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What is a Cult?
• Hard to define• Not always a pejorative term• Focal point is on leader and/or mission• Semi-spiritual or spiritual oriented language
Are Religions and Cults the Same?
• Argument for:• Religions are simply larger and older• Argument against:• Religions tend to be more metaphysical
oriented• Religions tend to point to something
beyond themselves
David Koresh
• American cult leader• Leader of the Branch Davidians• Went to churches looking to start “bible study
groups”• Used highly manipulative psychological techniques• Had many spiritual wives ranging in age from 10-
68• Killed during a fire in 1993 along with 75 of his
other followers
Jim Jones
• Founder of The People’s Temple• Began in the late 1950s• Over 923 were mass murdered by this cult in 1978• Cult began as an agricultural project, Jonestown
Appeal of Cults
• Seduce people into believing they’ll fulfil unmet needs• Cults often masked behind alibi• Manipulate spiritual, emotional, or even
sexual needs of people
Why Care?
• Important implications of psychology• Provides insight into how the brain
functions • Further augments knowledge of
persuasion techniques
Post Cult Experience
• Depression• Guilt• Fear• Paranoia• Slow Speech• Rigidity of facial expression and body posture• Indifference to physical appearance• Passivity and memory impairment
How Cults Break People
• Results drastically change person• Target vulnerable people• Manufacture a crisis• “Reidentification”