64 International Journal of Cultic Studies ■ Vol. 9, 2018
healing claims made by GWP were not of the
physical nature. Since the healing focused
primarily upon the nonphysical, testing the
effectiveness of instruments is arguably much
harder. How does one prove whether someone’s
etheric structure had been repaired? Or if an
instrument had positively affected a person’s
emotional well-being? These claims are
unfalsifiable. The first question can be answered
only within a particular worldview. The second
question would have to rely on self-reporting by
those who had personally held these instruments
or had undergone another GWP healing
procedure (such as the telepathic healings).
450F
451
Furthermore, since the healings targeted
problems that often were not tangible, they are
more difficult to prove (compounded by GWP’s
lack of proper scientific studies), and thus easier
for potential clients to believe.
A confusion between correlation and causation
becomes clear in the GWP material if one
questions the time that experimental subjects
spent between holding the instrument and
reporting results. In one interview, Mary Miller
suggested that people who held the instrument
could look back in 6 to 7 months and observe
noticeable changes to their lives (WERU, 1996).
Half a year is a significant length of time, and if
one expected a positive change to occur in one’s
emotional and spiritual well-being (or in one’s
life in general), then one might be more aware of
these moments and more likely to attribute them
to the instrument. As a former member noted,
members “stopped taking credit or responsibility
from our own successes and accomplishments”
(Bergin, 2003, para. 51). Members began to
attribute their success to instruments. And
although members attributed success to the
instruments, negative events remained the result
of their “own limitations or ‘will’” (Bergin,
2003, para. 51).
451 GWP material asserted that these telepathic healings would
result in changes both for the individual and for society. For
instance, this material claimed that telepathic healings resulted in
the fall of the Berlin Wall, exposure of corrupt politicians,
reconnection of religious leaders with spiritual authorities, and
curbing of aggressive tendencies of athletes (Bergin, 2003, para.
59 Carreiro, 1988[a], pp. 134–135).
As Beyerstein noted, “misattributions of this sort
arise from the false assumption that a change in
symptoms following a treatment must have been
a specific consequence of that procedure”
(Beyerstein, 1997, para. 20). This effect can
easily be observed in the alleged healing
properties of the GWP instruments. The
misattribution of the apparent healing affect can
be enhanced, according to Beyerstein, “through
a combination of suggestion, belief, expectancy,
cognitive reinterpretation, and diversion of
attention” (1997, para. 20) which all contribute
to the apparent success of pseudoscientific
alternative medical treatments. These
enhancements and suggestions are present when
one examines which GWP healing instruments
allegedly accomplished the mental and
emotional healing.
Another case of correlation being attributed as
causation in GWP content occurred with the
Children’s Rod, which allegedly parents could
give a child to reduce the duration of a temper
tantrum. A child held the rod in the left hand for
2 to 3 minutes, or longer if the tantrum was
especially severe (GWP, n.d.-f). Although I do
not doubt that in some cases this instrument may
have appeared effective, the effects likely had to
do with changing the focus of the child’s
attention and waiting for the tantrum to subside,
rather than their having anything to do with the
rod’s alleged properties. GWP material alleged
that another instrument, the Physical
Equilibrium Symbol, “restore[d] physical
equilibrium in times of physical distress” (GWP,
n.d.-g, p. 1). Instructions encouraged people to
hold the symbol for 7 minutes against the part of
their bodies that was causing problems, and then
sleep, or at least rest, for half an hour (GWP,
n.d.-g, p. 1). Coupled with rest, it is difficult to
determine whether the instrument, or the rest,
eased the symptoms. Furthermore, users may
have taken medications or used other techniques,
or the distress may have been only temporary
and run its course with rest. The Physical
Equilibrium Symbol in particular adequately fits
what Beyerstein referred to as derivative
benefits, one of the “Ten Errors and Biases”
(1997) of alternative therapies.
Beyerstein specified that some alternative
treatments may increase the effectiveness of
healing claims made by GWP were not of the
physical nature. Since the healing focused
primarily upon the nonphysical, testing the
effectiveness of instruments is arguably much
harder. How does one prove whether someone’s
etheric structure had been repaired? Or if an
instrument had positively affected a person’s
emotional well-being? These claims are
unfalsifiable. The first question can be answered
only within a particular worldview. The second
question would have to rely on self-reporting by
those who had personally held these instruments
or had undergone another GWP healing
procedure (such as the telepathic healings).
450F
451
Furthermore, since the healings targeted
problems that often were not tangible, they are
more difficult to prove (compounded by GWP’s
lack of proper scientific studies), and thus easier
for potential clients to believe.
A confusion between correlation and causation
becomes clear in the GWP material if one
questions the time that experimental subjects
spent between holding the instrument and
reporting results. In one interview, Mary Miller
suggested that people who held the instrument
could look back in 6 to 7 months and observe
noticeable changes to their lives (WERU, 1996).
Half a year is a significant length of time, and if
one expected a positive change to occur in one’s
emotional and spiritual well-being (or in one’s
life in general), then one might be more aware of
these moments and more likely to attribute them
to the instrument. As a former member noted,
members “stopped taking credit or responsibility
from our own successes and accomplishments”
(Bergin, 2003, para. 51). Members began to
attribute their success to instruments. And
although members attributed success to the
instruments, negative events remained the result
of their “own limitations or ‘will’” (Bergin,
2003, para. 51).
451 GWP material asserted that these telepathic healings would
result in changes both for the individual and for society. For
instance, this material claimed that telepathic healings resulted in
the fall of the Berlin Wall, exposure of corrupt politicians,
reconnection of religious leaders with spiritual authorities, and
curbing of aggressive tendencies of athletes (Bergin, 2003, para.
59 Carreiro, 1988[a], pp. 134–135).
As Beyerstein noted, “misattributions of this sort
arise from the false assumption that a change in
symptoms following a treatment must have been
a specific consequence of that procedure”
(Beyerstein, 1997, para. 20). This effect can
easily be observed in the alleged healing
properties of the GWP instruments. The
misattribution of the apparent healing affect can
be enhanced, according to Beyerstein, “through
a combination of suggestion, belief, expectancy,
cognitive reinterpretation, and diversion of
attention” (1997, para. 20) which all contribute
to the apparent success of pseudoscientific
alternative medical treatments. These
enhancements and suggestions are present when
one examines which GWP healing instruments
allegedly accomplished the mental and
emotional healing.
Another case of correlation being attributed as
causation in GWP content occurred with the
Children’s Rod, which allegedly parents could
give a child to reduce the duration of a temper
tantrum. A child held the rod in the left hand for
2 to 3 minutes, or longer if the tantrum was
especially severe (GWP, n.d.-f). Although I do
not doubt that in some cases this instrument may
have appeared effective, the effects likely had to
do with changing the focus of the child’s
attention and waiting for the tantrum to subside,
rather than their having anything to do with the
rod’s alleged properties. GWP material alleged
that another instrument, the Physical
Equilibrium Symbol, “restore[d] physical
equilibrium in times of physical distress” (GWP,
n.d.-g, p. 1). Instructions encouraged people to
hold the symbol for 7 minutes against the part of
their bodies that was causing problems, and then
sleep, or at least rest, for half an hour (GWP,
n.d.-g, p. 1). Coupled with rest, it is difficult to
determine whether the instrument, or the rest,
eased the symptoms. Furthermore, users may
have taken medications or used other techniques,
or the distress may have been only temporary
and run its course with rest. The Physical
Equilibrium Symbol in particular adequately fits
what Beyerstein referred to as derivative
benefits, one of the “Ten Errors and Biases”
(1997) of alternative therapies.
Beyerstein specified that some alternative
treatments may increase the effectiveness of
