Raymond D. Fowler

Raymond D. Fowler was the Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the American Psychological Association (APA).

Education
Dr. Fowler has a Ph.D. and is a registered clinical psychologist in the state of Alabama

Research activities
In the early 1960s, Fowler developed an innovative method of computer interpretation for the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory. His system was translated into most major European languages, has been used to generate personality reports on almost two million individuals in the United States and abroad.

He has contributed to the research literature in psychology with over 70 articles, books, chapters, and other publications, especially in the areas of substance abuse, criminal behavior, and psychological assessment.

Gris vs. CESNUR
G.R.I.S. stands for the Group for Research and Information on Cults, and is an Italian Catholic organization which is approved and supported by approved by the Italian Bishops' Conference. C.E.S.N.U.R. is the Centre for Studies on New Religions, run by Massimo Introvigne. Dr. Fowler wrote a controversial memo involving the debate between the two groups on July 12, 1989, in his capacity as Chief Executive Officer of the American Psychological Association. This memo discusses an amicus brief that was filed on behalf of the APA on February 10, 1987 : Let us take a further look into the right about turn of the APA, by examining the Memo of July 12th, 1989, sent by R.D. Fowler, Chief Executive Officer of the APA, to Dr. W. D’Antonio. This document explains some of the reasons the brief was withdrawn: Fowler mentions a letter, dated May 17th, 1989, from Dr. Ofshe to Dr. D’Antonio. On page 2 of his letter, Ofshe had said that the APA brief "improperly slipped through the APA’s administrative structure… and [was] filed by the former executive director of APA despite objections by APA’s legal counsel". After having denied this statement by Ofshe, Fowler says that the Executive Director of APA resigned after the episode, but that "…the APA Executive Director did not resign because a brief was filed in the case". We wonder why the APA director resigned - was it for "health reasons" or "unexpected family problems "? Fowler also mentions another letter by Dr. Ofshe, of June 14th, 1989, where the latter says he was invited, together with Dr. Singer, to attend a symposium organised by APA's Division 1. The Symposium was just about coercive persuasion and its clinical, ethical, cultural and legal implications. Somebody of course might wonder, "Why did APA invite two scholars who had been entirely discredited by their Association after the rejection of the DIMPAC and the submission of the amicus brief?" Perhaps pre-empting such a possible question, Fowler comes forward with the information that the attendance at the symposium by the two scholars did not have the meaning Ofshe implies: "This statement is somewhat misleading in that this is not an APA sponsored symposium. Drs. Singer and Dr. Ofshe were invited by Division1 (one of forty plus APA Divisions) to participate in a Division 1 sponsored Symposium". If we take Fowler's statement into account, we can still ask: if a single Division of APA does not represent the whole Association, then can't we also say that four experts (the number of people reviewing the DIMPAC report), only one of whom was an APA member, do not represent the view of the whole Association?

Attends "The Forum"
Dr. Fowler is a graduate of Landmark Education's Landmark Forum course. He is frequently used as a reference to defend against criticism of the organization, though he claims to have no professional or financial ties to the for-profit company. In a February 22, 1995 letter written while Fowler was still Executive Vice President and CEO of the American Psychological Association, Fowler spent much of the bulk of the letter refuting controversial opinions about Landmark Education and "cult-like" behavior: "I have no personal or financial involvement with The Forum or with any of its predecessor, successor or affiliated groups. I am writing only to describe my personal experience and impressions of The Forum program in which I participated. Several years ago my wife and I, both psychologists, signed up to attend a two-weekend Forum training program. We had heard comments about The Forum from psychologists and others and wanted to find out more about it from personal experience. Prior to attending The Forum program, I read several articles about EST workshops and Forum programs..I would like to observe that The Forum experience in no way resembles any of the so-called cults I've read about. In my opinion, it has no 'cult-like' characteristics. Its level of intensity is far too superficial to encourage the intense addiction-like behavior said to be exhibited by cult members: there is no dominating leader with whom the participants share their lives. There is no coercion, no social isolation, no peer pressure toward conformity and no required modification of behavior, lifestyle, dress, food, and relationships. In my opinion, a forum session is more like a lively participatory classroom than it is like a cult. It is far more like a meeting of Alcoholics Anonymous or other self-help groups than it is like a cult, but it is less intense than either. Almost any church organization has more 'cult-like' features than a Forum session. Forum, in my personal opinion, does not remotely resemble a cult and it puzzles me that any responsible person could think it does..."

Letter is official Landmark document
Though Fowler states he has no profesional or financial ties to the organization, the 1995 letter has become an official reference document within Landmark Education, referred to as document number "L-014E".

Art Schreiber, General Counsel, Director and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Landmark Education, has repeatedly sent individuals and organizations copies of the February 22, 1995 Fowler letter praising Landmark Education, along with other information in a legal informational packet. This is most often sent out to individuals and organizations in response to negative criticism of Landmark Education, and sometimes prior to a lawsuit against said organization by Landmark Education.

Professional Associations
Since 1998, Dr. Fowler has been Treasurer of the International Association of Analytical Psychologists (IAAP) and a member of its Executive Committee. In 1988, he was Secretary General for the IAAP’s XXIV International Congress of Applied Psychology.

Fowler served four years as APA treasurer, became its 97th president in 1997 and served as CEO since 1989. He is on the Editorial Board of the European Psychologist; sponsored by the European Federation of Psychological Associations. In 2000, he was the recipient of the APA Division of International Psychology’s Distinguished International Psychological Award for his significant contributions to global psychology. He is a lifetime honorary member of the Psychological Society of South Africa. In 1979, he was the first U.S. psychologist invited to visit the Institute of Psychology of the Chinese Academy of Science in Beijing after relationships resumed between the two countries, and he has returned to China on five occasions to lecture and to lead joint conferences between U.S. and Chinese psychologists.

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