I agree with this exactly. Nature is a healing and rejuvenating resource. It can help with dysregulation and, done right, can have individuals focusing on the moment, which experts say is good for you.
To get to that point, you have to have a feeling of relative safety IMO, especially if you're a newbie. As you get more experience, your tolerance for discomfort increases (or maybe not, if you're a bear magnet).
Taking away creature comforts from a newbie in this kind of environment is cruel; almost inevitably, it will make you feel unsafe. They need adequate apparel, hats and gloves, warm and protective gear, waterproof footwear, expensive socks, immediate access to first aid, nourishing, cooked, food, a way to get washed up in warm water, a well set up toilet facility, even if temporary, filtered water, sanitary treatment for dishes, etc.. Newbie campers should be warm and dry. All of those are how you'd want to ground a positive nature experience for an inexperienced person. With these, you are well-positioned to develop team building skills and responsibility. From there, you can have expectations, issue chores, etc. (The Sierra Club had plenty of these when I used to go on group trips, like getting up extra early to fix the scrambled eggs, packing out trash, cooking dinner from the provided recipes, cleaning pots, stocking firewood, taking down wet tents, etc.)
And if you screw up? Maybe you don't get to have hot cocoa that night (which can be extreme punishment if you're living outdoors in the cold, 'cos all you can think about is food and getting warm), maybe you get the pot scrubbing chore, maybe you get to carry the trash, or the extra water (very heavy). So many options.
But these camps have turned nature into deprivation. You have to endure until you earn. Or else you have to endure until you submit. And from a leader's point of view? Leading a group of dysregulated newbies in the cold and rain of current NC, and having all their sleeping bags get wet......I don't understand the logic. What would anyone get out of this except misery and fear?