Attack therapy

Attack therapy is a type of psychotherapy. It involves highly confrontational interaction between the patient and a therapist or between the patient and fellow patients during group therapy, in which the patient may be verbally abused, denounced, or humiliated by the therapist or other members of the group. The method has been used contentiously and controversially by groups such as Synanon, Odyssey House, House of Hope, Excel Academy, Straight, Inc., the John Dewey Academy, Allynwood Academy, Élan School, Phoenix House, DeSisto School, Amity Circle Tree Ranch, CEDU School, Hidden Lake Academy, Cascade School, Monarch School, the Church of Scientology and in the large-group awareness training practices of the Human Potential Movement.