History in the Making. [blog 2]

There is definitely some overlap when it comes to the history of psychology and the history of adventure therapy because they are intertwined in a few ways. If we take a look at the history of psychology we will see that it goes back a few more years before AT was in the making. Starting with the first recorded event that relates to the history of psychology we have 387 BC: Plato suggested that the brain is the mechanism of mental processes. In 1793 Philippe Pinel was responsible for the release of the first mental patients living in confinement in the first massive movement for more humane treatment of the mentally ill. To me this is a very important event in the history of psychology. It has definitely made an impact on the way that patients with mental illnesses are treated and the standards for how they are to be treated have been improved. In 1848 Phineas Gage suffered brain damage, doctors noticed a change in his personality while his intellect remained intact, suggesting that an area of the brain plays a role in personality. Almost 100 years later in 1961 Carl Rogers published 'On Becoming a Person,' marking a powerful change in how treatment for mental health issues is conducted. 

On the timeline of AT history we see that in 1929 Camp Ahmek was started and that marked the beginning of a "therapeutic approach" to camping, just the beginning of what was to come for AT. Later, in Australia in 1982, 'Western Venture,' which was a therapeutic wilderness-adventure program opens and runs for 13 years before it is closed in 1995. By 1988 there was the publication of Adventure Based Counseling and the year following that there was the first wilderness-enhanced behavior managers program in Australia. A few years after that, in 1992, there was a lot that happened for AT. The first therapeutic program in Quebec State for drug addictive teens, opened and was based on fully Outdoor Experiential Pursuits. Also in 1992, in Australia, there was a Wilderness Adventure Therapy program that starts in a clinical service for child and adolescent mental health service. One of the later dates that is very relevant to us right now is in 2004 when Outdoor Therapy Institute offers Continuing Education training in Outdoor therapy approved by American Psychological Association.


Check out a timeline of the history of psychology here and a timeline of adventure therapy here.




Citations

Gass, M. A., Gillis, H.L., Russell, K. C. (2012). Adventure therapy: Theory, research, and practice. New York, Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group.

Gillis, L. Significant historial events in adventure therapy. Retrieved from: http://www.leegillis.com/AT/2IATC/advthe.htm

History of psychology. Retrieved from: http://allpsych.com/timeline.html