Many years ago I went to a lecture by Arthur Deikman MD (author of The Wrong Way Home: Uncovering the Patterns of Cult Behaviour in American Society, Beacon Press 1994). He spoke about cult behaviour and how cults operate and why it can feel so hard to leave them. Leaving a cult, even one that abuses you, can feel very hard for many people. Cults brainwash people by a mixture of:
Meeting basic human needs for:
Of course, these needs can be met in a multitude of ways outside of a cult, but the ‘message’ of the cult is that ‘only we can give you these things’ and that life outside the cult will be devoid of meaning.
Cults will prey on vulnerable people whose basic emotional and even physical needs are not adequately met in life. A cult may seem to offer to meet all these needs in one package on a plate. This can feel overwhelming if you have felt lonely, frightened, purposeless and so on. If your needs are met healthily already, then you are much less likely to fall for a cult.
Other ways that cults brainwash
Cults have other ways to brainwash people:
A central all powerful cult figure
Cults will form around a central, often charismatic cult leader. Many cult followers may begin to have doubts about the cult, but these doubts may be ‘explained away’. For example, Jim Jones, the cult leader of the People’s Temple, would explain away sexual abuse of his followers as him ‘cleansing them of their sins’.
How could I have been duped like this?
Before a cult member gathers the courage to leave the cult, they may feel like they have ‘fallen out of love with it’. The ‘good things’ it supplied are starting to be outweighed by the bad things. They become aware of their own exploitation and feel they have had enough and want independence back. But the pressure to stay can also feel overwhelming, coupled with the fear of what will happen if they leave.
And just as when we have allowed ourselves to be abused in a relationship, we may feel like a fool for having fallen for the cult’s abuses. The more we ‘put into’ something, the more we want to justify to ourselves - and others - why we are right in acting and thinking in ways which support our actions. It takes a big person to admit to themselves and others that they were wrong.
The new download for hypnosisdownloads.com Cult deconditioning provides emotional support and encouragement for those planning to or already having left a cult. It will help to boost their confidence that they have done the right thing and reassure them they can go on to have a much more meaningful and satisfying life beyond the cult.
All the best
Mark
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