http://www.anxiousliving.com/2006/08/02/sad-self-help/ An Exploration into Social Anxiety Thu, 25 Jun 2009 01:19:30 -0700 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 http://www.anxiousliving.com/2006/08/02/sad-self-help/comment-page-1/#comment-71418 Jessica Fri, 11 Jan 2008 05:31:23 +0000 http://www.anxiousliving.com/2006/08/02/sad-self-help/#comment-71418 Awesome Post! Thanks a lot for the information. Awesome Post! Thanks a lot for the information.

]]> http://www.anxiousliving.com/2006/08/02/sad-self-help/comment-page-1/#comment-655 Ryan Oelke Mon, 18 Sep 2006 15:29:56 +0000 http://www.anxiousliving.com/2006/08/02/sad-self-help/#comment-655 Good points, Aaron. Yeah, I also commented on that article a while back. Sure it contains truth, but it's very partial. This is a third person interpretation of a third person observation of one particular behavior of individuals, i.e. they noted how many SH books people bought over a period of time, then interpreted what that means. Actually, the full details of the study is not made explicit, only a general conclusion and interpretaton. Very flimsy conclusion. I'm not saying that it doesn't provoke a much deserved wondering about the self-help industry, but to rest on such assertions is just silly and bad research. It's one thing to pose some tenative wonderings off of a survey (of an unknown nature), quite another to come to deductive conclusions. "If what we sold worked, one would expect lives to improve. One would not expect people to need further help from us--at least not in that same problem area, and certainly not time and time again." Assertion: If people improve in a particular area they don't need further help. Why? That statement is unsupported. What this is really saying is that improvement is a limited, finite process, like having a broken leg set. When it's healed, it's healed. I'm only giving an example, simply wondering what exactly is underneath this conclusion. Most of personal development falls under the realm of the psyche and the mind, generally speaking. That realm is very complex and further more, whoever said that improvement is something that stops? That is more in line with the medical model. Human potential is vast and seemingly infinite. Sure, I believe that many folks in the SH industry could play off of that and dupe people, but making generalized statements about the entire industry is way off the mark. Good points, Aaron. Yeah, I also commented on that article a while back. Sure it contains truth, but it’s very partial. This is a third person interpretation of a third person observation of one particular behavior of individuals, i.e. they noted how many SH books people bought over a period of time, then interpreted what that means. Actually, the full details of the study is not made explicit, only a general conclusion and interpretaton. Very flimsy conclusion. I’m not saying that it doesn’t provoke a much deserved wondering about the self-help industry, but to rest on such assertions is just silly and bad research. It’s one thing to pose some tenative wonderings off of a survey (of an unknown nature), quite another to come to deductive conclusions.
“If what we sold worked, one would expect lives to improve. One would not expect people to need further help from us–at least not in that same problem area, and certainly not time and time again.” Assertion: If people improve in a particular area they don’t need further help. Why? That statement is unsupported. What this is really saying is that improvement is a limited, finite process, like having a broken leg set. When it’s healed, it’s healed. I’m only giving an example, simply wondering what exactly is underneath this conclusion. Most of personal development falls under the realm of the psyche and the mind, generally speaking. That realm is very complex and further more, whoever said that improvement is something that stops? That is more in line with the medical model. Human potential is vast and seemingly infinite. Sure, I believe that many folks in the SH industry could play off of that and dupe people, but making generalized statements about the entire industry is way off the mark.

]]>