Nov
23
2011
It’s pretty simple. The research shows us that when people feel discouraged and helpless, they are more likely to become depressed. There are several landmark studies conducted by Martin Seligman and Steven Maier describing the phenomenon of learned helplessness using dogs and the effect of exposing the dogs to unpleasant electrical shocks while in a harness.
Ouch! While it does seem unpleasant to expose dogs to electric shocks,
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Oct
02
2007
Bill’s note: This is a fictionalized case-study. Any similarity to any person or life situation is completely coincidental.
David, who was 54 years old, was participating in a psychodrama workshop and was an ongoing member of a men’s group.
During the opening trust circle exercise, David became frozen in the middle of the circle. He was unable to trust the process enough to be gently guided around the circle. He was unable to identify what was happening or why.
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Apr
09
2007
Bill’s note: This is a fictionalized case-study. Any similarity to any person or life situation is completely coincidental.
During the staff development process for a psychodrama weekend, Tom, a 47-year-old staff person volunteered to participate in a trust circle activity. He had done this activity before, so he was familiar with the activity. Tom’s father was a chronic alcoholic and his parents were divorced when he was 14 years old. His family experience was characterized by chaos and frequent domestic violence.
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