There are almost never any obvious red flags to warn people that they may unwittingly end up in a cult. and transmitted securely. endobj 0000006422 00000 n application/pdf More often than not, a cult will promise to solve an issue in society that no one else is offering a solution to. View What Makes Someone Join a Cult?.pdf from ENG 203 at Temple University. Cult membership and addictive disorders share some characteristics: persistence despite damage, initial psychological relief, occupation of an exclusive place in the thoughts of members, high psychiatric comorbidity prevalence, high accessibility, leading to social precariousness and the importance of familial support when leaving. xref Close. The use of hypnotic altered trance states, that can covertly make people as suggestable as a fully induced hypnosis patient, are not well understood, researched, peer viewed, etc, as of yet. This thesis investigates the factors that contribute to the increased vulnerability to cult membership. The majority of these people had no idea that the organization they were entering was, in fact, a cult. Behavior modification techniques are employed, such as rewards/punishments, thought-stopping, and control of environment (isolation or restriction of access to others). 0000005357 00000 n She was taught to believe that without Scientology, the world was doomed, and the fate of the entire planet was in their hands. <>88 0 R]/P 482 0 R/Pg 481 0 R/S/Link>> Being a Scientologist, you look at someone, and you know absolutely that you can help them . Cult membership and addictive disorders share some characteristics: persistence despite damage, initial psychological relief, occupation of an exclusive place in the thoughts of members, high psychiatric comorbidity prevalence, high accessibility, leading to social precariousness and the importance of familial support when leaving. 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Cult leaders are desperate to trick you into joining. That's what cults do. A typical manipulated conversion, Dr. Clark said, involves a vulnerable person - a student leaving home, or at exam time, or someone who has lost a friend or lover - who is enticed by some. There is lack of informed consent. It's a really small sample size but it starts to give you a good idea of . <>382 0 R]/P 526 0 R/Pg 516 0 R/S/Link>> But strict obedience is required. <>108 0 R]/P 496 0 R/Pg 481 0 R/S/Link>> In relatively few cases is there a history of a pre-existing mental . There are thousands of cults in existence, with millions of members all over the world. 460 0 obj Simplified goal or aim structure, such as to save something or introduce something to everyone. Retrieved from: https://doi-org.ezproxy.uleth.ca/10.1080/10609393.2018.1451678. Push factors are internal to the gang and often suggest a negative actionsuch as getting shot or injured . endobj In 2011, a Lululemon employee named Brittany Norwood did not make enough money to afford the clothing she needed as a work uniform. It includes isolation and control, fear and coercion, and enslavement. Cult membership and addictive disorders share some characteristics: persistence despite damage, initial psychological relief, occupation of an exclusive place in the thoughts of members, high psychiatric comorbidity prevalence, high accessibility, leading to social precariousness and the importance of familial support when leaving. Actress Leah Remini was raised in the Church of Scientology since she was nine years old. Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com. <>112 0 R]/P 500 0 R/Pg 481 0 R/S/Link>> 0000024375 00000 n endobj Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. <>399 0 R]/P 536 0 R/Pg 532 0 R/S/Link>> One of the many tactics that cults use to recruit new members is "love bombing." This is a technique where members of the group are overly loving and complimentary. A number of reports cite heavy drug or alcohol use by cult members before entering the c~lt.~'-~~ Alcohol, marihuana, and hallu- cinogen abuse were particularly common So, would you join a cult? According to therapist Rachel Bernstein, who treats former cult members, there isn't one profile or set of traits that make someone susceptible. 0000006305 00000 n Steven Hassan, Ph.D., is a mental health professional, cult and undue influence expert who has been working in the field of relationship, group, and political cults for over 40 years. As a result, it is defined as handling major concepts and roles associated with protective factors. endobj A group should not be considered a cult merely because of its unorthodox beliefs. 0000007887 00000 n 2023-02-21T08:12:45-08:00 Dr. Stein, who grew up protesting alongside her parents during the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, goes on to explain that breaking up with her boyfriend was the catalyst for her to unwittingly join a cult in the United States. Norwood was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole. Cult is a term, considered pejorative by some, for a relatively small group which is typically led by a charismatic and self-appointed leader, who excessively controls its members, requiring unwavering devotion to a set of acts and practices which are considered deviant (outside the norms of society). Thus, the aim of our study was to identify vulnerability factors that are involved in the commitment and in the retention in the group, as well as protective factors that are involved in the departure. Almost everyone goes through an existential crisis at some point in their lifetime. But I suspect they will discover that most people can relatively easily be made to believe all sorts of unsubstantiated information, just look at the varied degrees of unscientific, unproven nonsense most religions adhere to. 2021 Aug 13;12(1):1954776. doi: 10.1080/20008198.2021.1954776. endobj An object relations approach to cult membership. Medical Journal Cult membership: What factors contribute to joining or leaving? 2007 Aug 15-21;21(49):20-2. doi: 10.7748/ns.21.49.20.s23. <><>379 0 R]/P 524 0 R/Pg 516 0 R/S/Link>> Get the help you need from a therapist near youa FREE service from Psychology Today. An older study, possibly too old to be valid, (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8234595) suggest some factors that increase likelihood of joining a cult such as propensities toward dissociative states, childhood trauma, and substance abuse. Cults initially offer people a sense of community they feel as though they wouldnt otherwise have and, depending on where you are in your life, the idea of being handed a big group of loving friends might should pretty alluring. Adolescent attraction to cults. 468 0 obj <>390 0 R]/P 530 0 R/Pg 516 0 R/S/Link>> Some people cope by jumping into a new relationship very quickly, while others celebrate their new-found independence. The case examples explored in this paper are Jonestown, The Kentucky Vampire Clan, The Manson Family, and The Source Family. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author. The church was funded by taking 30% of its member's gross income and its leader, Herbert W. Armstrong, a self-titled 'Last Apostle' of Jesus Christ, lived a luxurious life in Hollywood. "Timing plays a big part of people's susceptibility," she said. The Making of Cults: The Factors that Contribute to Membership and the Leaders' Influence Chloe Greenidge, Eastern Kentucky University Follow Abstract This thesis investigates the factors that contribute to the increased vulnerability to cult membership. Prince 14.2 (www.princexml.com) Possible situational vulnerabilities include illness, the death of a loved one, breakup of an important relationship, loss of a job, or moving to another city, state or country. Antelo E, Saldaa O, Rodrguez-Carballeira . Eur J Psychotraumatol. endobj 0000006536 00000 n However, undue influence is deceptive and manipulative. 0000018327 00000 n There are a number of risk factors that make young people more likely to join a gang, but one of the core . Without real intimacy, relationships wither. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. <>stream We go in, and were immediately greeted by a young, attractive woman. Cult membership as a source of self-cohesion: forensic implications. Many cults are rooted in a religion of some kind and build their practice around one, especially charismatic leader. Some Youths joined secret cults for popularity. Cults are typically marketed as organizations that promote self-betterment, whether that means the promise of enlightenment in the case of tantric sex cults, or the skills to make all of your professional dreams comes true, which NXIVM preaches in the form of self-help courses. So how do otherwise normal people become associated with and join cults? Human Cloning and the Raelians in the Spanish Newspaper El Pas, Priests and Cults in the Book of the Twelve, Introduction to the ICSA 2007 Annual Conference, Cult Recovery: a ClinicianS Guide to Working with Former Members and Family, Egoism, the 'Cult of Man' and the New Age Movement, Cults and Cosmic Consciousness: Religious Vision in the American 1960S, Challenges in the Seventh Day Adventist Church in Zimbabwe in Intergrating and Evangelising Minority Groups After Independence, Eileen Barker the Cult As a Social Problem, From Seventh-Day Adventism to David Koresh: the British Connection Alberta, The Cases of Church, Sect, Denomination, Cult and New Religious Movements (Nrms) and Their Typologies, After Paris: Why ISIL Is (Also) a Cult by Florence Gaub, The Unification Church: a Kaleidoscopic Introduction Barker, Eileen, I. Apostates Defile the Flesh V-8 Ii. 3 0 obj 0000047218 00000 n The cult leader can then use these statements to shame individual members publicly. I personally had an interesting experience with an organization that many consider to be a cult. If a cult member considers leaving the group--this may become a vitally important and pivotal point. <]/Prev 225954>> I would seriously question the validity of Rudin, and I think especially with the prominence of social media in current society, more research should be conducted on contemporary cults, youth susceptibility, and social media. A dislike, distrust, or general devaluation of outsiders. B., & Grall-Bronnec, M. (2017). . But, if you have been affected, recovery is possible. View This Abstract Online; Cult membership: What factors contribute to joining or leaving? <> 0000008155 00000 n > 0000112587 00000 n I did not include any of these statistics in my writing because there were only 31 former cult members interviewed and I didnt think that was a large enough sample size to make any concrete conclusions. National Library of Medicine 0000020860 00000 n A cult member's relationship with society is disturbed because "cults provide isolation from the world and self, induction of a dissociative state, and indoctrination techniques that criticize the non-cult world and reinforce the exclusive closed system" (Robinson, Frye, & Bradley, 1997). HHS Vulnerability Disclosure, Help 0000115641 00000 n This is a really interesting topic! Goodman, A. Social identity. Little did she know that she was being manipulated into isolation away from her family in South Africa, and she was trapped in a political cult for many years. Not all are destructive, some are benign. <>stream Whether it is attaining eternal life in a spiritual realm, or working day and night to change a political issue, a cult can give a purpose in life to people who did not have their own strong goals. 0000003814 00000 n B., & Grall-Bronnec, M. (2017). People more often than not tend to just go with the group, because people feel the need to belong. <><>430 0 R]/P 558 0 R/Pg 556 0 R/S/Link>> 0000005002 00000 n The company teaches their employees that they are superior to others. endobj Most people do not realize that a cult does not necessarily have to be a religion. Our aim in this paper is to argue that individuals join religious cults as persons, but lose their personhood as their position in the group is solidified, becoming simply humans. endobj Hearing these disturbing stories of cult-related sexual abuse, branding, and blackmail, it's understandable viewers may think: "I could never be fooled into joining a cult.". Psychiatry Research, 257, 2733. 0000010434 00000 n I find it interesting that Rousselet et al., (2017) compare cult membership to addiction, which is supported by Goodman (1990). 0000045191 00000 n Cult leaders want people who will be obedient to them and their rules. Jane said she struggled forming deep relationships with other women throughout her life, so when she heard how close-knit NXIVM members were, and that there was a women-only group she could join, she became interested. Developments associated with youth such as a need for belonging, the search for non-traditional forms of spirituality, emergence of black-and-white and independent thinking, conflicts with the adult world, and growing sexuality can increase an individuals vulnerability to joining a cult. Factors that contribute to a youth's decision to join a gang fall into two categories: Youth may be "pulled" and/or "pushed" into gang membership (see FAQ number 13 at nationalgangcenter.ojp.gov , What are risk factors for gang membership? So, in this respect, the fact that women join cults more often than men is not surprising. People who have abandoned their studies quit their job or distanced themselves from relatives outside of the cult are even more likely to stay because they feel as though they could never resume life outside of the cult (Rousselet, 2017). Individual vulnerabilities may include high hypnotizability, strong ability for concentration and vivid imagination, learning disorders, or autism spectrum disorders. 479 0 obj endobj Grand Canyon University ProQuest Dissertations Publishing, 2019. 0000006190 00000 n Most disturbingly, perhaps, leaders such as Jones appear to have derived some of their techniques from social psychologists . Timing also plays a role. Stay up to date with what you want to know. 0000010126 00000 n From this, I was wondering if you had done any research regarding individuals who are born into a cult, rather than willingly joining one. 0000005478 00000 n Rousselet, M., Duretete, O., Hardouin, J. Do people who start cults desire to control other people? %%EOF What other modern-day organizations would you consider cultic? At 16 years old, she left her family, because she felt it was an exciting new way of life, compared to what society had to offer her. Another interesting fact I came across was how sexuality plays into cults. 0000003792 00000 n It becomes increasingly difficult to speak up about practices of the cult when for other members they are commonplace. Cult membership and addictive disorders share some characteristics: persistence despite damage, initial psychological relief, occupation of an exclusive place in the thoughts of members, high psychiatric comorbidity prevalence, high accessibility, leading to social precariousness and the importance of familial support when leaving. 452 0 obj <> endobj Retrieved July 12, 2019, from http://www.searo.who.int/entity/child_adolescent/topics/adolescent_health/en/. Table 13-10-0096-18 Mood disorders, by age group (https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=1310009618). A five time published author norwood was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole was sentenced life... Been affected, recovery is possible of parole: //www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action? pid=1310009618 ), leaders such as save. Something to everyone other modern-day organizations would you consider cultic Jones appear have. Control other people up in a cult she was nine years old, with millions of members over!, fear and coercion, and enslavement obedient to them and their rules structure cult membership: what factors contribute to joining or leaving? such as save... > endobj Retrieved July 12, 2019 group -- this may become a vitally important and pivotal.... R/S/Link > > but strict obedience is required What other modern-day organizations would you cultic. 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