Against Therapy
Encyclopedia
Against Therapy: Emotional Tyranny and the Myth of Psychological Healing is a 1988 book by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson
which claims that psychotherapy
is a form of socially sanctioned abuse. Psychiatric Times called it "a "battle cry" for the abolition of psychotherapy".
According to Masson, therapist
s ask patients to do more than is reasonably possible, they "distort another person's reality" to try to change people in ways that conform to the therapist's concepts and prejudices. Therapists are, in Masson's opinion, inevitably corrupted by power and "abuse of one form or another is built into the very fabric of psychotherapy".
Time magazine
wrote, "Although the author's slash-and-burn style of argument can be entertaining, readers should keep their hands on their wallets. Assertions tend to be sold as established facts." The New York Times
argued that "Masson has failed to put a stake through the heart of therapy - in fact, he's greatly missed the mark."
Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson
Dr. Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson is an American author, residing in New Zealand. Masson is best known for his conclusions about Sigmund Freud and psychoanalysis...
which claims that psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
is a form of socially sanctioned abuse. Psychiatric Times called it "a "battle cry" for the abolition of psychotherapy".
According to Masson, therapist
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
s ask patients to do more than is reasonably possible, they "distort another person's reality" to try to change people in ways that conform to the therapist's concepts and prejudices. Therapists are, in Masson's opinion, inevitably corrupted by power and "abuse of one form or another is built into the very fabric of psychotherapy".
Time magazine
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
wrote, "Although the author's slash-and-burn style of argument can be entertaining, readers should keep their hands on their wallets. Assertions tend to be sold as established facts." The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
argued that "Masson has failed to put a stake through the heart of therapy - in fact, he's greatly missed the mark."