Am J Psychiatry 1977; 134:1254-1258
Copyright © 1977 by American Psychiatric Association
Psychiatric disturbances associated with Erhard Seminars Training: II. additional cases and theoretical considerations
MA Kirsch and LL Glass
In a previous article, the authors reported on 5 individuals who developed
psychoses after participation in Erhard Seminars Training (est). Two
additional cases are reported, and the combined case material is discussed
in terms of group and psychodynamic theories. The authoritarian est
leadership style may mobilize in trainees an overdetermined and
pathological reliance on identification with the aggressor. Such a
mechanism may be central to the production of psychiatric casualties,
particularly in individuals with defective ego boundaries. Future
controlled research is necessary to ascertain the rate of occurrence of
psychiatric disturbances associated with est and to test the authors'
hypotheses.
