ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY

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H Supplement -
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Psychotherapy – Science or Religion
S
C Scientific training is often claimed to be what distinguishes professional
H psychotherapists from their far more popular competition: astrologers, psychics,
O and faith healers. There may indeed be a science component in therapists'
O training. Most psychologists, for example, have been taught how to conduct
L experiments on rats in a scientific manner. Social workers learn what science
has discovered about human physical and social development. And of course,
O psychiatrists and nurses have to become thoroughly familiar with the science of
F medicine. However, therapy itself can hardly be described as scientific. We
have seen how inappropriate the medical model is as a paradigm for therapy.
Therapy lacks the precision and most of all, the certainty that the same
N procedure will yield the same result, as required by the scientific method.
A
T Science deals with objective data. Observations are first made, with
U measurements and quantities recorded systematically, and then analysed
R statistically to test whether or not a hypothesis can be supported by evidence. If
A it is then all this information is made widely available to other scientists who
L then repeat the process. From this testing, scientists are able to develop laws or
models which always apply to the particular phenomenon that was studied. For
example, the life and death of a volcano will follow definite stages which are
H essentially the same whether the volcano is in Italy or Canada, whether we
E speak of the year 1210 or 1992.
A
L The same cannot be said of psychotherapy. A therapist may observe tears
T on a client's face but much more information is needed before the cause can be
H ascertained. There can be no certainty that the next tearful client is crying for
the same reason as the first. And what, if anything, should be done about the
S tears varies from one therapist to another. Science depends on predictability.
This pill will relieve a headache in 99% of the people who swallow it. These
C repeated observations of the sun will yield certainty about its location at any
I particular moment in the future. But no one can confidently predict human
E behaviour.
N
C Even though therapy is only partially based on science, perhaps the
E scientific method can at least test and validate psychotherapy ?
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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T If so, we might thus escape from dogma in therapy. Perhaps we could
H learn, from scientific investigation, what works and why, when one human
E being helps another with problems in living. Perhaps, but not likely. The
answers cannot be numbered, quantified, laid out in neat rows like so many
S computer chips. How one human being helps another lies beyond techniques,
C beyond statistics, beyond measurement. Science, even a more broadly defined
H science, can merely scratch the surface.
O
Therapy is a moral, not a scientific, undertaking. Which is why Mary E.
O Pharis in the "Clinical Social Work Journal", said scientific studies of
L psychotherapy leave something to be desired: "No one who has ever emerged
from a truly successful psychotherapy, one which had genuine impact not only
O on feelings but also on behaviour in real life, and no therapist who has ever
F helped someone to achieve such an outcome " will tell you that the remarkable
experience can be satisfactorily described solely by scientific means. Perhaps it
N may forever defy quantification. But it exists, nonetheless" (Pharis, 1976, p.61).
A
It is ironic that recent developments in the hard sciences throw into
T
question the simple 'cause and effect' view of how things happen. Physicists
U who study quantum mechanics, for example, have had to discard the old
R concept that the observer has no effect on the observed.
A
L The irony for therapists who consider themselves scientists is that real
scientists in other fields, "are beginning to use words like `spiritual,' `religious,'
H `love' and `God' " words once unthinkable in a scientific discourse" (Suzuki,
E 1990, p.16).
A
More irony. The "hard" scientists are now saying things which humanistic
L therapists have been saying for decades. Suzuki cites Australian scientist
T Charles Birch: "From protons to people, you have to look at them more as
H subjects than objects."

S Then, says Birch, you can see God manifest in life. And who, or what is
C God ? Birch defines God as: "Persuasive love. Love that persuades creation to
I become what it can be. But the paradox is, there's power in love. And in the
E end, the only power that matters is love" (Suzuki, 1990, p.16).
N
While this viewpoint may be new to scientists observing particles, it has
C long been familiar to social workers involved with human beings, hence the
E term, "participant observer."
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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T Furthermore, among humans, the observed has an impact on the observer.
H That's called synergy. It's a characteristic and a reward of successful therapy:
E the therapist changes, too.

S Reality is in the eye of the beholder. The much vaunted objectivity of

C science has been revealed as illusory. The distinction between facts and values
H is now seen to be blurred. "Reality is then something which is relative to the
O individual's experience and level of awareness." (Osborne and Baldwin, 1982,
p.268).
O
L At each of four bus stops stands a 17 year old: Simon boards the bus. He
looks at the passengers and is convinced they are all staring at him with
O disapproval. He says to himself, "to hell with them." The scowl on his face
F causes several passengers to look away.

N Robert boards the bus. He looks at the passengers and is convinced they
A are all staring at him with admiration. He says to himself, "guess they
appreciate good taste." The smile on his face causes several passengers to grin.
T
U Annie boards the bus. She looks at the passengers. But she sees Simon
R and thinks, "must be a college kid; he's lucky." She sees Robert and thinks,
A "hope this guy's not going to pull a gun." She sees Annie and thinks, "what a
L sweet child." She sees Sylvie and thinks, "looks like she's just won the lottery."

H And the passengers ? Each of them, depending on his or her age, sex,
E income, health, ethnicity, and a host of other factors, has a distinctive thought
A about the 17 year olds. Not one of them thinks what Simon, Robert, Annie and
Sylvie assumes.
L
T Understanding the subjective value of value is a key component of
H psychotherapy. A therapist was stunned by her client's reaction to what she
thought was a wonderful opportunity:
S
C Therapist: "Well, you want to write, you know the Government has an
I excellent way to allow you to do that. It's called Unemployment Benefit.
E They'll pay you and you can sit at home writing."
N
Client: (enraged): "That's dishonest! Unemployment money is not
C supposed to be used for that! There's too much of this ripping off the
E Government! That money is not to subsidise writers but to help people who are
S out of work. I won't do it!"

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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T
H Values are not measurable by the classic methods of science but another
E way of measuring the worth of something is for the individual having the
experience to weigh how meaningful it is to him or her.
S
C Thus effectiveness "objective proof that therapy has contributed to
H bringing about a measurable criterion" may be in short supply, but
O meaningfulness "that therapy has made a subjectively significant difference to
many people" is abundantly evident.
O
L The scientific search for specific causes of human distress is irrelevant,
according to C.H. Patterson, a professor at the University of North Carolina in
O America. He says there are no direct causes that always lead to the same
F specific emotional or psychological trouble. But much research does show the
relationship of client and therapist to be the key element in successful
N psychotherapy. To Patterson this means what actually disturbs clients is their
A lack of healthy human relationships.
T
One of the foremost therapy researchers stresses the importance for
U therapists of being aware and open about their values, and of seriously taking
R into account the beliefs of their clients. (Bergin, 1980).
A
L It’s a question of faith. We generally interpret reality in a way which
confirms what we already believe. The therapist is therefore quickly plunged
H into the deeply held spiritual beliefs of the client, because therapy poses "acute
E questions and dilemmas of a moral and ethical character" (Goldstein, 1986,
A p.355).
L Clients who believe in reincarnation, for example, differ in their
T assumptions for those who hold different views. To understand the beliefs of
H such clients, and the views of clients of other faiths, is essential to effective
therapy. The degree to which a person feels responsible for his or her own fate
S will obviously affect interactions with the therapist.
C
I Regina, a 49 year old Romanian businesswoman, asked a hypnotherapist
E to help her develop her skills in speaking and understanding English. As they
worked together, Lawrence, the therapist, became curious about Regina's total
N
lack of concern about the future. She appeared to be completely free of anxiety
C about illness, death or the afterlife. In Lawrence's experience, such clients were
E rare and were usually denying terror they felt unable to confront.
S

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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T But not Regina. She was genuinely unconcerned. "I believe firmly in
H reincarnation. So what will be, will be. In this life I do as much as possible to
E improve myself and help others but I don't worry about anything. After all, I'm
coming back. I expect I'll be further along, but if not, I'll learn from that life,
S too." She shrugged. "Maybe next time I'll be an English-speaking
C hypnotherapist !"
H
O If you believe in fate you have a choice of being completely carefree, like
Regina, or being totally despondent, like Hong. He feels he has no control over
O his life, everything is decided by fate. Hong is not clear what, or who, this fate
L is, only that it directs every nuance of his life.

O Therapists are used to clients who refuse to take responsibility for

F themselves. Hong is not alone in feeling helpless, adrift in a universe dictated
by an invisible, unknowable, force. Other clients escape self-responsibility by
N blaming other people for their troubles, and by looking to someone else to
A rescue them. These clients are likely to seek hypnosis, or some form of therapy
or spiritual experience which promises to direct them into paths of joy and
T
righteousness.
U
R Psychologists say such people have a "locus of control" outside
A themselves. Much therapy aims at helping these clients redirect that locus of
L control inside themselves. Much therapy is therefore doomed from the start.
Someone whose fundamental sense of self requires salvation and direction from
H an outsider will not feel comfortable with a therapist encouraging him to be self-
E directed. They don't speak the same language.
A
The language of belief is critical to the success or failure of therapy. Yet
L the depth, variety and popularity of religious faiths and practices in the West
T appears to be news to many therapists. In the United States, for example, 94 per
H cent of adults say they believe in "God" and over half of them hold religious
beliefs they deem very important. More than one in three claims to have had a
S "born again" experience. Yet a 1981 Gallup Survey found that while 67 percent
C of the general population believed in some form of life after death, only 32
I percent of doctors and 16 percent of scientists shared their faith.
E
Similarly, while 24 percent of the population of America claimed to
N
believe in the possibility of contact with the dead, only 9 percent of physicians
C and 5 percent of scientists did so. In short, many people hold beliefs which
E most doctors and scientists (and presumably most psychiatrists, psychologists,
S and other mental health workers) regard as impossible. They organise and make
sense of their lives around meanings and goals which a majority of the
scientific-medical establishment considers mistaken, and vise-versa.

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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T Unless these differences are recognised, the possibilities of professional
H bias, misinterpretation or error in the psychotherapeutic process remain quite
E real. (Sevensky, 1984,p.73).

S It is shocking to read that it is not uncommon for therapists to advise

C clients to abandon their traditional religious commitments because the latter
H interfere with therapeutic progress (Bergin and Jensen, 1990). It is the therapist
O who should open his or her mind to the richness of the client's religious or
philosophical world, and endeavour to do therapy within that framework.
O
L Unfortunately, a therapist is more likely to interpret questions of morality
and spirituality according to his or her favourite theory of psychotherapy. The
O client may still be helped. Belief in a particular theory provides the therapist
F with a sense of comfort and control. This in turn helps the client feel confident
and develop trust in the therapist. This focus on the therapist's belief system
N serves to cement the client and therapist together "while the real agent of
A change, the therapeutic relationship, germinates and matures" (May and Yalom,
1984, p.379).
T
U Several therapists consider a major part of the therapeutic relationship to
R be the conversion of the client to the practitioners' belief system. Carlos Seguin
A warns against such indoctrination. He says a client remaining in treatment with
L a therapist for a long time does so because he or she agrees with what the
therapist is explaining.
H
E "From the psychotherapist's point of view this is merely a question of a
A progressive `discovery of the truth.' A psychotherapist of another school or an
uninvolved observer, however, can see [the perpetuation of] a position in which
L criticism is made impossible and in which the formation of groups or `schools'
T becomes easy. These groups, which speak a common language . . . present
H almost all the characteristics of a sect. Nothing could be more dangerous"
(Seguin, 1965, p.119).
S
C Good, bad, God, evil, guilt, punishment, right, wrong, even "the devil"
I and certainly sin, are topics which come up early in the therapy process. They
E trouble many therapists. Such topics resonate for therapists because, like the
subject of death, they are exquisitely human dilemmas. Also such concepts are
N
often part of the value system that has haunted a client and brought him or her
C for help.
E
S Western professional therapists are beginning to show more interest and
respect for holistic traditions. These have long been concerned not simply with
mental well-being but with physical health and the social, ecological and
spiritual context.
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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T This holistic focus is characteristic of all the non-western healing
H traditions, such as the Chinese, Indian and Native American. Although there is
E some evidence of a significant degree of unacknowledged religiousness among
Western therapists on the whole they do not publicly tend to subscribe to
S religious views. Yet psychotherapy is imbued with values which arise out of
C Judaism, Christianity and other religious traditions. One might ask what, in the
H absence of this belief, is the "raison d'être for the mental health values listed
O below.
O A 1985 survey among an American sample of social workers, clinical
L psychologists, psychiatrists and marriage and family therapists revealed
substantial agreement on mental health values: "These values concern one's
O sense of being a free agent; having a sense of identity and feelings of worth;
F being skilled in interpersonal communication, sensitivity, and nurturance; being
genuine and honest; having self-control and personal responsibility; being
N committed in marriage, family, and other relationships . . ." (Bergin and Jensen,
A 1990, p.4).
T
Is psychotherapy evolving into a religion? Psychotherapy as a system of
U beliefs has a long history. Thomas Szasz agrees with Freud when he accused
R Jung and Adler of creating new religious systems. "Freud's error was in
A claiming that his own fantasies were factual findings" (Szasz,1978, p.133).
L
Some support for Szasz's view is presented by medical researcher E. M.
H Thornton who insists Freud's theories arose from cocaine-induced
E hallucinations. The key point is not so much that Freud had an abnormal mind
A preoccupied with "death wishes, infantile incestuous desires, perversion, and
excrement" (Thornton, 1984, p.199) but that subsequent believers took the
L visions "on faith", just as do believers in any other kind of religion, e.g.,
T Christians, Jews, Muslims, Scientologists, Mormons, Hindus etc. Believers
H accept a guru’s, prophet’s or founder's vision as revelation, truth, whether
induced by meditation, fasting, marijuana, brain tumour, nightmares, vivid
S imagination, desert heat or cocaine.
C
I Insight into the essentially cult-like nature of the first psychotherapy,
E Freudianism, is provided in a novel by psychologist Jeremy Leven. The speaker
is a medical-model psychiatrist: [Freud] was a mediocre scientist but an
N
excellent cultist. He founded one of the greatest cults of all time, using well-
C established principles he learned from studying the great religious leaders from
E history. He let it be known that he was persecuted, he most likely encouraged
S his persecution. He assembled a group of devoted disciples. He made
psychiatry a religion based on faith and intuition, not science. Then he declared
all men who opposed him to be evil "devils" or "devil worshipers".

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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T Freud's major objective, it appears to me, was to be a lasting historical
H figure and generally regarded as "a genius or divine, either would have done.
E Psychiatry was a means to this end. Hypnotism, at which he dabbled and failed,
would have been just as good. And fourthly and finally, as far as I have been
S able to determine, not a single one of his patients was ever cured" (Leven, 1982,
C p.153).
H
O Even the therapy which avows the closest affinity to hard science has not
escaped accusations of being a cult: "Behaviourism has contributed some
O important advances to theory and practice and an impressive volume of
L publications of variable quality. As a new ideology, it has developed a different
cult of true believers, particularly among faculty members in graduate schools
O of social work." (Siporin, 1983, p.195).
F
The view of psychotherapy as itself a cult (or number of cults) is not new.
N Szasz considers psychotherapy to be "a modern, scientific-sounding name for
A what used to be called the `cure of souls' (Szasz, 1978, p.15). And Bergin
claims "Psychotherapists constitute a secular priesthood that purports to
T
establish standards of good living" (Bergin, 1980, p.97). This has ever been so:
U despite disclaimers to the contrary, modern psychotherapists are arbiters of how
R to live well.
A
L Today's therapies arose from the soil of religion, one can trace the direct
roots of psychotherapy back to psychoanalysis to hypnosis to magnetism to the
H Jesuit Father Maximilian Hell (Szasz, 1978).
E
A True believers of a particular therapy can be recognised by their
language. The speech of ardent behaviourists, for example, is liberally sprinkled
L with "desensitisations", "response sets", and "maladaptive behaviours". The
T jargon of humanists will include "self-actualisations", "hierarchy of needs",
H "beliefs".

S More serious than language is the true believer's dismissal of competing

C theories, and his or her worship of the therapist. This is the client flip-side of
I the therapist's Guru complex: "my therapist says . . .", spoken as though
E whatever the Guru's words of wisdom, they are the ultimate on the subject under
discussion. That true believers abound in psychotherapy circles is evidence of
N
therapy's unscientific nature.
C
E
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 ADVANCED HYPNOTHERAPY
T The scientific accuracy of psychotherapy is as relevant, or irrelevant to be
H more precise, as that of any other faith, according to renowned psychiatrist E.
E Fuller Torrey: "It matters little whether the truths [of psychotherapy] have a
small or a large; if they are accepted by the client, then they have the same force
S as religious beliefs have on the devout Muslim, Buddhist, or Christian" (Torrey,
C 1986, p.74).
H
O The impossible task ascribed to psychoanalysis also applies to other
forms of therapy: "One cannot help but wonder how much in this field is theory
O and technique, how much is personal charisma, art, religious conviction, or
L science. Our patients bring to us all of the profound and subtle complexities of
living, the secrets they cannot name, the longings they cannot utter, their
O crushing hopelessness, their irrational rage, and we are meant to let it unfold and
F contain it, to accept it and let it be examined, to eventually give it form and
meaning, and then, somehow, to know when to lay it all to rest. Without having
N taken any vows we are cast in the role of the priest in the confessional or a
A wizened philosopher or savant to a weary ancient mariner when, at times, one
cannot help but recall the old maxim, `Let a fool hold his tongue and he will
T
pass for a sage'" (Grusky, 1987, p.2).
U
R
A A large part of the danger of a therapist being too wedded to a particular
L therapy-faith is that he or she presents unproven concepts, ideas, and theories to
the client as facts. This is how notions such as transference, ids and Oedipal
H complexes have passed into our everyday lexicon, without our realizing these
E terms are at best metaphorical and at worst, metaphysical. What would happen
A if therapists were more honest about the profession, if they were to acknowledge
that therapy is based little on science but much on intuition ? A psychologist at
L the University of Georgia in America predicts a temporary drop in therapists'
T status and fees and new criteria for selection and training:
H
"The knowledge that psychotherapists disseminate their own subjective
S values to their clients would lead to different principles in the selection and
C training of psychotherapists. Selection would be based less on intellectual
I aptitudes; grades and GRE scores would become less important. In contrast,
E concern with values, successful shouldering of inexorable suffering, interest in
theories which view human existence in new ways, tolerance, understanding,
N
and experience with new lifestyles would become important criteria of
C selection. Similarly, the training of psychotherapists would have to include and
E emphasize topics such as ethics, cultural anthropology, social problems,
S comparative religion, etc." (Edith Weisskopf-Joelson, 1980, p.465).

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T
H Although it is time science was dethroned as the spurious god of
E psychotherapy, there need be no shame in acknowledging the immense worth of
therapy as a soul-searching art.
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