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    Back to Life Examined

    Life Examined

    ‘Taken against our will’: the damaging legacy of ‘tough love’ boot camps

    Kenneth Rosen, journalist and author of “Troubled: The Failed Promise of America’s Behavioral Treatment Programs,” takes a closer look at the “tough love” industry and the damaging legacy of wilderness therapy boot camps through the eyes of four…

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    By Jonathan Bastian • Jul 31, 2021 • 51m Listen

    Kenneth Rosen, journalist and author of “Troubled: The Failed Promise of America’s Behavioral Treatment Programs,” takes a closer look at the “tough love” industry and the damaging legacy of wilderness therapy boot camps through the eyes of four former residents — and his own personal experience being forcibly taken from his home as a teenager. Host Jonathan Bastian also talks with Will White, the author of “Stories from the Field: A History of Wilderness Therapy” and teaching lecturer at Plymouth State University, about the history and positive effects of wilderness therapy programs.

    In this episode

    2 stories
    1. 0:00

      ‘Almost everyone is left with trauma’: The impact of American’s unregulated wilderness teen therapy industry

      Tens of thousands of “troubled” teens have, with their parents’ consent, been forcibly lifted from their beds and sent into the wilderness.

      Read the story
      31 min
    2. 30:58

      The therapeutic benefits of outdoor youth programs

      Outdoor programs like the Outdoor National Leadership Schools, the Boys and Girl Scouts of American, or even popular summer camps have been around for a century, successfully teaching kids about the environment, outdoors skills, and surviving in…

      Read the story
      21 min
    • https://images.ctfassets.net/2658fe8gbo8o/AvYox6VuEgcxpd20Xo9d3/769bca4fbf97bf022190f4813812c1e2/new-default.jpg?h=250

      Jonathan Bastian

      Host, Life Examined

    • KCRW placeholder

      Andrea Brody

      Senior Producer, KCRW's Life Examined and To the Point podcast

      CultureHealth & WellnessEnvironmentEducation

    In this episode

    2 stories
    1. 0:0031 min

      ‘Almost everyone is left with trauma’: The impact of American’s unregulated wilderness teen therapy industry

    2. 30:5821 min

      The therapeutic benefits of outdoor youth programs

    Back to Life Examined