NCJ Number
75666
Journal
CANADIAN PSYCHIATRIC ASSOCIATION JOURNAL Volume: 22 Issue: 7 Dated: (November 1977) Pages: 355-360
Date Published
1977
Length
6 pages
Annotation
The use of a total encounter capsule as a means for behavior modification at the maximum security section of a Canadian mental health center is described.
Abstract
The capsule is a specially constructed, soundproof, windowless but continuously lighted and ventilated room, 8 by 10 feet, which provides the basic essentials -- liquid food dispensers, washing and toilet facilities -- and in which it is possible for a group of up to seven patients to live for many days at a time, totally removed from contact with the outside. Facility staff can monitor activities within the capsule through a one-way mirror in the ceiling, closed circuit television, and an audio amplifying system. The capsule functions as a place of undisturbed security where a small group of voluntary patients can focus upon issues they feel important enough to warrant the exclusion of distractions in a setting where the risks of suicide or homicide are at a minimum. Capsule therapy is intended particularly for those patients who have remained relatively untouched by other forms of therapy and for whom a major personality alteration may be the only means of avoiding lifelong incarceration. Participants wear no clothing in the belief that uncovering of the body's private parts might facilitate an understanding of the mind and in the fear that clothing might be used in a dangerous manner. In the first 6 months of the capsule's 9 years of use, 90 percent of the participants felt it was helpful and reported that it led to increased respect for others' feelings, greater self-awareness, and a better knowledge about how one individual affects another. A 12-item reference list is included.