Is Psych Forums Unfairly biased?

I've had a look around Psych forums and read posts. I would say it is definately pro drugs & pro psychiatry. Yes it does seem biased!

Guest,

The question is not about whether the people posting are pro-drug or pro-psych. The question is about the owner of the site - in other words me.

I think that Psych Forums is a very good forum. Not like Schizophrenia.com, Psych Forums allows people to express their views freely, no matter anti-psych or pro-psych. This is very important for a forum of mental illness. As no one really knows what schizophrenia is yet, we all should have an open mind. I like to read these posts when they are debating and in a civil manner.

seanetal wrote:Guest,

The question is not about whether the people posting are pro-drug or pro-psych. The question is about the owner of the site - in other words me.

The question says "Is Psych Forums unfairly biased?".

Not, Is Seanetal (the owner of this site) unfairly biased?

It's not very clear.

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All organisations have a culture, a set of norms and values that are held by the members of that organisation. The members of the organisation develop the culture of each organisation. The culture of each organisation ultimately denotes how things are done within the organisation. Organisational culture is very powerful and very difficult to change. I've seen entire factories close because inexperienced managers have made decisions that go against the organisations culture.

Psych forums has a pro psych & pro drug culture! The moderators of this site promote psychiatry and medication as their main form of advice and support. This is the culture of Psych Forums! Read for yourself.

No one, not one person, not even the owner of the organisation is responsible for organisational culture. It's an entity all of it's own.

It's fascinating watching new organisations develop, you can watch the culture grow in front of your eyes. The members of any new organisation attract shape what the culture will be. For Psych Forums to have a so called 'unbiased' culture, the Anti Psych Forum (or something like it) needed to be part of Psych Forums at the establishment stage (the beginning) of the organisation to enable it to become part of the culture.

Poor planning at the establishment stage of Psych Forums has resulted in a biased culture of pro psych & pro drugs. It's so obvious!

If you ever start another forum and you wan't it to be unbiased encourage all stakeholders to be participate at the begining of the forum. Don't just throw an Anti Psych forum in after the culture has been established and hope it will work!

well....whoa...back up a second.....those of us who are moderators....we NEVER claim to be professional...we are people here just like any non moderator poster....I came to this site ...bout 2 years ago or so...sought it out like anyone else here did....I was posting for a long time...talking about my issues somewhat....mainly just replying to other posters offering up my take on things from what I've experienced.....eventually I approached Sean and inquired about what it took to become a moderator and what was involved. It's volunteer. The guidelines we follow are posted on the site for all to read.

I don't mean to speak for all mods here because I don't know all their situations...but from what I've seen w/ some of them...they are like me.....I deal w/ certain things.....for me....counseling and meds have worked....so when I'm talking w/ people.....I always encourage that....but so do MANY members here who are not a moderator. I am so sick and tired of the assumption that to be a moderator here....you must be a professional....you have something to do w/ drug companies or the counseling profession or what have you. We just help watch the boards.....mostly our job is to watch out for spam....negative posts...content w/in a post that could hurt people reading it....and so forth. We don't pretend to be in a place better then people posting here that are not mods. So yeah...when we talk about how counseling and meds can be helpful.....it's because that's our own personal experience....and I do know of one mod that comes to mind, Jim, he does not usually talk about seeking out the help of meds or counseling.....he talks more about diet, exercise and things along those lines.

And as I've said countless times before....I just don't understand what the big deal is if the overall population of posters here are pro meds and pro counseling. Why can't we have a place to post? People who are anti these things have their websites to turn to and post.....why can't those of us w/ positive experiences in this area feel like we can have a place to come talk w/ others and share our experiences.....everyone here offers advice or sugestions in their replys based on what has helped them get through.....yes...for many that is going to revolve around seeking out counseling ...maybe even meds.....for others....it could be all together something else. Well and of course we have people who reply w/ nothing more then a "hey...sorry you are dealing w/ this....I've been there before too and I'm here to listen if you want to talk more".

Who knows....maybe the problem w/ this site is it tries to be all things to all people....well it simply can't be....maybe it covers too many mental illnesses....some mental illnesses can be very much like another....and others vary greatly...so maybe the board should be downsized and people won't feel like they are mixed in w/ too many other people who can't possibly understand their situation. For example....I don't know a thing about what someone w/ delusional disorder or schizophrenia goes through. I can't begin to imagine what their world is like. I deal w/ cyclothymia and OCPD. As moderator I've found myself venturing into those sites. Sometimes I get caught up in the negative style of posting....I try to mod. it and then realize...that's a hard thing to do when I can't possibly understand where these people are coming from. They don't deal w/ things in the same way I do....lately I've really cut down on replying to posts there...I try to reply moreso in areas I can better relate to people posting there. And my point is that when you seek out a board dealing w/ mental illness...be it for support...be it to learn more about what others dealing w/ your mental illness go through, etc......you have certain expectations of what you want to find when you start posting...the style of the posters and how the board is run....there are countless sites out there to choose from and all have their own style...some vary greatly from each other...some are more similiar......if you jump on a site that you feel is just way out there from the type of environment you seek to post in.....hey....post a comment on what doesn't work for you....see if it leads to changes...but if not....I don't understand when people continue to hang out on the site trashing it because it's not how they feel it should be. MOVE ON! This site works well for the vast majority of posters here. But for those it doesn't work for....no one forces you or expects you to stay on....your encouraged to find a site more suited to your needs.

Herman wrote:Poor planning at the establishment stage of Psych Forums has resulted in a biased culture of pro psych & pro drugs. It's so obvious!

If you ever start another forum and you wan't it to be unbiased encourage all stakeholders to be participate at the begining of the forum. Don't just throw an Anti Psych forum in after the culture has been established and hope it will work!

Thought provoking as this is, and it is very thought provoking, there is as of yet no time machine that can change how psych forums was initially created. If he wishes to work towards making the culture more inclusive, he has no choice but to do so after it's creation.

Consider this, communities are always in flux, like people. The fact that Sean decided to create this extra forum reflects a willingness to allow for change within the culture. Obviously, the site is geared towards pro-psych culture, however, those who are not of that culture are given a chance to express their views. This is more than many pro psychology communities will provide for.

There is a real opportunity to make the community more inclusive now, why worry over opportunities already missed?

Angel,

Your post encapsulates exactly the point I'm trying to make regarding the role moderator’s play in defining the culture of Psych Forums.

Thank You.

fomori4hire,

Changing organisational culture is extremely difficult. Any manager that doesn't respect organisational culture is a fool.

You are right; the constantly changing members of this forum are a great strength for any potential cultural change. However, this forum has established a team of moderators. These Mods are the real driving force behind Psych Forums pro drugs & pro psych culture; they are the constant force. Just read what they say and you will see their pro psych & pro drug views contained their posts.

While these moderators remain here, any significant advances towards an all inclusive and balanced forum will probably be sabotaged by these Mods.

The moderators are the problem, but if you get rid of them you will probably lose a lot of loyal members that the Mods have cultivated over the years.

Still, for cultural change these Mods must go.

My personal opinion, as a forum, moderators are always needed to make sure all posters are following the rules. I have no problem about moderator's positions (pro-psych or anti-psych), as long as they do not give hard time to people with different view points.

While these moderators remain here, any significant advances towards an all inclusive and balanced forum will probably be sabotaged by these Mods.

The moderators are the problem, but if you get rid of them you will probably lose a lot of loyal members that the Mods have cultivated over the years.

WE are here to keep peace or try to keep peace with people who post harmful things, or spam onto the site. We are here to read posts and to make sure they are apporpriate.

We as Moderators have been through disorders like alot of people here have been through, and can relate to alot of members here. Yes we are not professionals, no one here is.

All forums need moderators of some sort, whether it is just the admin acting as moderator... a forum this big cannot just go all on the owner of the site. We take come here to talk to people, read peoples posts, we don't have to come here, but we do. And alot of people respect that we take the time to do this kind of thing.

What forums like these needs is to remove members that are harmful towards other members.

it's one thing to have an opinon, everyone in the world is intitled to one or two.... I think that the board wouldn't loose members if the owner decides that he does not need the help..

But he does, and has asked a certain number of people to help watch certain forums, and that's what we do. Free of charge.

I don't know how this place as being biased has anything to do with moderators.

That makes no sense what so ever...

Ahh I'm too tired, I don't even know of what i've posted makes sense... ah well...

Open mind,

I agree, forums do need moderators but mods here all have pro psych/drug views, which in turn influences, what is deemed an acceptable perspective on mental illness. If all they did were ensure rules were adhered to there would be no problem.

Sadgurl,

Mods here "keep the peace" by adhering to the prevailing culture of the pro psych/drug and challenging anything that goes against the grain of that culture. The established mods will continue to maintain the pro psych/drug culture because that’s what they do and have done for a long time.

A balanced support forum would require these moderators to just police the forum to ensure rules are adhered to. They should not be allowed to provide biased opinions on topics, which is cause and effect of this undesirable culture of pro psych/drugs.

When I have more time I will search this forum and gather statements made by Mods that are pro psych & pro drugs which maintain this culture.

Herman