The Effects of Large Scale, Structured, Marathon, Group Psychotherapy in Human's Improvements and Enhancements

In the 1960s and 1970s, self-knowledge and psychological courses started to appear in America that fast and extensively turned into one of the key social movements of that time: marathon groups. Although this specialized term is hardly ever used and heard, the different  Trade Mark (™) with which the institutions holding the courses are known  are very famous in America and other countries where the branches of these centers exist. These names are like  EST, Land Mark, and Life Spring. Now, after half a century, this particular type of group therapy is still prevalent and expanding in Iran and other Asian countries for several years. I participated in one of these courses in Iran about 15 years ago - the first localized sample for Iran - which has been the turning point of many changes in my life. For instance, the day I started these courses I was working as a computer engineer specializing in computer networks, and today I am graduating with an MA in psychology and on the verge of entering the PhD degree in this major. However, the experience of participating in this course has no connection with changing major, specialization and field of work, which was a special effect I experienced. The uniqueness of each person's experience is one of the attractive features and characteristics of these courses. However, aside from the valuation of these effects, the extent and frequency of these effects is undeniable. In this review paper, I will make efforts to address the basic paradigms and the history of the establishment of these courses to gain a correct and scientific understanding of how these courses are effective. I believe that the first step in identifying the state and function of these courses in today's communities is to get familiar with the origin, purposes and scientific goals of this approach. I hope that the paper will be a start for deeper studies of these courses, reviewing their localized models in Asian countries, especially Iran, studying the sociological status, and their long-term effectiveness in these communities.