SOCIAL INFLUENCE THROUGH CULTS
Introduction
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Vander-Zanden (1990) defines cults as loosely organized forms of religious organizations with several specific characteristics. These characteristics include the facts that their: a) members are called to live a totally different lifestyle; b) leaders are strongly charismatic leaders around whom the membership is built; c) doctrinal emphasis is upon the individual rather than on society although there is often a component of cults that is highly critical of the dominant society; d) religious perspective holds that the source of unhappiness and injustice is incorporated within each person and thus it is the individual who first has to change; e) promises are that the individual will find contentment through following its tenets; f) organization lacks ties to any established religion (unlike a sect); and g) view of the Divine is commonly a secularized perspective with both personalized and individualized elements or components. According to Vander-Zanden (1990), cults exert social influence in two basic ways: (1) at the level of the individual (the most common form of social influence used by a cult); and (2) at the level of society. The purpose of this paper is to examine the research on the cult's social influence at both of these levels. Social Influence at the Individual Level Calle (1990) has discussed how cults and other non-mainstream religious organizations exert social influence on the individual level. Accordin
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g such methods as public relations firms, sales techniques, publicity, marketing, communications media, education-training, and in some cases such as the Church of Scientology, offering the public free "psychotherapy." It can be noted here that this psychotherapy is really little more than a form of indoctrination in which the individual is convinced that he or she has certain ingrained maladaptive patterns of behavior which are causing personal misery which the cult can remediate.
Scientology is actually a cult with a strong degree of international social and political influence is the scientologists. One method that they frequently use to effect social influence, especially influence in terms of getting the authorities to take caution in their treatment of cult members and property is to claim that they are being persecuted. For example, Katz (1997) reported that in Germany, scientologists complained that laws restricting the power of the cult are the result of a conspiracy against them tantamount to what the Nazis did to the Jews.
Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright called the claim "distasteful and historically inaccurate". Katz (1997) reported that the Germans are leery of the Church of Scientology, which they co
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Conclusions Based, Boulette Andersen, Cauchon Frankel, Church Scientology, Diego Melton, Mexican Spiritualist, Los Angeles, Introduction Vander-Zanden, Van Hoey, Level Calle, social influence, exert social influence, exert social, cultic studies, cults exert, individual level, studies journal, cultic studies journal, cauchon frankel, cults exert social, frankel 1993, finkler 1981, van hoey, cauchon frankel 1993, social influence individual,
Approximate Word count = 2570
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page)
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