Emotional Freedom Techniques
Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) is a technique that stimulates acupressure points by pressuring, tapping or rubbing while focusing on situations that represent personal fear or trauma. EFT draws on various theories of alternative medicine – including acupuncture, neuro-linguistic programming, energy medicine, and Thought Field Therapy (TFT). EFT also combines elements of exposure therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy and somatic stimulation. It is best known through Gary Craig's EFT Handbook, published in the late 1990s, and related books and workshops by a variety of teachers. EFT and similar techniques are often discussed under the umbrella term "energy psychology."
| Alternative medicine | |
|---|---|
| Claims | Tapping on "meridian points" on the body, derived from acupuncture, can release "energy blockages" that cause "negative emotions" |
| Related fields | Acupuncture, Acupressure, Energy medicine |
| Year proposed | 1993 |
| Original proponents | Gary Craig |
| Subsequent proponents | Jack Canfield, Nick Ortner, Joseph Mercola |
| See also | Thought Field Therapy, Tapas Acupressure Technique, Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing |
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| Alternative medicine |
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Advocates claim that the technique may be used to treat a wide variety of physical and psychological disorders, and as a simple form of self-administered therapy. The Skeptical Inquirer describes the foundations of EFT as "a hodgepodge of concepts derived from a variety of sources, [primarily] the ancient Chinese philosophy of chi, which is thought to be the 'life force' that flows throughout the body." The existence of this life force is "not empirically supported."
EFT has no benefit as a therapy beyond (1) the placebo effect or (2) any known effective psychological techniques that may be provided in addition to the purported "energy" technique. It is generally characterized as pseudoscience, and it has not garnered significant support in clinical psychology.