Why Are Cults Dangerous?
8 Warning Signs To Look Out For

This article on why are cults dangerous is part 2 of the article. Part 1

 

Robert Lifton on why are cults dangerous

Robert Lifton, who studied the effects of the Chinese brainwashing programs in the 1950s, says he is happy to use the term cult when there are three conditions present:

• there is a totalistic or thought reform set of practices
  
• there is a shift from worship of broad spiritual practices to worship of the leader
  
• a genuine spiritual quest from below (the members are genuinely seeking something) exploited from above ( i.e., by the leadership).

In other words, the group uses mind control to manipulate the members, without their consent and without their knowledge, into doing things that they would otherwise not do.

People in cults were attracted by something. That something is the façade that the cult portrays to the outside world. They may claim that they are offering sales training, a political view, a religious belief, gymnastics lessons, health products, body work or a whole host of other things. People initially come along to the group to get what the group says it is offering. The inner workings of the group are hidden to new people.

These inner workings are such that what the person initially came for is twisted and distorted so the person ends up wanting what the group says he or she should want. The ideals of the individual are subsumed under the ideals of the group. The ideas of the group include worship of the leader in various forms, trusting, obeying, helping, paying, not questioning, for example.

So while dangerous cults may have very different belief systems, and may appear different, they all have a central theme. And the theme is that the belief system is being used and abused by the leader to satisfy his own desires, needs and hidden agendas at the expense of the members. The belief system, of course, is that of the leader.

He may be teaching martial arts, doing coaching, offering alternative health options and so on. But he has taken the ideas from some place, put his own spin on them and then offered them as something unique, something that you cannot get anywhere else. This make him and his ideas special.

The belief system may seem to be sufficiently worthwhile or noble to keep the members united, at the same time the leader is using it as a tool for his own benefit, at the cost of the individual members. However, the ideas and tools in a cult are tainted by the manipulation techniques and are basically only useful for pushing the cult members deeper into the doctrine of the cult.

 

Why are cults dangerous?

Let's have a look at several different areas:

1. Impact on society
2. Effects on the members
3. Isolation of the members
4. Critical thinking mimimized
5. Evolution of cults

 

Why are cults dangerous? Impact on society

When we think about cults as described above, it is obvious that they are detrimental to society in many ways. Nowadays, young and old alike are susceptible to being recruited. When people think about cults they do not often consider older people, but nowadays old people are targets because they have money, and may be extremely vulnerable. For example, they find themselves living alone after the recent death of their spouse with few relatives close by to take care of them.

Some cults are so large that they have extraordinary (and frightening!) influence in the media, in politics, and in lawmaking. They may dominate whole communities.

Some cults are violent, leading to suicides and murders.

Destructive cults thrive on conspiracy and fraud, and the legal system is often ill-equipped to deal with them.

Cults deny people their freedom although cult members will argue, often aggressively, that they are completely free to make their own decisions. This is the nature of mind control. The victims do not realize the extent to which their decision making is being influenced.

Members may be tricked into giving their assets and possessions to the cult leadership, leaving them considerably poorer and the leadership richer.

Frequently there is sexual abuse.

It's possible that many 'mentally ill' people have been in cults, and don't know it. The symptoms they have after leaving a cult are interpreted as mental illness (yes, post-cult symptoms can be that severe!) And they are treated as such, instead of getting the advice and counseling from experts who understand their situation, and can actually help them to undo the mind control and the harmful effects.

Cults are using mind control techniques to indoctrinate their members with the beliefs and values of their leaders who are often psychopaths/sociopaths. Even after the members leave a cult, if they do not receive appropriate treatment and counseling, these beliefs and values persist. (See mind control for more info on this)

When and if members manage to leave, they may need an extensive period of recuperation before they can integrate themselves usefully into society again.

Nobody really knows how many cults are operating in the world today and there are probably far more than we are aware of. The considerable effects they have on society has not been given enough consideration yet!!

 

Pseudo-identity

Cults basically dismantle the personality of the members, it creates changes and then freezes these changes in place. Each member has a new pseudo-identity imposed upon them which represses and dominates their old identity. This pseudo-identity is typically a clone of the leader that has been imposed over time using mind control tactics.

Occasionally the real identity can appear, the person may seem as before, and then the pseudo-identity reasserts itself and the cult person reappears. This can happen very suddenly and is very disconcerting for the family member or friend witnessing it!

This new pseudo-identity lives in a different reality, a reality narrowed by the doctrine of the group, and so the decision making has been limited to things that make sense within that reality. So when we hear about cults and the things that they do, remember that while things may not make sense to outsiders, what the group members do and think is reasonable and rational... to them!

This pseudo-identity is built with strong influence techniques over a long period of time. A system of rewards and punishments is used to extinguish some behaviors and introduce the new cult behaviors. The member is not aware of how much they are changing. They are not aware of the techniques being used against them to bring about the change.

This means that when the member leaves, the pseudo-identity does not simply disappear. It persists indefinitely unless the person works to undo it, although it may weaken somewhat over time.

Bringing the cult beliefs and ideas into new relationships, for example, can cause all sorts of problems for the member and the new partner.

This pseudopersonality idea is one of the major psychological dangers of cults. And if you are wondering why do cults become dangerous, then this is why.

The ex-member, no longer part of the group can often have identity issues, not knowing who they really, what they want or what's good for them. The belief system of the cult functioned like a master program, directing the thoughts, decision making and actions of the members.

Without this firmly in place, the ex-member can drift for years, having problems with memory, concentration, decision making, sleeping, problems finding or keeping a relationship, problems finding or keeping a job, feelings of dependency, problems trusting other people or even oneself, depression, dissociation, issues with fear, guilt and shame, and a host of physical symptoms.

If you find yourself in such a situation, contact me. I can help with all that!

 

Why are cults dangerous? What else happens?

In destructive cults, members are manipulated and exploited, they may be tricked into distancing themselves from their family and friends and even leave their careers to work in the cult, often for little or no pay. Their own beliefs and values have been changed to those of the group, and they identify with the group and the leader. They suffer psychological and emotional abuse, and there may be physical or sexual abuse.

And very often, at the same time, they believe that they've never been happier in their lives. Such is the power of mind control!

Usually there is an elitist mentality because they believe that they have access to information or their leader in a way that outsiders do not. They become very defensive of their leader and in a way their identity and their well-being becomes linked to the well-being of the leader. The very same thing happens in abusive relationships. You can read about the dynamics of how this happens in this article about abusive husbands.

Hence, they will usually be very quick to defend him/her, often aggressively!

In the most obvious cases, family and friends notice that there has been a significant change since the person joined the group. A change in their beliefs, attitudes, behaviors and values. They often say it's like dealing with a different person. This can be very distressing in families where a child is isolated from their parents by the cult leader. The siblings and even the parents can be very angry at the child because of the way the child now treats the family. The assumption is that the child is making their own choices and is deliberately going against everyone at home.

It's important to keep in mind that cult members are not making their own decisions. The cult leader has built a false reality and forced the members to live within this reality. For the member in this reality, it makes perfect sense to do certain things. For example, if the cult leader has convinced the members that the parents are evil, are full ef dangerous entities, or even that the parents are preventing the child from becoming independent, running away from the family becomes a 'logical' choice.

 

Why are cults dangerous? Deceit and trickery. Thinking restricted.

The language or jargon used in dangerous cults will differ from other groups as well. After all, they need something to differentiate themselves from outsiders! The language allows them to feel superior, confirming that they know stuff the outsiders do not.

However, closer inspection often reveals that groups have the same ideas but just put different words around them. 'Heavenly deception' and 'transcendental trickery' allow 2 different groups to lie and cheat to outsiders to recruit them, or as the members believe, 'to influence them for their own good'.

One group says it operates at the level of ontology (the study of being) while another offers the chance to find the 'authentic self', another offering the 'ideal you'. It's the same ephemeral doctrine with different words to describe it. This is how cults manipulate members into thinking that what they have is unique and special.

The special language in the group has certain effects. New people want to learn what the words and phrases mean. They want to understand. When they start using the new phrases, they are actually becoming indoctrinated into the ideas of the group. Their thinking becomes limited in the way the cult leader planned it. For the more senior members, it is easy to talk to other cult members but more awkward to talk to outsiders precisely because they don't get the jargon. This means it becomes easier for members to hang out with each other rather than outsiders. The group doctrine is reinforced over and over by using the group jargon with other cult members.

George Orwell's famous book, 1984, is a great example of how restricting the words people use can restrict the way they think and how they consider complex ideas. The same tactic is used in destructive, dangerous cults.

 

Why are cults dangerous? Evolution

Cultic groups have evolved in recent years such that the standard idea of dangerous cults with people dressing the same, living in a commune, being vegetarian, no longer applies. There are a huge variety of different types of cults nowadays - commercial cults, religious cults, therapeutic cults, martial arts cults, weight lifting cults, horse cults, hair dressing cults, and so on.

And nowadays cults themselves will evolve. If it is in the interest of a group leader to change (because it will attract more members or make more money, or because someone has exposed him for the psychopath that he is!) he will change in whatever manner suits him.

For example, a leader says his teachings are not spiritual, but later it becomes obvious that many people in his neighborhood are talking of spirituality, then all of a sudden his teachings are spiritual! Or it becomes advantageous for a leader to move his group elsewhere, or to change from a psychotherapy to a coaching group, or to move from working in the personal development field to expand into the business world.

Any and all of these changes are reinterpreted for the followers by the leader as beneficial for them, so they are quickly accepted. Why are cults dangerous? Because the members continually believe that what they are involved in is improving their lives in some way. They cannot see that what they are doing is actually only benefitting the leadership. As soon as someone does begin to recognize this fact, then they begin to have doubts and eventually leave.

Many, many cults nowadays have members who live with their families, have their own job, dress as they please and so on. In other words, they are pretty well hidden in society to anyone who does not know what they are looking for. So what should you look out for?

 

Why are cults dangerous? 8 warning signs you must never ignore

• A cult will basically take over a person's life. The leader of a cult gives advice on all aspects of life, work, relationships, friends, social life, diet, how to think and make decisions even if the group is a martial arts group or an animal shelter or a political group.
• A cult has 2 aims, recruit new people and take their money. If someone you know is always talking about a group and inviting anyone and everyone along, beware!!
• Members talk frequently about the leader. He (or she!) says this, says that, does the other, tells us this, knows such a lot, is brilliant, a genius, you should meet him, he can help... then steer well clear.
• Members will also talk about how such a group has changed their lives. Things were messy but then they found the group and, "hey, presto!" the group and the leader had just the answers they were looking for. In fact, the group has the answer to whatever problem you may have, too.
• This is a tricky one. When members join, they are after something. If you ask them if they actually have that, they will tell you that they got something much more important. The fact is that they do not get what they joined up for. That goal is twisted and distorted by the cult so that the members want what the group wants them to want. The reason I say it's tricky is that for the members, they cannot see this. For outsiders it is often much more obvious.
• If you go along to a free introductory event, there is a particular atmosphere. The members are happy, smiling and very friendly, making the new people feel special, giving them compliments, offering solutions to all sorts of things. They make you feel 'at home', that you are among friends. They make you feel unique, but also that they understand you. They make you feel that this is a place that you can be yourself. This is called love bombing. It has been specifically designed to attract new people.
• Watch out for your initial impressions. Many people felt initially there was something off about the group but because it was a friend or family member who invited them along, they gave it the benefit of the doubt. Once the cult leader started talking, however, those doubts seem to disappear and the person gets sucked in. You cannot afford to give the benefit of the doubt to such groups. Pay attention to your initial impressions. If it is bad, do not override it!! Step away and investigate the group further before you commit to anything.
• Is the group offering to change the world? If the members say things such as, "if everyone knew this stuff, the world would be a different place!" or "we have the potential to create an amazing future for everyone", that's your indication to run.

 

Why are cults dangerous? - more reading

Read the first part of this article on destructive cults.

You can also read about cult psychology, warning signs of yoga cults, abusive relationships, what makes someone a psychopath, what is brainwashing and how to leave a cult. You can learn a lot about cults and mind control in movies, too...

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