Workshop: A Primer on Incels, Mental Health and Risk Assessment
$225 Registration
Early Registration $200 (through July 8th)
The live professional training program is presented by Christopher P. Marett, MD, Sarah E. Daly, PhD, and Dustin Wygant, PhD.
“Incel” is a portmanteau for “involuntary celibate,” and groups of incels typically exist and congregate in online spaces. As described on one popular forum for the group, an incels is “a person who wants be in a loving relationship but is unable to find one despite his best effort.” Generally, men who identify as incels have had limited or no romantic or sexual experiences, and they believe that this is due to a number of factors, including their physical appearance, missed developmental milestones, their personality, and/or mental illnesses such as anxiety or autism. While agencies, researchers, and organizations are gathering information and offering perspectives about the group, few have engaged with incels directly.
This program will discuss recent interview data to inform participants about the individuals and the group (e.g., brief history, associations with violence, common characteristics), themes in online discussions, and shared beliefs. Additionally, this program will utilize an interactive approach highlighting case studies and interview data to discuss treatment strategies, suicide and violence risk assessment, describe and debate diagnostic considerations and intervention approaches, and identify ways to effectively address incel problems.