Last edited Sat Mar 9, 2013, 08:05 AM - Edit history (2)
when it exceeded by 3 times all the advice I had been given about requirements for petitioning a new group.
The reason for a new group was/is that the goals of providing a safe, non-provoking environment needed for support are critically important to providing support for DUers, but the maintenance of the safe-haven is incompatible with open discussion about potentially arousing topics that emerge at the interface of psychology, mental health care, and society/social justice.
For example-- think about how potentially painful it could be to encounter a topic such as the recent report of a genetic basis for pedophilia for a person struggling with flashbacks from post-traumatic stress due to childhood sexual abuse at the hands of a pedophile. That could be very difficult.
Of course, the role of genetics is important to contemporary psychology as it increasingly explores the biological basis for mental illness. It's also important to discussion about mental health and social justice. But a discussion that broaches biological determinism is likely to be inappropriate in a safe haven where people are hoping and expecting recovery or remission.
Advances in research, and treatment are important and interesting things to discuss. Similarly news events frequently pop out stories that would be interesting to discuss among persons interested and informed about psychology, but in GD those topics quickly sink off the pages. On that sinking path they also attract mostly uninformed and sometimes malicious/ chauvanistic anti-mental health commentary.
A slower moving group that attracts people with interest and expertise would promote discussions and understanding. But creating new groups is a lower priority for the admin than deleting groups. I can't speak to why that is, but I know in response to the question I posted in Ask the Admin there is indeed reluctance to create groups.
As a side note, the admin scratched Meta without warning. When they scratched Meta they removed from my grasp the petition and all the recs it had. I didn't have a chance to capture it in any form.
As far as I know it's gone and not in DU archives.
A quick push through the DU archives for the day I thought I created it, Jan 6, didn't reveal it. I'm not sure if the Admin ever had time to look at it.
On edit: I found the subject line of the petition in the Archives, for January 5, but it is unavailable because Meta is offline.
= new reply since forum marked as read