Bridger Jensen and Dr. Keith Barney, Recreation Management and Youth Leadership
Studies indicate that wilderness therapy programs have remarkable success in promoting positive behavioral changes, particularly among adolescent populations. Such positive change can be found through measuring family relations, drugs and alcohol abuse, success in school work, and social/emotional behavior. After conducting an extensive literature review on wilderness therapy, it was not possible to identify what aspects of wilderness therapy are the most therapeutic and make these programs successful. The purpose of this study is to identify these elements and compile them into a solidified definition of wilderness therapy.
Over four years ago, a leading wilderness therapy researcher named Keith Russell stated: “Wilderness therapy is still viewed in the mental health profession with great trepidation because of loosely defined treatment approaches and inconsistent research” (Russell 2001). In 1998, J. Carpenter published a research article that noted: “lack of industry wide evaluation….leaves [wilderness] programs at a great risk for allegations of abuse, neglect and general poor efficiency”. In reviewing literature published on wilderness therapy, I concur with these researchers. It is apparent that wilderness therapy lacks adequate academic research.
K. Russell’s research has given explicit reasons as to the importance of defining wilderness therapy. Although the field has advanced since these articles were published, lack of formal academic research has continued to leave wilderness therapy susceptible to various aforementioned allegations. Wilderness therapy programs are in need of peer-reviewed research. The greatest task in wilderness therapy research may be solidifying a specific definition of what wilderness therapy is. My research assists in defining what exactly is therapeutic about the wilderness; it is also designed to discover what theories are most commonly used in effective wilderness therapy treatment.
Embarking in this task has been enthralling. Since the 2005 winter semester started, I have used a university sponsored ORCA grant to identify 29 aspects of wilderness therapy. These aspects greatly vary from one another but can be easily categorized into three groups: recreational factors, theoretical factors and social factors. These aspects were extracted from research-based reports. They were found in Outdoor Behavior Healthcare studies, which include wilderness therapy studies. These 29 factors appear to be inherent and may be the most important factors to wilderness therapy processes. In order to verify this claim I created a survey tool to measure the importance of each of the 29 factors.
The survey tool I created utilized a seven point Likert’s scale, which asks the respondents to rate each factor according to its therapeutic importance. The data yielded from this survey is designed to be analyzed with an analysis of variance and a factor analysis. The survey tool was found to have reliability when administered among undergraduate recreational therapy students (N=43) and the results were calculated using a Cronbach’s Alpha (which equaled .87). This alpha suggests significant reliability among the answers. Validity was established through frequent consultations with wilderness therapy professionals and an evaluation by prominent wilderness therapy researchers. Wilderness therapy researcher K. Russell wrote the following to me after looking over the survey:
“I think this has merit and I think you have done a wonderful job getting these factors outlined. Let me know what the pilot reveals, should be a valuable contribution to the field”.
With reliability and validity established, the survey was administered to wilderness therapy professionals. The survey was mailed to 11 prominent wilderness therapy programs with instructions to administer it to field staff, therapists, field directors and program administrators. It is beyond the scope of this final report to consider all results and the contrast of every aspect of the wilderness therapy process, as the resulting data has revealed enough information to write several publications. However, this report will include the project’s greatest success: a concise definition of wilderness therapy.
In 2001, K. Russell published an article called “What is Wilderness Therapy?”. In this research paper Russell examines every reasonable peer-reviewed definition and creates a well developed “integrated definition”. I believe that my article will strengthen his definition. I concur with Russell’s 2001 publication, including the need for an accurate definition, the benefits of such a definition and the actual integrated definition he submits. In addition to strengthening Russell’s 2001 publication with firm concurrence, wilderness therapy research would be strengthened by keeping the definition current. Furthermore, an abridgment of the integrated definition would benefit the field, allowing increased versatility for lay purposes. The concise definition offered in this report is for the purpose of finding industry-wide agreement of what wilderness therapy is. This definition is intended to aid in dispelling propaganda concerning wilderness therapy, preparing legal documents which may need a more accurate definition, developing marketing tools that programs may create with it, increasing public awareness of wilderness therapy, and contributing to the professional conversation practitioners may use it for. The following definition is from the resulting article:
“Wilderness therapy is a time-limited biopsychosocial treatment which uses a wilderness setting to promote positive behavioral, emotional, and cognitive changes. Wilderness therapy is directed and performed by licensed therapists and qualified wilderness professionals to assess client needs, present diagnosis of problems, and provide interventions, using both recreational and experiential models as the mechanism for current change and preparing the individual for possible future treatment.“
The above definition of wilderness therapy has been the purpose and the final result of my project. As I proceed through the publication process and submit to present my finding at conferences it is important to recognize there is still great need to continue distinguishing wilderness therapy from the boot-camp approach and traditional therapy models. This project provided me with experiences that have had a profound effect on my life.