Excerpts of an interview with David Gilcrease, who developed the behavior modification techniques employed by Teen Help.
News: Why did you start seminars for parents, as well as teens?
Gilcrease: It had to do with the fact that (Teen Help founder) Bob (Lichfield) and I, in our talking, and (associate) Brent (Facer), also, really saw that what we were dealing with was not an issue simply for the children.
It was a systemic issue with the family unit, and if you check the literature, you'll find that most ... tell you that working with the kid and putting him back in the same environment really is not what works.
What works is that you've got to change the whole dynamic of the environment. So we put together a mirror image of what we were doing with the kids and we offered it to the parents as an option.
First we did it in St. George (Utah). We had probably 39 families represented, probably 60 people. And the parents absolutely loved it. Came back and were raving about what they got and wanted more.
Ninety-plus percent have nothing but good news about what they experienced and where they see themselves at because of the seminars.
If you look at the articles and stuff the kids write and are interviewed with, one of the things they say pretty consistently is about the seminars being a powerful influence and a positive influence in their lives.
News: In the parents' seminar, is that not usually a very emotional time when there's a lot of wailing and crying?
Gilcrease: Could be. For some people. ... We have as much laughter going on as we have crying.
News: Do you consider what you do an exercise in mind control?
Gilcrease: Absolutely not.
News: Kids are going into these seminars in often foreign countries before they've had a psychological evaluation. How can you assure a parent that this intensive emotional session is good for everyone and will do no harm?
Gilcrease: First of all, it is not a therapeutic-based model. We are an educational model. Is there at times intense emotion in them? Yes. For everybody? No. Do I have a set of trainers that have years of experience both in training and in this area that I'm in? Yes, I do. And do I say that it's for everybody in the world? No, but I don't think everybody in the world needs a psychological examination either.
News: Do your trainers have degrees in child psychology?
Gilcrease: I have some that do have degrees in psychology. Some have degrees in business.
News: You're putting people into an intensive emotional situation. And some people ... are not prepared for that. And you're not screening them beforehand. How do you know that this isn't going to do more harm than good?
Gilcrease: There is no process in the training that anybody is forced to participate in. Anytime anybody wants to, one, withdraw from the seminar totally, they're allowed, or, two, withdraw from a process, they are allowed. ... We don't force the kids to do anything. We're not doing therapy with them. We're presenting concepts, like accountability and integrity. Is there some, at the time, emotional stuff? Yes, there is.
News: Several students report nausea and vomiting, perhaps even mass vomiting, at some of these seminars?
Gilcrease: Mass vomiting?
News: Does that frequently occur?
Gilcrease: Have I seen it happen? In my training, yes, probably. ... I'm sure, I've seen someone get sick and throw up, but that's not due to the training as such.
News: During the towel routine, where they beat down bad images, that's when I understand that vomiting frequently occurs? Why would that happen?
Gilcrease: It could be emotional strain. Could be the heat in the room. Particularly like in Samoa. I mean, it's a physically hot environment. And they're putting out a lot of energy and effort. (They) could be just sick to begin with.
News: What is the goal of the towel technique?
Gilcrease: To release some anger they may have built up about being, and putting themselves in the program and ... to allow them to, as you said, beat down self-limiting beliefs that they've been telling themselves for years. "I'm not good enough. I can't do it."
News: What is your educational background?
Gilcrease: I have a degree in engineering.
News: Do you have any degrees in psychology?
Gilcrease: Nope.
News: Any training in psychology?
Gilcrease: Yes. At the University of Maryland, I have taken various psychology courses, in child development and standard psychology. Worked 25 years in experiential training. I'm not a psychologist. I don't want to be one. I don't purport to be one. I purport to be an educator.
News: Who on your staff is trained to detect emotional disorders?
Gilcrease: We don't deal with emotional disorders. ... We are not psychologists. We do not deal in that realm. I don't need to detect emotional disorders when I'm talking about the value of keeping your word.
