Problematic John Dehlin, a short list
Posted: Fri May 14, 2021 12:39 pm
This is response to request for an elaboration on my claims that Dehlin tends to problematic behaviors. I decided to start a new thread since this topic is more broad than his relationship with Rosebud.
1)Open Stories Foundation impropriety and his responses since: including the Rosebud drama, the disagreements with Amy Grubbs (under NDA) and Kristy Money. Much of that seems to be a pattern of seeking free or underpaid labor, and then running into trouble when people don't like how they're treated. Dehlin seems to have a habit of needing to get rid of all or most everyone at Open Stories Foundation, refilling the positions, then having to purge again.
https://dearjohndehlin.wordpress.com/tag/kate-kelly/
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1385 ... 21729.html
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1335 ... 87272.html
2)Professional grey area in representing himself. Dehlin touts his Phd in clinical and counselling psychology yet to this day remains unlicensed to practice therapy in Utah. He gets around this by calling his services “coaching.” What he is doing might be technically legal in Utah, but I think we can say it is ethically questionable.
https://www.johndehlin.com/coaching/
3)Pretending to be anti-misogynist then silencing women who hold him to account. He explicitly asks for feedback and ends up deleting, muting, or blocking dozens of women who raise legitimate concerns about his own behavior. He and his friends do this in several groups in response to criticism of him.
4)Centering himself continually, like when Michael Quinn passed away, he was one of the earliest to post the news, and he did it before Quinn’s family.
He has a personal problem which ends up hurting people: he has built his livelihood around this while not being competent enough to de-center himself. He therefore invites (not just attacks from believers or smears) legitimate criticisms. But instead of really responding to consumer feedback like a competent professional, he reacts in Mormon-authoritarian fashion. He’s perpetuating those unhealthy behaviors. His media reach amplifies that and the damage such behavior causes, both the potential for damage and the actual harm.
Ideally, Dehlin would be more responsive to criticism. But at the very least, hopefully more of us can continue to unlearn the very Mormon tendency to look for a male authority figure and be more circumspect about who we support. Ultimately, I hope for multiple communities of broader support, communities with less infighting and more self-awareness.
1)Open Stories Foundation impropriety and his responses since: including the Rosebud drama, the disagreements with Amy Grubbs (under NDA) and Kristy Money. Much of that seems to be a pattern of seeking free or underpaid labor, and then running into trouble when people don't like how they're treated. Dehlin seems to have a habit of needing to get rid of all or most everyone at Open Stories Foundation, refilling the positions, then having to purge again.
https://dearjohndehlin.wordpress.com/tag/kate-kelly/
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1385 ... 21729.html
https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1335 ... 87272.html
2)Professional grey area in representing himself. Dehlin touts his Phd in clinical and counselling psychology yet to this day remains unlicensed to practice therapy in Utah. He gets around this by calling his services “coaching.” What he is doing might be technically legal in Utah, but I think we can say it is ethically questionable.
https://www.johndehlin.com/coaching/
3)Pretending to be anti-misogynist then silencing women who hold him to account. He explicitly asks for feedback and ends up deleting, muting, or blocking dozens of women who raise legitimate concerns about his own behavior. He and his friends do this in several groups in response to criticism of him.
4)Centering himself continually, like when Michael Quinn passed away, he was one of the earliest to post the news, and he did it before Quinn’s family.
He has a personal problem which ends up hurting people: he has built his livelihood around this while not being competent enough to de-center himself. He therefore invites (not just attacks from believers or smears) legitimate criticisms. But instead of really responding to consumer feedback like a competent professional, he reacts in Mormon-authoritarian fashion. He’s perpetuating those unhealthy behaviors. His media reach amplifies that and the damage such behavior causes, both the potential for damage and the actual harm.
Ideally, Dehlin would be more responsive to criticism. But at the very least, hopefully more of us can continue to unlearn the very Mormon tendency to look for a male authority figure and be more circumspect about who we support. Ultimately, I hope for multiple communities of broader support, communities with less infighting and more self-awareness.