Therapy People

Psychotherapy is one of the most widely accepted institutions in modern life. It is also one of the least scientifically justified.

Drawing on meta-analyses, replication studies, and decades of clinical research, Therapy People makes the case that talk therapy's effectiveness rests largely on placebo — and that three-quarters of psychology's published claims are likely false.

But weak science is only part of the problem. The profession has drifted steadily from clinical care toward ideological enforcement, incorporating political activism and spiritual practice — mindfulness, yoga, confessional ritual — within the guise of healthcare. Meanwhile, the therapeutic state grows: governments increasingly take responsibility for the inner lives of their citizens, pathologizing ordinary hardship and classifying dissent as disorder.

Schilling takes on the industry's most prominent voices — from bestselling trauma gurus who misrepresent their own citations to therapists who rushed to treat survivors of the October 7 attacks despite clear evidence that immediate psychological intervention does more harm than good. He also examines how therapy culture has reshaped the way we talk, think, and understand ourselves: repackaging loneliness as pathology, turning resilience into denial, and manufacturing a society of permanent patients.

International in scope and unsparing in its conclusions, Therapy People is essential reading for anyone who has ever sat across from a therapist — or wondered whether they should.