Desensitization Training
Aside from combat training, ARK agents have to undergo desensitization training. The goal of desensitization training is to suppress the agents feelings of empathy, in fear that an agent having too much empathy could cost ARK missions.
The training involves agents being hooked up to various machines to track physical reactions, such as heartbeat, brain activity, sweat, etc. and is followed by a psychological evaluation to see how they mentally responded to the stimuli. Agents are then shown traumatic stimuli such as buildings on fire, people mourning, aftermaths of disasters, death, etc.
Over time through desensitization training, authorized training administrators monitor how they respond to such stimuli, and once the responses are low enough training ends. Should training backfire and agents start reacting more strongly or otherwise show signs of becoming more empathetic, training ends. While this is considered to be a fairly important "skill" to have, especially for field agents, completing it is not mandatory and failure to complete the training will not result in an agent being dismissed.
Process
A typical full run of desensitization training is a total of eight hours over the course of eight weeks. Despite being a relatively short amount of time dedicated to desensitization it is incredibly effective. Individual sessions typically last for one hour during which the trainee is brought to a private room with a certified administrator. The administrator hooks the trainee up to several sensors which monitor heart rate, blood pressure, brain activity, sweat, adrenaline, and so on. The administrator then plays several pieces of stimuli which may include visual and audio components, the stimuli is a mixed bag of positive, neutral, and negative stimuli.History
Desensitization Training was implemented by the first Officer of War, Halvar Koit. Koit had been campaigning for desensitization to be implemeted in ARK for several years and had had several failed votes. In 2777 he brought it to another during which it finally passed with four in favor and three against.Controversy
Whistleblowers have brought ARK desensitization training to light, although any evidence of such is quickly taken care of and the whistleblower silenced; to date four ARK defectors have attempted to expose desensitization as an inhumane and torturous form of training, however it is still widely believed to be a baseless conspiracy theory. Minimal public outcry aside, a small group of ARK medics have spoken out against the use of desensitization training, claiming that agents often report a loss of sex drive, warped perceptions of reality, and becoming prone to sudden violent outbursts.Desensitization Trauma
Although desensitization is a process which utilizes inflicting controlled trauma on a subject to create the desired result and is therefore inherently traumatizing, the phrase "desensitization trauma" refers to undesired traumatic effects from desensitization training. Desired effects include dampened emotions, reduced flight response, and increase in adrenaline production. Undesired effects from desensitization trauma may include PTSD, violence, flashbacks, suicidal ideation, or an increase in flight or freeze response. Desensitization trauma may be caught in the early stages of training, under which circumstances the training should be prematurely ended. In the event that desensitization trauma isn't caught ahead of time, it is treated through therapy after the fact. An agent may be predisposed to desensitization trauma if they have a history of mental illness.Around 85% of agents who complete desensitization training report partial or complete loss of sex drive and interest in romantic relationships. Agents that underwent particularly intensive training, defined as sitting through a single session of desensitization training lasting five or more hours, often report that they no longer distinguish people from animals. According to one study, about 60% of agents who harm non-hostile Rizan civilians have underwent intensive desensitization training. That number becomes 97% when studying agents who have killed civilians.
Desense
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