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Chapter 5: Brainwashing?

Chapter 5: Brainwashing?. RELS 225 Cults and New Religious Movements. Why Brainwashing ?. parents deprogrammers. IS it a real?. if real: public health risk if false: infringement of rights theoretically implausible no longer legally defensible.

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Chapter 5: Brainwashing?

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  1. Chapter 5: Brainwashing? RELS 225 Cults and New Religious Movements

  2. Why Brainwashing? • parents • deprogrammers

  3. IS it a real? • if real: public health risk • if false: infringement of rights • theoretically implausible • no longer legally defensible

  4. Supposed Phases (Schein’s terminology) • Unfreezing • sensory deprivation and sensory overload • changing • new routines, activities, and rewards • refreezing • immersion into a new stable social environment

  5. Alleged Brainwashing 1. social-psychological influence 2. Target recruits 3. Deceptive recruiting 4. Pressure recruits 5. recruits not left alone 6. recruits kept busy, and deprived 7. isolated environments 8. "love-bombed" 9. "confessional" activities 10. sensory deprivation 11. hypnosis 12. Transform identity

  6. Case Against Brainwashing 1. Lump cults together 2. ideological bias 3. Would only brainwashed join NRMs? 4. contradictory ideas of psychology and human nature 5. anecdotal evidence 6. no proof NRMs held people against their will 7. sampling bias 8. self-descriptions by “apostates". 9. shortage of information 10. NRM members are not susceptible to brainwashing 11. studies lack safeguards 12. NRMs conversions are not unique

  7. Continued appeal to brainwashing • what some groups do to retain members • Stephen Kent • Benjamin Zablocki • high exit costs a cult member must face if he chooses to leave a cult. 

  8. How can we explain behaviour, if not brainwashing? • Social pressure, hyper encouragement, organized activity, and too much enthusiasm • influence and authority to group centered, charismatic teachings

  9. Review of Brainwashing • How did the idea develop? Explanation for why people would join strange religious movements. Defense for those “rescuing” them. • Why is it important? If it does happen, NRMs are dangerous. If it doesn’t, rescue attempts should stop. • Phases: Unfreezing, changing , refreezing • Accusations of Brainwashing: sophisticated; preying; deceptive; pressuring; bombarding; depriving; isolating; love-bombing; requiring confession; hypnotizing; transforming identity • Case Against Brainwashing: generalizing; biased; unscientific; contradictory; anecdotal; unsubstantiated; self-descriptive; uninformed; without controls; unnecessary • Continued appeal to brainwashing: what some groups do to retain members (Kent & Zablocki) - high exit costs • How can we explain behaviour, if not brainwashing? Social pressure, hyper encouragement, organized activity, and too much enthusiasm

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