Experts warn against false therapy programs

Buse Özel - ISTANBUL

Psychologists have warned against hundreds of unlicensed therapists working with titles such as “life coach” and “NLP expert.”

Aslı Çarkoğlu, an associate professor at Kadir Has University’s Psychology Department, said that Turkey’s mental health regulations have not been upgraded comprehensively since the 1930s.

“There is not a clear boundary line to determine who can work in the area of mental health and under which rules. Thus, we cannot intervene when there is abuse regarding mental health and misinformation given by unlicensed therapists,” she added.

“For instance, they talk about therapy programs without any scientific basis. There are methods that are not included in psychology or psychiatry literature,” Çarkoğlu said.

Advertisements for neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) and emotional detox have stirred controversy in the world in recent years.

For instance, NLP is defined as “a pseudoscientific approach” to communication and personal development created in the United States in the 1970s.

“We want a new legislation because there are many mistreated individuals who take service from people that are not qualified psychologists,” said Özgün Ergin, a member of the ethics board of the Turkish Psychologists Association.

“There has been a rising demand to see a psychologist in society. We have seen many people and institutions who call themselves psychologists or consultants and exploit people financially, particularly through social media,” he said.

In many videos published on social media, people are misled about mental health issues, he added.