1. What is "mind control?"
Is all "mind control" bad?
My mind control model outlines many key elements that need to be
controlled: Behavior, Information, Thoughts and Emotions (BITE).
If these four components can be controlled, then an individual's
identity can be systematically manipulated and changed. Destructive
mind control takes the "locus of control" away from an
individual. The person is systematically deceived about the beliefs
and practices of the person (or group) and manipulated throughout
the recruitment process- unable to make informed choices and exert
independent judgment. The person's identity is profoundly influenced
through a set of social influence techniques and a "new identity"
is created- programmed to be dependent on the leader or group ideology.
The person can't think for him or herself, but believes otherwise.
The cult system reinforces an "illusion of control." Please
click here to review a detailed outline of my BITE mind control
model.
"Mind control" techniques are not necessarily bad. Although
I typically use the term "mind control" when describing
unethical and abusive social influence, many of the techniques can
be used ethically to promote positive spiritual and personal growth.
For example, prayer can be used ethically or it can be used destructively
as a tool of manipulation and coercion. Praying with a person aloud,
and asking "God's blessing to help direct and guide him"
(in an "open-ended" way) is just fine. Praying with a
person, and asking God to "keep this person from making the
mistake of leaving the group's workshop and returning to Satan's
world" is unethical.
Meditation techniques can be used to build awareness and self control,
or it can be used as a way of "thought-stopping"-undermining
independent thinking and reality-testing. For example, if a person
is having doubts and questions about a leader's behavior, and meditates
to get rid of "negativity", it might stop the person from
taking necessary action.
There are thousands of different "mind control" techniques
which can be used for positive benefit. Some these techniques include:
prayer, meditation, chants, singing songs, visualizations, affirmations,
positive self-talk, breathing techniques, hypnosis, "speaking
in tongues", ecstatic dancing, music.
I personally enjoy the benefits of prayer, meditation, chanting,
singing as well as self-hypnosis techniques. At my Jewish Temple
((www.tbzbrookline.org))
people are free to participate at their own comfort level. A healthy
skepticism toward dogma and exclusive elitism is encouraged. People
can and do ask penetrating questions. Rabbis Moshe Waldoks and Ellen
Pildis usually respond with answers that include a variety of scholarly
perspectives, and then offer their own point of view. There is an
independent board of directors and a healthy system of checks and
balances.
Being in control of your own mind includes: being in touch with
your feelings; having the ability to question and think analytically;
the freedom to act independently as well as the ability to look
at issues from multiple perspectives.
If you have been involved with a person or group for a long time,
can you have time away to take a vacation, visit friends or family,
or just be by yourself? Are you irrationally afraid to really evaluate
for yourself any critical information, including speaking with ex-members?
Do you have the access to this "negative" information?
If you are reading this on our web site, then you should be able
to find out what former members and critics have to say. Then you
can evaluate the information for yourself and make your own independent
decisions.
2. What is the difference between a destructive
cult and a benign cult?
A destructive cult is a pyramid-shaped authoritarian regime with
a person or group of people that have dictatorial control. It uses
deception in recruiting new members (e.g. people are NOT told up
front what the group is, what the group actually believes and what
will be expected of them if they become members). It also uses mind
control techniques to keep people dependent and obedient. The BITE
mind control model is my way of understanding the phenomenon. Dr.
Robert Jay Lifton has his Eight Criteria for Thought Reform. Dr.
Margaret Singer has her Six Conditions for understanding Destructive
cults typically seek to "clone" recruits in the image
of the cult leader, rather than respect and encourage their individuality,
creativity and self-will.
Benign cult groups are any group of people who have a set of beliefs
and rituals that are non-mainstream. As long as people are freely
able to choose to join with full disclosure of the group's doctrine
and practices and can choose to disaffiliate without fear or harassment,
then it doesn't fall under the behavioral/ psychological destructive
cult category.
Of course, there are destructive groups that are clearly anti-social
teach hate and encourage criminal activity. A case by case evaluation
must be made to determine if a particular group is using elements
of the BITE model to recruit and control.
No. In addition to religious cults, there are psychotherapy cults,
political cults and commercial cults. There are also personality
cults, particularly if one person absolutely controls another (or
a small group of people, such as in a family).
There are groups which combine all of these, especially when the
group is large and has a variety of "fronts" or other
entities. For example, the Moon organization combines most of these
categories. However, because the central figure, Moon, claims to
be the Messiah, the group is primarily thought of as a religious
cult. This should not minimize the fact that Moon is very active
in the world of politics and business. In fact Moon controls more
business and political entities than he has religious ones.
Of course. I think it is more useful to think of them as destructive
cults (with political and/or religious orientation) which advocate
the use of violence.
Any pyramid structured authoritarian group which uses deception
and mind control to recruit and indoctrinate their followers is
considered to be a destructive cult.
While in the past, terrorist cults have focused on recruiting the
disadvantaged, uneducated youth in recent years there has been an
increased emphasis on recruiting middle-class, college educated
individuals - including married individuals with families.
Apparently, Osama bin Laden and his Al Queda group is a well financed
destructive cult which employs a whole host of classic mind control
techniques in its training program. Suicide bombers undergo a thorough
and extensive indoctrination, reportedly spending hours in a coffin
reading from the Koran in an open grave. They are told that they
are already dead and will be hailed in heaven for their heroic deeds.
Like members of other destructive cults, they are programmed to
think in simplistic black and white, us-versus-them terms. They
not only depersonalize but also demonize their enemies.
It is crucial that we understand how cult functions in order to
help neutralize this grave threat to the world.
No, there are definitely wide variations among different organizations.
Aum Shinrikyo, the Japanese "nerve gas" cult, used physical
imprisonment, illegal drugs, and forms of torture. People would
be forced to turn over all of their assets and cut off from their
families and friends. If members tried to leave the group or oppose
its leadership, they would be threatened and in some cases, killed.
This is extreme when compared with large group "training"
programs which use hypnotic techniques to get you to believe the
leader is the "messiah" and which inculcates the membership
to recruit all of their families and friends.
When a cult figure gains absolute political power over a people
or a country, typically the BITE mind control model is put into
place. Perceived enemies are imprisoned or killed. Free press is
abolished. Hitler, Stalin, Mao, Hussein are all examples of political
cult leaders. When you compare the multitudes of people killed by
political cult leader's commands, the 39 deaths of Heaven's Gate
seem insignificant.
6. Is it possible for someone to be in
a one-on-one mind control dependency on someone?
Yes. In Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves
I write about some of my cases involving this form of personal control.
Sometimes, it can be an authoritarian family system. Sometimes it
can be husband, wife, "friend" or relative. Many times
it can be someone in some other position of authority. Battered-wife
syndrome and prostitutes controlled by an abusive pimp also fit
this category. These situations are sometimes far more destructive
than involvement in a larger group because all of the energy of
the abusive authority figure is concentrated on the victim.
7. Why do destructive cults say that
you are anti-religious or bigoted?
Destructive cults understand that to keep believers dependent on
them, they must try to neutralize sources of criticism. Information
control is one of the four main components of mind control. One
destructive group, Scientology, even goes so far to have "dead
agents packs" for their critics in an attempt to destroy their
credibility. Their terminology is revealing.
I am a human rights activist who very much values my spirituality
as the core of my existence. My work has received endorsements from
virtually every major religious denomination. I definitely believe
in a God who created us with free-will and wants us to use our minds
to live lives of love, peace, beauty, and goodness. My work has
grown out of my own desire to grow in understanding and to help
people to realize that they need not be psychologically constricted.
If you were to only read and accept as true what cults say about
me, then you would think that I am a kidnapper and religious bigot.
The truth is that I have never kidnapped anyone and I support people's
rights to believe whatever they want to believe. The truth is that
when I got out of the Moonies in 1976, I was involved in some involuntary
deprogrammings of fellow cult members for about one year. I never
abducted anyone. I was present along with family members to talk
to the cult member about why I left the Moonies. Most of these cases
worked. A few did not, and the people returned to the Moonies and
wrote "affidavits" saying that I did these horrible things
to them. Look at the dates. It is important to note that I have
never been charged either criminally or civilly for any deprogramming
case (or for anything else for that matter).
Of course, over the years I have been accused of doing other involuntary
deprogrammings in order to create the illusion that I am a continued
threat. The truth is that I stopped doing involuntaries and have
been speaking out against deprogramming since 1980. I have written
two books, which give much more detail about my history and my approach
to counseling cult members.
If the term deprogramming means abducting people and holding them
against their wills to help them exit a cult, the answer is NO!
Some people like to use the term deprogrammer in a positive way
- as someone who helps people get out of cults. I feel that the
term has become too associated with negatives. Besides, I do not
think brainwashing and mind control is like computer programming.
I think it is a "dissociative disorder." Helping a person
recover from detrimental effects requires much more than counter-programming.
My approach empowers the person to regain control of their own mind,
rather than just attacking the cult belief system or the cult identity.
When I wrote my first book, Combatting Cult Mind Control in 1988,
I described what I did as exit-counseling. But I ran into trouble
with this terminology when working with active cult members. When
they would agree to meet with me, often at the request of a family
member, I would tell them that I was there to help them with information
and counseling to decide if they wanted to reevaluate and leave
their group. When they asked me why it was called exit-counseling,
I realized that they had a point. It could be called exit-counseling
at the point that a person was asking for help to leave a group,
but not before. I also decided to abandon this term because people
who were still doing involuntary deprogramming started calling themselves
exit-counselors. I wanted nothing to do with them.
NOTE: Please understand that there are individuals who still
call themselves exit-counselors who are reputable and will only
do voluntary cases. In addition there is a new term that several
people who prefer the term Thought-Reform consultants. Most of these
people are former cult members and are not mental health professionals.
Nevertheless, they are excellent at providing information and most
do valuable work.
I am a licensed mental health counselor. I received my Master's
degree from Cambridge College in 1985, and have taken the time and
undertaken the expense to receive counseling training from some
of the top people in America and the world. I have experience doing
individual, couple and family counseling. I teach communications
techniques and strategies. I advocate respectful, loving, compassionate
and legal method of influence. I call it the "Strategic
Interaction Approach (SIA)."
9. What should I do if I suspect a family
member or friend is getting involved with a destructive cult?
My best advice is to get help before you do or say anything. Continue
to act naturally. Learn before you act. Think before you speak.
Adopt a "curious, yet concerned" attitude with the person
you suspect is in trouble.
Don't get hysterical in front of the individual. Don't attack or
confront. Don't ask him or her if they are in a cult.
Position yourself as a possible "recruit" and try to
elicit as much information as possible. Ask questions in a friendly
manner and insist on getting specific answers. Don't settle for
global generalizations or evasions. Ask for any literature, but
be cautious about going to meetings without getting properly prepared
first. From time to time I hear stories of people falling victim
when trying to help someone else.
If a group is legitimate, it will stand up to scrutiny. Members
will be forthcoming with information and that information will be
verified by facts. If a group is legitimate, they will not pressure
people to make commitments before there is complete disclosure.
If a group is legitimate, it will not lie nor will it use phobias
to enslave new members.
Get information. Maintain contact. Try to get the person to engage
with you in a process of researching the group objectively. Talk
with former members, particularly former leaders if you can. Destructive
cults vilify critical former members and make up stories to make
them untrustworthy. While that might be the case, use your own good
judgment to listen to all of the facts objectively. Make your best
decision based on your experience and the information you have collected.
Periodically, as new information or experiences present themselves,
you might review your evaluation.
10. What should I do if I can't find
information about a particular person or destructive cult?
Search our web site as well as other web sites mentioned as resources.
We can also produce custom research reports using the extensive
files in our office and our extensive network of contacts. For pricing
information, email us at center@freedomofmind.com
or call 617 628-9918.
11. What is SIA? I have questions about the Strategic Interacton Approach.
Please see the Strategic Interaction Approach FAQ, available as a free sample of Steven Hassan's book Releasing the Bonds. You can also see and hear Steven Hassan talk about the Strategic Interaction Approach in this video.
Freedomofmind.com fully supports religious
freedom and the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
The fact that a person’s name or group appears on our website
does not necessarily mean they are a destructive mind control cult.
They appear because we have received inquiries and have established
a file on the group.
The Freedom of Mind Resource Center Inc. was established by cult expert Steve Hassan.
