Psychotherapy has done more harm than good. Debate

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Description

As many Britons see it, the U.K. has become a nation obsessed with its psychological state, endlessly seeking out new "cures" for every hang-up under the sun. Others, by contrast, argue that the therapy culture has made the U.K. emotionally literate, giving the English a language through which to express their feelings and to change themselves for the better. In the final analysis, has psychotherapy done more harm than good? That is the question in this Oxford Union-style debate as panelists make their case. Speakers for the motion reference the baneful societal effects of pop psychology and stubborn prejudices in the field of psychotherapy, while those against point out that controlled psychotherapy trials have repeatedly shown beneficial results from certain treatments and that such therapy offers a useful non-pharmaceutical approach to mental illness treatment. Questions from the floor follow. The final vote? Significantly against. BBC Radio 4's Mariella Frostrup presides.