Cultic Manipulation of Its Members
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In 1978, the world was shocked by the mass suicides of 912 people including men, women and children of the People's Temple cult at Jonestown, Guyana (Hochman, 1990). What is even more terrifying about this event is that it was not the first such occurrence, nor would it be the last occurrence of this cult-related phenomenon (Feldman, 1999). Most people typically respond to such events by dismissing these cult members as being gullible, stupid and masochistic individuals whose inner defects predispose them to the influences of cults and their activities. However, these perceptions fail to acknowledge the factors underlying the appeal of cults to peopleùmany of whom are intelligent and come from all walks of life (Zimbardo, 1997). Essentially, the questions that need to be addressed in looking at events such as Jonestown are: Why would these individuals relinquish their conventional lifestyles to join cults? How are the cults successful in manipulating the thinking of their members to influence them to engage in activities as drastic as mass suicides? The examination of these questions surrounding the cultic phenomenon entails the consideration of the complex topic of the psychotherapy of science, myth and cult. In other words, through the exploration of the cultic phenomenon, the dynamic and complicated interaction between the field of psychotherapy with science, myth and cults can be shown. Even more importantly, how this relationship affects human beings from t
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impure and evil. Through their obsessive quest to eliminate all impure thoughts and maintain an environment of purity, cult leaders impose upon their followers impossible standards of perfectionism, which are psychologically damaging to their followers. Since it is impossible for cult followers to attain the high standards of absolute purity, they are often exposed to shaming and humiliating punishments in front of other cult members (Lifton, 1989; Ofshe & Singer, 1986).
At the psychological level, individuals who are already sensitive to their own inadequacies and failures to achieve their potential will rely completely on the cult leaders in their moral judgments of good and evil. Even for more resilient individuals, living in a world that is governed by the cult leaders and their conceptions of good and evil, it is likely that with time, they too, will fall prey to the expectations of the cult (Lifton, 1989).
Furthermore, as these individuals begin to assess their own sense of purity by using cult standards, they will perceive that much of their impurities are derived from the outside world. Thus, in order to free themselves from their sense of guilt, they will adopt a hostile stance towards outside influences. As
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Approximate Word count = 4739
Approximate Pages = 19 (250 words per page)
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