto defend against such conflicts and the memoriesof old conflicts, group members may be unusuallywilling to comply with authoritarian processes inorder to gain approval or escape rejection. Un-conscious memories of abandonment or engulf-ment may be stimulated in the restrictive milieu,which lead to an unconscious "reunification wish"(see Masterson, 1981, pp. 129-181). Similarly,the restrictive milieu may create or exacerbatea narcissistic emptiness which may lead to astrong wish to merge with or exhibit before thetrainer. For all of these reasons a rigid reinforce-ment program contributes to compliance andconversion.

Each of the three "technique" subjects reportedthat a reinforcement program was clearly delineatedfrom the outset of the training. Additionally, eachof the 15 "feeling" subjects independently cor-roborated the reports obtained from the "technique"subjects. Subjects reported:The trainer was extremely punitive and harsh, especially withcertain exercises, say the first day or so. He attacked andhumiliated people. If they didn't do what he wanted or saywhat he approved of he would just lace into them. (Cushman,1986a, p. 266)

31

Philip Cushman

When he was leading the basic rules discussion, he came onreal mean. He called several people a "welching malcontent."When he kicked a couple of people out because they wouldn'tagree to the rules he said [in a cold, harsh voice, with onearm pointing stiffly toward the door] "Then get out\ Eitheryou agree and commit or you stuff it, and you stuffed it. Soget outl" (Cushman, 1986a, p. 267)

In summary, the above quotations are indicationsthat the structure of the training included a rigidreward-punishment program. Participants whoconformed to the rules and expectations of thetrainer were reinforced with praise, friendly in-teraction, and even physical affection. Those whodeviated from or refused to conform to the normwere punished by verbal attacks, social rejection,or emotional withdrawal. In many ways the trainerreplicated the characteristics of the worst kind ofparenting: a refusal to recognize and tolerate psy-chological separation in the child. This parent-child pattern may lead to an inappropriate emotionaldependence and an inability to develop a separate,autonomous adult life. Since the pattern is similar,Vitality's authoritarian processes may result insimilar psychological consequences.

Research Proposition If: Participants will beforced to remember in vivid detail the events andemotions of their early lives. Participants will beinstructed to recall, relive, and finally remake thescenes most central to their emotional lives. Thesescenes will stimulate primitive psychologicalfeelings such as abandonment and/or engulfmentfears. These memories will in turn activate defensesagainst such feelings, like the "reunification wish."As a result participants will become increasinglyunable to think critically and autonomously, andwill become increasingly focused on complianceand approval-seeking behavior. The activity ofremaking and reliving childhood scenes is an in-dispensable element of the conversion experiencein many mass marathon trainings. Participants aretold that they are working on basic emotionaltrauma that can be undone, thereby liberating par-ticipants from old "decisions" and personalitystyles. Recalling old scenes also gives the trainingan abundance of psychological material which itdistorts and reinterprets in order to reconstruct theparticipants' pasts. Participants emerge from thetraining with a new version of their pasts (includingtheir relationships with their parents and friends)which conforms to and reinforces the training'sbasic philosophical tenets.

Each of the three "technique" subjects reportedincidents of hypnotic induction that led participants

to recall, relive, and remake early emotional trau-mata. They also described dyadic exercises thatrequired participants to act out and then changescenes of early childhood memories in a psy-chodrama mode. In all cases participants wereencouraged to experience these scenes "as if theywere happening now." Additionally, each of the15 "feeling" subjects independently corroboratedthe reports obtained from the "technique" subjects.Subjects reported:After the trance induction we went through a guided imageryexercise where we were living a perfect day in our childhood.But then we were to recall how awful it felt when we keptour feelings for a parent hidden. We were supposed to reallyfeel them, intensify or exaggerate them, and then give voiceto them. This was real regressive. At this point the noise wasreal loud. Then we were supposed to turn to our partners andpretend they were our parent we had been hiding our feelingsfrom. Then we were supposed to act out the whole thing withthem, and they were to act like our ideal parents, like howwe wished our parents were. This stuff was very emotionaland sometimes overwhelming. There was a lot of regressiongoing on. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 269)The trainer led us through a whole set of exercises that weresupposed to prove that all physical symptoms are under ourconscious control. If we wore glasses we were supposed togo back and figure out what happened that was so painful thatwe screwed up our eyes so we wouldn't have to see it. If wegained weight, we were supposed to go back to find out whathappened right before we got fat that we had to physicallyarmor ourselves against. This was all very mechanistic andunicausal. It was so simple it was easy for people to get thehang of. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 269)

In summary, the above quotations are indicationsthat the training's exercises forced participants toremember, relive, and then remake traumaticemotional scenes from their childhood. These ex-ercises provided Vitality with information that theorganization used to a) reconstruct the participants'life histories so that they confirmed Vitality'sideology, and b) create the intense emotional ex-periences that were essential to the conversionmoment. The vividness with which participantswere instructed to remember and then act outimportant scenes was probably one of the causesof the marked psychological regression subjectsreported. The appeal to the "reunification wish"was particularly apparent in the "good parent"exercise, when participants were supposed to actout a scene with their "ideal" parent. The euphoriaand infantile wish to please that comes from sucha false gratification might make it easier to developecstatic conversion experiences, and more difficultto remain psychologically separate and autono-mous. In fact, the "good parent" exercise is initself a compelling metaphor that could easily be

32

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

used by the trainer to increase compliance withthe demands of the training. Who can (or wouldwant to) say "no" to the perfect parent?

Research Proposition lg: Personal grandiosityand the tendency to overidealize will be promoted,leading to an urge to exhibit before and psycho-logically merge with the trainer, other participants,and!or the Vitality organization. Narcissistictransference reactions such as grandiosity and theurge to exhibit, and overidealizing and the wishto psychologically merge are thought to be anindication of a lack of self-cohesion (see Kohut,1977). The encouragement or the creation of thesebehaviors through doctrinal insistence, personalattack, and role-playing exercises indicates thatthe self of the participants is under a systematicattack. When individuals are in the throes of anarcissistic reaction they are extremely easy tocontrol. The overidealism blinds the idealizer tothe faults and imperfections of the leader. Themerging that grows out of the idealizing is a pow-erful, unconscious urge. The grandiosity can bean intense feeling of well-being and personal in-vincibility that aids in convincing participants thatthey have found the magical solution to their lives.

Each of the three "technique" subjects reportedmany incidents in which a) the Vitality doctrine,b) the content of the exercises, and c) the behaviorof the trainer caused psychological regression andthe presence of narcissistic transference reactions.Additionally, each of the 15 "feeling" subjectsindependently corroborated the reports obtainedfrom the "technique" subjects. Subjects describeda doctrine that promoted narcissistic symptoms:The ideology is definitely regressive. It encourages participantsto be impulsive and uninhibited. It devalued thinking andencouraged affective states and emotional acting out. (Cushman,1986a, p. 271)I think the idea of being totally "at cause" is delusional. Itcaused a grandiose euphoria in people. They were so regressedthey couldn't see how ridiculous it was. I imagine in timethey come out of it, at least partially, and that's what the"Vitality crash" is all about. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 271)Subjects described the content of Vitality exercisesthat appeared to promote narcissistic symptoms:People's defenses were torn down, and when that happenedthey seemed to get needy for attention. The microphone becamevery important to many of them. Some people couldn't stoptalking in the small groups or the dyads. And the stage! Whenthey could get up on the stage, for instance after the "TeamA-Team B" game, they fought for the spotlight. (Cushman,1986a, p. 272)The "hug" I think was a setup for a giant group merging. Wehad to signal if we wanted to look away, make eye contact

only, shake hands, or hug. By this time, everybody knew wewere supposed to be "open" and "loving" and "share ourselves."So really there was no question what was going to happen.People were just hugging each other. This went on for a verylong time. We lost track of time. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 272)

Subjects described behavior by the trainer thatappeared to promote narcissistic symptoms:He was charismatic, plain and simple. He was very powerfulfrom a distance. Rigid, shaming, cold. And the more displeasedhe was, the more they wanted to please him. (Cushman,1986a, p. 273)The trainer was a real exhibitionist. He was mean at times,and then he acted like he really cared. Sometimes he wasdistant, and sometimes he acted almost like one of the people.All in all he was real manipulative. (Cushman, 1986a, p. 273)At one point he said his philosophy is different than the world's,which is why the world's so screwed up. He said, "I set upeverything from who my parents are to when I die. Therearen't any miracles, and there aren't any accidents." I thoughtto myself "The guy thinks he's God!" Then I looked aroundat everybody and I thought "And they think so, too." (Cushman,1986a, p. 273)

In summary, the above quotations are indicationsthat participants experienced an upsurge of nar-cissistic transference reactions that appeared to bepromoted by Vitality's ideology, the content ofthe exercises, and the behavior of the trainer.Grandiosity and the urge to exhibit were prominent,as was the wish to overidealize and psychologicallymerge with the trainer, the other participants, andthe Vitality organization. Regression appeared tobe encouraged, and the trainer took on charac-teristics of a manipulative type of charismatic leader(e.g., rigid overconfidence, empathy, attractive-ness, exaggerated potency, sadism). The over-idealizing of the leader, the empty need for attentionand approval, and the wish to publicly exhibitand psychologically merge make individuals ex-tremely easy to control. This identification of thenarcissistic dynamic makes more understandablesome of the puzzling occurrences in the training,such as the disavowal of adult autonomy and thegleeful "surrendering" to the absolute authorityof the organization.

To summarize the results of Research Proposition1, all seven items have been overwhelmingly sup-ported. Each of the eight thought-reform techniqueswas reportedly utilized. Hypnotherapy techniqueswere found to disorient and disarm participantsand thereby more forcefully instill the Vitalityideology. The training was found to present a self-sealing doctrine that was impossible to disprovewithin the confines of the training. This doctrine,a form of pseudocognitivism, was used in co-

33

Philip Cushman

operation with self-sealing techniques in order toreduce the participants' critical thinking skills.Subjects also reported that their cultural frame ofreference was repeatedly attacked. The structureof the training appeared to be reinforced by a strictreward-punishment program, which activated earlyabandonment fears and reunification wishes inparticipants. These tactics combined to force par-ticipants to comply with the trainer's demands,which often led to extreme ego-dystonic behavior.One type of such behavior was the emotionalregression necessary for one of the most importantaspects of the training, the reenactment of earlychildhood trauma. It is in service of the need tojustify these unusual behaviors that the unconsciousdistortions of memory and perception are devel-oped. This mechanism is studied in more depthwith Research Proposition 2. Grandiosity and thetendency to overidealize the trainer were also pro-moted, causing the urge to exhibit before andmerge with the trainer, other participants, or theVitality organization. The combination of thesetactics resulted in a mass compliance with thedemands of the training, and created the emotionalresponses that were ultimately used by the Vitalityorganization to force an intensely emotional con-version experience.

How participants responded to the above tech-niques, and how those responses were used inorder to further the Vitality organization's purposeswere explored in Research Proposition 2. Whyrestrictive groups are so prevalent today in theU.S. among the post-World War II Caucasianmiddle-class cohort was explored in ResearchProposition 3. Unfortunately, due to space limi-tations, Research Propositions 2a-n and 3a-ccannot be presented in this article.

ConclusionsThe process of a Vitality Initial Training is

primarily composed of an attack upon the self ofthe recruit that causes a narcissistic crisis and aself-image-management identity impasse. Theconversion moment is actually composed of dis-integration products and self-serving perceptualdistortions, not psychological growth or spiritualenlightenment. The conversion moment results ina forestalling of the self-fragmentation and a res-olution of the identity impasse because participantsare forced to use the charismatic leader and hisideology as a kind of substitute self. This causesa euphoric relief and a strong need to stay involvedwith the organization through continued indoc-

trination and proselytizing activities. Because theorganization first caused and then cured the self-fragmentation and self-concept conflicts, the InitialTraining can be considered an iatrogenic process.

Thus the findings replicated in an interestingway the findings of the opposing sets of previousresearch. Subjects reported glowing accounts ofthe Vitality training, thereby replicating the resultsof research that reported subjects' positive eval-uations and enjoyment of trainings (Lieberman,1987; Lieberman & Yalom, 1984; Ross, 1984;Shostrom, 1978; Simon, 1978). Subjects also re-ported anecdotes about the details of the structureof the training and displayed clinical signs thatrevealed negative psychological consequences ofthe structure. These reports thereby replicated theresults of research that described psychiatric cas-ualties and regressive, abusive, and psychologicallydamaging processes (see Gottschalk & Pattison,1969; Haaken & Adams, 1983; Kirsch & Glass,1977; Yalom & Lieberman, 1972).

Above all, the opposing sets of research findingsillustrate the psychological dynamic Lifton (1961)referred to as "the psychology of the pawn." Instudying the reeducation camps of postrevolu-tionary China, Lifton found the same opposingset of reports from participants and observers. Heexplained that the coercive, manipulative tech-niques of the organizationmust assume, for the manipulated, a near mystical qual-ity. . . . [This aura encourages the prisoner to] welcome themysteriousness, find pleasure in the pain . . . [and think thatthey are] necessary for the fulfillment of the "higher purpose"which he [learns to] endorse as his own. (p. 422)

Subjects unwittingly described a training pro-gram that exacerbated participants' fears so thatthey complied with the trainer's demands, ma-nipulated their behaviors so that they acted inways that conflicted with their self-concept, at-tacked their sense of self to the point that theyhad to psychologically merge with the trainer,taught them to psychologically regress, providedthe opportunity for that regression, and pretendedto listen and attend to each of them but actuallyforced them to conform to a rigid ideology andcomply to unyielding behavioral demands.

Subjects also described the training as a kindof elaborate bind from which participants can es-cape only by unconsciously changing or creatingmemories of their past or reevaluating their presentso as to produce an emotionally moving experiencethat helps them remake their self-concept. All ofthis appears to be done in order to guarantee the

34

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

participants' future accessibility to Vitality in theform of enrolling in advanced trainings, volun-teering, and especially proselytizing. The trainingdevelops in participants a need for the attack (i.e.,enlightenment), a means of escape (i.e., euphorictransformation), and a wish to recapitulate thepattern (i.e., enrolling in further trainings andrecruiting others). Indeed, the Vitality processdoes seem to produce "psychological pawns."

Implications: Treatment IssuesThese findings raise important treatment issues

and public policy dilemmas. Although the datado not explicitly indicate a preferred treatmentplan, several suggestions can be extrapolated fromthe existing data. First, participants, especially ifthey are veterans of several trainings, are not likelyto seek out traditional psychotherapy. They willnot "believe" in it, since they have been indoc-trinated into an ideology that disparages the theoriesand effectiveness of traditional therapy. They willnot think they need it: they will be experiencingthe euphoria of the attack-cure dynamic, baskingin the emotional gratification of psychologicalmerging, and complying with the organization'scoercive expectation that they experience a"transformative" experience that makes therapysuperfluous. The ideology insists that they musttake "responsibility" (i.e., blame) for everythingthat happens to them, and thus therapy is just asign of their refusal to be "at cause." As a result,participants will not get the professional help theyneed, either for their pretraining psychologicalproblems or the difficulties they will experienceas a result of the training. This is an unfortunateoccurrence somewhat analogous to medical patientswho are treated by a quack and subsequently aredissuaded from seeking treatment from a legitimatephysician.

Second, if participants are already in therapy,several changes will probably become increasinglyevident in the sessions themselves. Clients couldbecome impatient with the pace of their therapy,give unsolicited testimonials, try to recruit thetherapist, and talk in global generalities and anuncharacteristic jargon. They may claim that theydon't need therapy any more, since they havebeen miraculously "transformed" (i.e., cured).They might be labile and unstable. They willprobably exhibit florid narcissistic transferencereactions and/or borderline symptoms which theywill proudly produce and expect the therapist toappreciate and praise. If the therapy continues

clients will act in uncharacteristic ways. Theymay appear to be doing intense, emotional workor appear to be very insightful and psychologicallyminded, and yet the emotions and working-throughwill have a superficial, false quality, and the insightswill produce strange, sometimes bizarre interpre-tations from clients that are not consistent withtheir previous work or their life histories. Theymay become overly dependent on the therapist.They may exhibit a cognitive rigidity regardingthe validity of the Vitality ideology or the frequencyof their participation in trainings or volunteer re-cruiting. There may be a tendency to perform intherapy and attempt to please the therapist withintense emotionality and forced cathartic releases.The participant may exhibit a strong wish to mergeemotionally and ideologically with the therapistand expect the therapist to disclose personal feelingsand provide inappropriate emotional gratification.Also the participant may uncharacteristically dis-play a harsh, critical voice which is turned againstthe self or others, including the therapist.

Third, one of the few ways participants willenter therapy is if they are forced to by a spouse,lover, or employer because of proselytizing be-haviors that threaten to destroy a relationship orthe inability of the participant to function adequatelyin the everyday world. It is not uncommon formarriage therapists to be contacted by the non-Vitality spouse because the Vitality spouse hadbecome increasingly involved with Vitality andhad threatened divorce if the nonparticipatingspouse refused to enroll in the training. One ofthe subjects of this study spent more time recruitingfor Vitality than she did attending to her ownbusiness and career interests, and was forced toresign from her job.

Fourth, some graduates enter therapy after aconsiderable amount of time has passed since theirinitial involvement in the training. The euphoriahas worn off and they are suffering from a profoundennui, which they can neither escape nor explain.These clients need help in recognizing that theirdepression comes primarily from the inability ofthe Vitality training to provide the glorious panaceait had promised. The solutions provided by theorganization ultimately have not worked, but theclient does not realize it yet. Instead these clientsobediently blame themselves; they are confusedand self-accusatory because they still believe inthe Vitality ideology.

Fifth, some participants actively choose to leavethe organization because they disagree with its

35

Philip Cushman

tactics, ideology, or business practices. Thesepeople often alternate between self-criticism andrage at the organization, between still believingin its ideology and feeling deceived and exploited,between hating the organization and feeling anoverwhelming sense of loss. They oscillate betweenconfusion about their commitment to the orga-nization and a rudimentary understanding of thecomplex process to which they were subjected,between despair over the necessity of pulling theirlives together and occasionally hopefulness abouta future unencumbered by the thought-reform mi-lieu. The last two types of clients should be treatedin a manner similar to a religious-cult victim (seeCushman, 1983;Galper, 1983;Markowitz, 1983;Singer, 1979). They need to study the behavioraltactics common in restrictive groups and the psy-chological dynamics of thought reform and socialcoercion. They need to analyze carefully theirown experience in the organization and understandhow they progressively lost their critical thinkingskills and personal autonomy. They need to meetothers who have been through similar experiences.They need to mourn the time, energy, money,and friends who have been lost in the process. Itis a difficult, painful, and time-consuming process.Given the proper help recovery is possible. Withoutthe proper help former participants become thewalking wounded: they continue to believe in theorganization's ideology (and thus blame themselvesand criticize their nonorganizational behavior) andyet for poorly articulated reasons they refuse toparticipate. They live between two worlds.

Implications: Public Policy DilemmasMass marathon psychology organizations usually

describe themselves as "educational" organizationsand therefore are not required by law to obtain alicense to perform psychotherapy. However, thefindings of this study have described several psy-chotherapeutic techniques that are used in the Vi-tality Initial Training. Therefore, the use of theterm "educational" appears to be inaccurate andmisleading. Also, these findings have uncovereda leadership style and group processes similar tothose which Gottschalk & Pattison (1969) andYalom & Lieberman (1972) found to producedeleterious effects and psychological casualties inencounter-group participants. Particularly notice-able were the prominence of a "true believer"dynamic and the lack of assessment, differentialdiagnosis, and differential treatment planning skillsamong trainers.

One working hypothesis that emerges from thisstudy is that certain types of educational, religious,or psychological programs of change do not actuallyresult in new learning, spiritual enlightenment,or personal growth. These programs, like Vitality,have certain characteristics in common.

1. They do not allow the participant to use defensemechanisms or other means of psychologicalescape from painful memories or associations.

2. They maintain that learning, enlightenment,or growth is universally preceded by an over-whelming discharge of primitive feelings.

3. They present their ideas as universal truths thatare not metaphorical and are independent ofall cultural frameworks.

4. They view the participants' reality orientationas the primary impediment to change.

5. They believe that change consists of divestingoneself of one's reality orientation and self-concept.

The techniques employed by these organizationsdestroy the participants' reality orientation, dis-credit their self-concept, and manipulate them intoreplacing their old orientation with a new, com-peting frame of reference. It is not transformationthat they are selling, but substitution.

Especially germane to public policy discussionsis Yalom & Lieberman's (1972) contention re-garding encounter groups that the most effectivemeans of preventing psychological casualties isinformed self-selection. This can be accomplished,they contended, only if there is an accurate andresponsible program of public education availablethat describes the "process, risks, and profits" ofvarious group experiences" (p. 253). Disclosure,they argued, would protect the consumer fromdeceptive recruitment tactics that disguise the actualnature of the training and use global statementsand exaggerated promises to recruit naive partic-ipants.

Perhaps, as more data are collected on massmarathon psychology organizations, the need forsome type of licensing procedure or legal safeguardsfor consumers will become more obvious. Giventhe findings of this study, two preliminary rec-ommendations emerge. First, organizations shouldmake available to prospective participants a de-tailed, accurate description of their training pro-gram. This would facilitate an informed choiceon the part of the consumer. Second, organizationsshould allow participants to leave the training or

36

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

choose to not participate in a specific exercise atany point in the training. Provided with an op-portunity to escape painful psychological pressuresor to regroup and maintain psychological defenses,consumers would be better able to protect them-selves from psychological decompensation, emo-tional battering, and the effects of authoritariansocial influence techniques.

The decision of whether or not mass marathonpsychology organizations should be considered aform of psychotherapy and placed under the au-thority of the Boards of Behavioral and MedicalScience Examiners is beyond the scope of thisstudy. However, this study indicates that it is aquestion that should be the subject of serious dis-cussion. In any event, the findings of this studyhave a) described a harsh, dictatorial process thatmanipulated, attacked, and exploited participants,b) uncovered psychological casualties that oth-erwise would never have been reported, and c)described situations in which some participantswere subtly dissuaded from seeking or continuingwith the legitimate psychotherapy that would havebenefited them in order to comply with Vitality'sideological and behavioral demands. The natureand consequences of this type of training programmust be brought to the attention of the mentalhealth field and the general public.

Psychohistorical ImplicationsSince the Vitality training is an artifact of our

time, its duplicitous and authoritarian nature shouldmove us to question the nature of our contemporaryculture and the needs and deficiencies it createsin its people.1 The techniques and theories ofpsychology can evidently be easily reduced, com-pressed, and distorted into a neat sales package;this should tell us something about the state ofthe discipline. Judging from the success of au-thoritarian, restrictive groups in our time, indi-viduals currently appear to be preconditioned tothink of themselves as deserving of abuse and asempty and in need of "purchasing" a miraculous,

1 This interpretive approach, referred to in the social sciences

as social constructionism, is known to historians as the "col-lective mentalities" method. It is, of necessity, interdisciplinary.For a fuller description see Geertz (1973, 1979), Gergen (1973,1985), Sampson, (1977, 1978, 1981, 1983, 1985, 1986),Rabinow & Sullivan (1979), Heelas & Lock (1981), Dreyfusand Rabinow (1982), Shweder & LeVine (1984), Hales (1985,1986), Sterns & Sterns (1985), Le Goff (1986), Stigliano(1986), and Cushman (1987).

"transformational" technology; this should tell ussomething about the nature of the autonomous,bounded, masterful self (see Cushman, 19866;Sampson, 1985) and the function of "the thera-peutic" in modern, postindustrial consumer so-cieties. These are all issues with which the fieldof psychology and our society as a whole mustface if we are going to begin slowing the growthof authoritarian groups, charismatic leaders, andpower-hungry agendas. Given the political andmilitary events of the last 60 years, this wouldseem to be a worthy goal.

References

ACHEBE, C. (1959). Things Fall Apart. New York: Fawcett.ASCH, S. (1952). Social Psychology. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.:

Prentice-Hall.BEAHRS, J. (1982). Unity and Multiplicity: Multilevel Con-

sciousness of Self in Hypnosis, Psychiatric Disorder andMental Health. New York: Brunner/Mazel.

BION, W. (1959). Experiences in Groups. New York: BasicBooks.

BREWER, M. (1975). We're gonna tear you down and put youback together. Psychology Today, August, pp. 35-36, 82,88-89.

BRY, A. (1976). est: 60 Hours That Transform Your Life.New York: Avon.

CARTWRIGHT, D. (1951). Achieving change in people: Someapplications of group dynamics theory. Human Relations,4, 381-392.

CLARK, J. (1983). On the further study of destructive cultism.In D. A. Halperin (Ed.), Psychodynamic Perspectives onReligion, Sect and Cult (pp. 363-368). Boston: John WrightPSG Ltd.

Conway, F. & SIEGELMAN, J. (1978). Snapping: America'sEpidemic of Sudden Personality Change. Philadelphia:J. B. Lippincott.

CUSHMAN, P. (1983). Networking: A service delivery approachto the treatment of cult members. //iD. A. Halperin (Ed.),Psychodynamic Perspectives on Religion, Sect and Cult(pp. 343-352). Boston: John Wright PSG Ltd.

CUSHMAN, P. (1984). The politics of vulnerability: Youth inreligious cults. Psychohistory Review, 12(4), 5-17.

CUSHMAN, P. (1986a). The politics of transformation: Re-cruitment-Indoctrination processes in a mass marathon psy-chology organization. Dissertation Abstracts International,47, 4006B-4007B. (University Microfilms No. 87-01116).

CUSHMAN, P. (1986>). The self besieged: Recruitment-In-doctrination processes in restrictive groups. Journal for theTheory of Social Behavior, 16, 1-32.

CUSHMAN, P. (1987). History, psychology, and the abyss: Aconstructionist-Kohutian proposal. Psychohistory Review,15, 29-45.

DREYFUS, H. & RABINOW, P. (Eds.) (1982). Michel Foucault:Beyond Structuralism and Hermeneutics. Chicago: Universityof Chicago Press.

ERICKSON, M. & Rossi, E. (1979). Hypnotherapy: An Ex-ploratory Textbook. New York: Irvington.

GALPER, M. (1983). The atypical dissociative disorder: Someetiological, diagnostic, and treatment issues. In D. A. Hal-

37

Philip Cushman

perin (Ed.), Psychodynamic Perspectives on Religion, Sectand Cult (pp. 353-362). Boston: John Wright PSG Ltd.

GEERTZ, C. (1973). The Interpretation of Cultures. New York:Basic Books.

GEERTZ, C. (1979). From the native's point of view: On thenature of anthropological understanding. In P. Rabinow andW. M. Sullivan (Eds.), Interpretive Social Science (pp.225-241). Berkeley: University of California Press.

GERGEN, K. J. (1973). Social psychology as history. Journalof Personality and Social Psychology, 26, 309-320.

GERGEN, K. J. (1985). The social constructionist movementin modern psychology. American Psychologist, 40, 266-273.

GLASS, L., KIRSCH, M. & PARRIS, F. (1977). Psychiatricdisturbances associated with Erhard seminars training: Areport of cases. American Journal of Psychiatry, 134, 245.

GOTTSCHALK, L. & PATTISON, E. (1969). Psychiatric per-spectives on T-groups and the laboratory movement. Amer-ican Journal of Psychiatry, 126, 823-839.

GREENWALD, A. G. (1980). The totalitarian ego: Fabricationand revision of personal history. American Psychologist,35, 603-618.

GREENWALD, A. G. & PRATKANIS, A. R. (1984). The self.In R. S. Wyer and T. K. Srull (Eds.), The Handbook ofSocial Cognition. Hillsdale, N.J.: Lawrence Erlbaum.

GREENWALD, A. & RONIS, D. (1978). Twenty years of cognitivedissonance: Case study of the evolution of a theory. Psy-chological Review, 85, 53-57.

HAAKEN, J. & ADAMS, R. (1983). Pathology as "personalgrowth": A participant observation study of Lifespringtraining. Psychiatry, 46, 270-280.

HALES, S. (1985). The inadvertent rediscovery of "self" insocial psychology: Theoretical and methodological impli-cations. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior, 15,237-282.

HALES, S. (1986). Epilogue: Rethinking the business of psy-chology. Journal for the Theory of Social Behavior, 16,57-71.

HEELAS, P. & LOCK, A. (Eds.) (1981). Indigenous Psychologies:The Anthropology of the Self. New York: Academic.

HOCHMAN, J. (1984). Iatrogenic symptoms associated with atherapy cult: Examination of an extinct "New Psychotherapy"with respect to psychiatric deterioration and "brainwashing."Psychiatry, 47, 366-377.

JANIS, I. (1973). Groupthink among policy makers. In N.Stanford and C. Comstock (Eds.), Sanctions for Evil. SanFrancisco: Jossey-Bass.

KELMAN, H. (1973). Violence without moral restraint: Re-flections on the dehumanization of victims and victimizers.Journal of Social Issues, 29, 25-61.

KERNBERG, O. (1980). Internal World and External Reality:Object Relations Theory Applied. New York: Jason Aronson.

KIDDER, L. (1972). On becoming hypnotized: How skepticsbecome convinced: A case of attitude change? Journal ofAbnormal Psychology, 80, 317-322.

KIDDER, L. H. (1981). Research Methods in Social Relations(4th ed.). New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.

KILBOURNE B. & RICHARDSON, J. T. (1984). Psychotherapyand new religions in a pluralistic society. American Psy-chologist, 39, 237-251.

KIRSCH, M. & GLASS, L. (1977). Psychiatric disturbancesassociated with Erhard seminar training, II: Additional casesand theoretical considerations. American Journal of Psy-chiatry, 134, 1254-1258.

KOHUT, H. (1976). Creativeness, charisma, and group psy-chology: Reflections on the self-analysis of Freud. InJ. Gedo and G. Pollock (Eds.), Freud: The Fusions ofScience and Humanism: The Intellectual History of Psy-choanalysis. Psychological Issues, 91, 379-425.

KOHUT, H. (1977). The Restoration of the Self. New York:International Universities Press.

KORNBLUTH, J. (1975). The Fuhrer over est. New Times Mag-azine, March, pp. 36-52.

LE GOFF, J. (1985). Mentalities: A history of ambiguities. InJ. Le Goff and P. Nora (Eds.), Constructing the Past (pp.166-180). New York: Cambridge University Press.

LEWIN, K. (1958). Group decision and social change. InE. E. Maccoby, T. M. Newcomb and E. L. Hartley (Eds.),Readings in Social Psychology (3rd ed.). New York: Holt,Rinehart & Winston.

LIEBERMAN, M. (1987). .Effects of a large group awarenesstraining on participants' psychiatric status. American Journalof Psychiatry, 144, 460-464.

LIEBERMAN, M. & YALOM, I. (1984). Lifespring News, De-cember, pp. 4-6.

LlFTON, R. J. (1961). Thought Reform and the Psychology ofTotalism: A Study of "Brainwashing" in China. New York:W. W. Norton.

LOFLAND, J. (1971). Analyzing Social Settings: A Guide toQualitative Observation and Analysis. Belmont, Calif.:Wadsworth.

MARKOWITZ, A. (1983). The role of family therapy in thetreatment of symptoms associated with cult affiliation. InD. A. Halperin (Ed.), Psychodynamic Perspectives on Re-ligion, Sect and Cult. Boston: John Wright PSG Ltd.

MASTERSON, J. F. (1981). The Narcissistic and BorderlineDisorders: An Integrated Developmental Approach. NewYork: Brunner/Mazel.

MEAD, G. (1934). The Social Psychology of George HerbertMead (A. Strauss, Ed.). Chicago: University of ChicagoPress.

MILGRAM, S. (1963). Behavioral study of obedience. Journalof Abnormal Psychology, 67, 371-378.

PRATKANIS, A. R. & GREENWALD, A. G. (1985). How shouldthe self be conceived? Journal for the Theory of SocialBehavior, 15, 311-329.

RABINOW, P. & SULLIVAN, W. (1979). Interpretive SocialScience. Berkeley: University of California Press.

RIEBEL, L. (1979). Falsifiability, self-sealing doctrines, andhumanistic psychology. Humanistic Psychology InstituteReview, 2, 41-59.

Random House Dictionary of the English Language (1966)(J. Stein, Ed.). New York: Random House.

Ross, L. (1984). Lifespring News, December, pp. 4-6.SAMPSON, E. E. (1977). Psychology and the American ideal.

Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 26, 309-320.

SAMPSON, E. E. (1978). Scientific paradigms and social values:Wanteda scientific revolution. Journal of Personalityand Social Psychology, 38, 1332-1343.

SAMPSON, E. E. (1981). Cognitive psychology as ideology.American Psychologist, 36, 730-743.

SAMPSON, E. E. (1983). Justice and the Critique of PurePsychology. New York: Plenum.

SAMPSON, E. E. (1985). The decentralization of identity:Towards a revised concept of personal and social order.American Psychologist, 40, 1203-1211.

SAMPSON, E. E. (1986). What has been inadvertently discov-

38

Iron Fists/Velvet Gloves

ered? A commen ary. Journal for the Theory of SocialBehavior, 16, 33-40.

SCHACHTER, S. (1951). Deviation, rejection, and communi-cation. Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 46,190-207.

SHERIF, M. (1935). A study of some social factors in perception.Archives of Psychology, 12, 43-48.

SHOSTROM, E. (1978). Lifespring Family News, June.SHWEDER, R. A. & LEVINE, R. A. (1984). Culture Theory:

Essays on Mind, Self, and Emotion. New York: CambridgeUniversity Press.

SIMON, J. (1978). Observations on 67 patients who took Erhardseminars training. American Journal of Psychiatry, 135,686-691.

SINGER, M. T. (1979). Coming out of the cults. PsychologyToday, January, pp. 72, 75-76, 79-80, 82.

SINGER, M. T. (1983). Psychotherapy cults: Properties ofthought reform programs. Paper presented at the meetingof the Citizens' Freedom Foundation, Los Angeles.

STERNS, P. N. & STERNS, C. Z. (1985). Emotionology: Clar-

ifying the history of emotions and emotional standards.American Historical Review, 90, 813-836.

STROZIER, C. (1978). Heinz Kohut and the historical imagi-nation. Psychohistory Review, 7, 36-39.

STIGLIANO, T. (1986). An ontology for the human sciences.Saybrook Review, 6, 33-63.

TEMERLIN, M. & TEMERLIN, J. (1982). Psychotherapy cults:An iatrogenic perversion. Psychotherapy: Theory, Researchand Practice, 19, 131-141.

YALOM, I. & LIEBERMAN, M. (1972). A study of encountergroup casualties. In K. Back (Ed.), In Search of Community:Encounter Groups and Social Change. Boulder, Colo.:Westman Press.

WEARY (BRADELEY), G. (1978). Self-serving biases in theattribution process: A re-examination of the fact or fictionquestion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,36, 56-71.

ZEITLIN, H. (1985). Cult induction: Hypnotic communicationpatterns in contemporary cults. (Manuscript submitted forpublication.)

39