Abuse within the Troubled Teen Industry

The “Troubled Teen Industry” is an industry made up of facilities designed to reform young people’s behavior into something more desirable. They include behavior modification facilities, wilderness therapy, boot camps, “tough-love” facilities, and more. Offending behavior could be disobeying their parents, drug use, or playing too many video games.

Parents who feel as though they are unable to control their “troubled teen” are promised by these facilities that they will return their child back properly disciplined and respectful. These methods of discipline are often rooted in a Synanon philosophy – a cult which pioneered the use of harsh behavioral modification techniques. Often, parents are sending their child off to what could be years of abuse, with a lifetime of trauma.