You could be in cult, not a real self-help group

[JimB...@google.com]

From:
http://www.sossobriety.org/cults.htm

Does your group say it is the only true spiritual
or secular path to recovery?
Do you spend many nights at meetings
or endless hours in on-line Internet meetings?
Do you fear being rebuked, shunned or ignored
for expressing a different opinion?

You could be in cult, not a real self-help group

Recovering alcoholics, addicts, adult children of alcoholics and
co-dependents are especially susceptible to joining cults or sects.
Often anxious, fearful, lonely, shameful, confused and depressed, we
emerge from the fog of addiction vulnerable, na�ve and gullible. We lack
the inner resources and abilities to cope with the world around us. We
are lost, seeking help, feeling abandoned and hopeless. Our sense of
self-worth and self-esteem is abysmally low. We have no clear conception
of our selves and a frail and uncertain sense of self-identity. Very
often we are unsure of who we are or what the purpose of living is. In
such a condition our powers of judgment and decision-making are
impaired. Naturally, we follow the advice of those who seem to have our
best interests at heart or have authority over us. Fearing death from
alcohol or drugs, we voluntarily (or sometimes not) join organizations,
which offer help and relief, but at a price. A price we are not aware of
at the time and that we might not agree to if we new the consequences.

When anyone mentions the word cult or sect, we usually think of groups
like the Moonies, Branch Davidians or Lifespring. Many alcoholics and
addicts fall for these and lesser known groups in desperation when
trying to rid themselves of a miserable life of addiction. However, what
also we fail to see is that many officially accepted recovery groups can
also be cults hiding behind a thin facade of social respectability. Some
psychologists and cult specialists have already raised the question of
whether the 12 Step groups are indeed cults, endangering the long term
psychological well-being of their members. "Groupthink" or thought
control, cloning, mystique, self-confessions, "groupspeak", veneration
of texts and leaders, etc are some of the features of recovery groups
typical also of cults. Indeed, one should also be wary of non-12 Step
groups, psychotherapy groups and even secular organizations. Your
support group does not have to believe in a Higher Power or follow 12
Steps to be in danger of being cult. Groups can be secular and
scientific and still qualify as cults.

If we are lucky the groups we join may help us achieve or maintain some
level of sobriety. However, in return, we may pay with the loss of our
individualism, personality, self-identity and our ability to
re-establish our place in the �real world� as functional, independent,
free-thinking individuals. In the name of recovery members' intrinsic
sense of self-identity is frequently undermined by the methods employed
by a group. In fact, the methods used to keep some of the members
abstinent are often the cause of serious psychological disorders. Such
methods are extreme cult-like pressures to conform, emotional
manipulation, threats and fear, reward and punishment and systematic
deconstruction of the personality and its replacement by a
pseudo-personality consisting of an artificial Cult Self or Sober Self.

It is probable that the limited success of groups like AA ("curing"
around only 1 in 5 addicts) has nothing to do with the use of a
therapeutic method and more to do with brain washing. Those 12 Step
members who stay sober for long periods probably do so as a result of
the cult discipline and mind control, much in the same way that certain
religious cults achieve periods of enforced celibacy and other acts of
abstinence.12 Step sobriety may be achieved through methods of thought
control and identity destruction, coupled with group coercion, fear,
reward and punishments, isolation, reality distortion, linguistic
programming, indoctrination and threats.

"But don�t be ridiculous� you�re probably saying. � My support group
can�t be a cult. It is full of caring, courageous people doing a lot of
good for others and themselves.� That is probably true, but a member of
the Moonies or Branch Davidiians would no doubt say the same thing.
Indeed, all cults deny they are cults and practice exactly the opposite
of what they preach - loving Christians cults practice violence and
destruction; personal growth groups cause personality destruction; ultra
democratic groups practice internal dictatorships, and so on.

�Ah yes� you say �but cults are religious fanatics, with charismatic
gurus � we don�t have any of that�. In fact, a cult doesn�t have to have
a living guru, be fanatically religious, or religious at all. That is
just one cult variation. Cults can be secular, are found in the fields
of psychotherapy, politics, science, business training, self help and
new age movements. A cult can form around an idea, a book, a mission, a
vision, a theory, etc. Often cults form through split aways from
healthy organizations under the excuse of it being degenerate,
insufficiently fundamentalist, or badly organized. This is usually
provoked by the need of the breakaway cult members to find solace in
certainty, black and white thinking and set answers for everything. What
Fromm called the "Escape from Freedom". Moreover, just as nobody decides
to join a cult, cult members never think or admit they are in one. Cult
members like to reassure themselves in collective self-delusion that
they are superior, even denouncing other groups as being cults and/or
congratulating themselves on being the true path, being rational and
objective and even trumpeting their own non-cultism!

Forms of �cultism� can, therefore, vary from group to group and take on
different, special characteristics. Recognizing a cult is not always
easy, especially for the cult member. Alcoholics, addicts, co-dependents
and children of alcoholics in particular will often defend their groups
with the same passion and denial that they once defended their
addiction, their alcoholic family or partner. Overcoming this is a
process of acceptance and acknowledgement, gathered through increasing
awareness.
So, before we start a warning! You will need to have an independent
mind, give honest answers or battle to achieve it, in order to benefit
from this article. Denial is often the first defense reaction to these
issues, especially where you may see no other alternative and where for
recovering alcoholics and addicts and co-dependents, isolation and
relapse can seem to be the only alternative to continuing cult
membership. What to do if you feel you are in a cult is something we
will come to at the end.
How then can we recognize and classify a cult?

The American Family Foundation defined cults as:
"A group or movement exhibiting great or excessive devotion or
dedication to some person, idea, or thing, and employing unethical
manipulative or coercive techniques of persuasion and control (e.g.
isolation from former friends and family, debilitation, use of special
methods to heighten suggestibility and subservience, powerful group
pressures, information management, suspension of individuality or
critical judgment, promotion of total dependency on the group and fear
of leaving it), designed to advance the goals of the group�s leaders, to
the actual or possible detriment of members, their families or the
community."

The sociological definition includes such things as �as authoritarian
leadership patterns, loyalty and commitment mechanisms, lifestyle
characteristics, (and) conformity patterns (including the use of various
sanctions in connection with those members who deviate)�

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition in regard to cults in health
circles describes them as �a system for the cure of disease based on
dogma set forth by its promulgator� and in general, as a small group of
people characterized by �great devotion to a person, idea, object,
movement, or work�

Key Cult Features

The following characteristics of cults and sects are based upon the cult
classification systems of the world�s leading cult experts like, Singer,
Langone Lifton and Hassan. An organization doesn�t have to have all of
these characteristics to be a cult, and variations on the
characteristics are many, it just has to have a good number of them to
be a cult or moving in the direction of becoming one.

Recognizing �Groupthink�
Singer stresses that all cults are based firstly on a thought reform
programme. Such programmes aim to dilute people�s individuality, change
their core belief systems and alter their concept of themselves. This is
done by imposing a �totalistic ideology� which �explains everything�
Such groups will say they are �THE WAY�, the �ONLY WAY� be it in
religion, science, self-help, psychotherapy or politics. Lifton points
out that "included in this mystique is a sense of �higher purpose�, of
�having directly perceived some imminent law of social development�, of
being themselves the vanguard of this development" Consequently, all
other groups are charlatans, shams, impostors, degenerate, etc. Normally
they have authoritarian leaders and lieutenants at all levels and/or
they venerate the works of dead leaders to justify their totalistic
ideology and actions. Not choosing the group�s Way will usually lead to
humiliation, damnation or death. To achieve this they such a phenomenon
members undergo what has been called �brainwashing�, �mind control� in
order to achieve �Groupthink�.

Below are some key techniques used for achieving this:

Vulnerability
1) The cult relies on the vulnerability and naivety of the person, who
is unaware of the indoctrination process being used. Most cult members
are from the educated middle class, including lawyers, doctors,
psychologists, business people etc. A good proportion, though not all
come from dysfunctional families and/or suffer alcohol or drug problems.
In general, new members are usually undergoing a personal crisis and are
easy prey for all-embracing solutions. They are then pressurized to
gradually adjust to their environment so subtlety, that they don�t
notice the changes to themselves or, indeed, when they do, they view
those changes as positive ones. From the beginning they are unwittingly
seduced into replacing their own beliefs and values with those of the
group and persuaded that their everything about their former lives,
personality and character before joining the group was worthless and
degenerate.

Powerlessness
2) A regime exists where the individual feels a sense of powerlessness
and helplessness and the lack of other alternatives, under an
authoritative or authoritarian system. A member is told they will be
destroyed or corrupted by negative pressures and that they can maintain
their purity within the groups ranks.

Uncertainty
3) 3) Cults prey on human aversion to uncertainty. The group supplies
ready made answers for everything, thus helping to reduce insecurity and
fear. Everything is seen in terms of black and white, pure and the
impure, good and evil. There are set answers for everything and no room
for uncertainty, controversy, healthy debate or doubt. The member is
given a complete solution. In return, members of the group are expected
to be unquestioning in their commitment to the group�s identity, its
ideas and leaders (or past leaders).

Environmental & Time Control
4) The group asserts increasing control over a member�s time and social
and psychological environment. Members are expected to attend many
meetings and involve themselves in other activities, reducing their
contact with the outside world. Members may be directly encouraged to
break relations and social contact with former friends, acquaintances
and even loved ones. Gradually, it becomes more and more difficult for
members to imagine a life outside their organization.

Mentoring
5) Other group members work in meetings and on a private basis to
undermine new members� confidence in their own perceptions and opinions.
A personal mentor may be appointed to accelerate integration and mind
control. Bad feelings are always the fault of the person and not the
group. Only "good" and "proper" thoughts are encouraged and �negative�
thinking is jumped on. Members are to report their thoughts, feelings
and activities to the group or their mentor. They are expected to ask
permission when taking any major decisions in their lives and sometimes
minor ones, making them less and less able to think or decide for
themselves or function without the group. A person�s ego is destroyed,
they begin to doubt their own judgment and soon there is a loss of free
will.

Reward & Punishment
6) Within cults there is immense pressure to conform. They use a
combination of flattery, threats and guilt. A system of punishments and
rewards is used to encourage group learning and reduce unwanted
behavior. Punishments like isolation, shunning, �tut-tuts� and
humiliation are used to cause fear and obedience, while, alternatively,
recognition, praise and �strokes� are sparingly awarded by older members
for obedience and loyalty to Groupthink by the newer ones.

Self-flagellation
7) Group meetings often include confessional sessions where members
admit to past or present sins against the norms of the group - doing bad
deeds, thinking bad thoughts, etc, and in return, they receive both
admonition, warnings and praise for their confessions. To help cultivate
emotional control public exhibitions of emotional highs and lows are
often encouraged and applauded as a form of ritual self-flagellation.

Group-speak
8) �Groupspeak� is another feature of all cults. Groups use what Lifton
calls "the thought-terminating clich�. Repetitive phrases, clich�s,
sayings, platitudes and buzz words are regularly invoked to describe all
situations, and prevent further analysis or discussion. Any
disagreements are usually settled by referring to the sayings or
writings of wise leaders (past or present), rather than by turning to
independent analysis. Members are rewarded for their ability to
regurgitate this �Groupspeak� and for their willingness and talent for
putting down dissenters with cult clich�s. Lifton argues that the effect
of is critical to mind control �since language is so central to all
human experience, .. capacities for thinking and feeling are immensely
narrowed" Moreover, the �secret vocabulary� reinforces the idea of
distance from the outside world.

Cloning
9) Cults "clone" people into smaller versions of the cult leader(s) and
members. Visiting a branch of the same cult in Toronto or Tokyo will
find yourself in the presence of the same �person� or type. Cults rob
people of their individuality, personality and uniqueness and replaces
it with the cult �Self�, which implants a cult personality in place of
the person�s real self.

Falsification
10) Not content with creating a false conception of the present, cults
are also not adverse to rewriting history also. Whenever historical fact
or the truth doesn�t fit in with the cult leaders� designs and
aspirations, they simply change it. As Lifton says �past historical
events are retrospectively altered, wholly rewritten, or ignored, to
make them consistent with the doctrinal logic� The new line �simply
replaces the realities of individual experience..."

Lies & Deceit
11) The cult leader(s) is prepared is to lie blatantly and obscenely
about other individuals or organizations, with total disregard for the
truth or any sense of moral objectivity. A frequent tactic by cult
leaders is to avert attention from their own sins by accusing others
inside or outside their organization of crimes for which they themselves
are guilty. Only those who are group members are truly good, sane, wise
or sober. Since members loose the faculty of critical judgment and the
ability to think for themselves, they never question the lies and
distortions of their leader(s). Members feel total loyalty to those who
have �saved them� and follow in blind obedience.

Veneration
12) Leading figures, either alive or dead, are honored and venerated.
Statements are often supported by quotations and sayings from sacred
writings or speeches. Predictions of catastrophe or damnation are
common. This can be anything from Armageddon, to madness, persecution or
alcoholic/drug relapse. Very frequently those who have come from crisis
situations are warned that leaving the group will bring certain relapse.

Undemocratic Reality
13) The direction of the group comes from a shadowy leadership, rarely
seen and with little or no real democratic controls. There are
assurances about the democratic character of the group and its strident
democratic checks and procedures. Indeed, on paper the cult may appear
to be super democratic, but in practice everything is run by leader(s)
and cliques and committees, and committees within committees, picked
from the chosen few and frequently made up of the same people. The cult
uses a closed system of logic, where no feedback is allowed and
revisions are only made by higher authorities. Leaders often amass
personal power, often including wealth and sexual favors.

Mystique & Mission
14) Cults often have an internal aura of mystique in which members feel
they have �a sense of �higher purpose�, of �having directly perceived
some imminent law of social development�, of being themselves the
vanguard of this development" (Lifton) This includes delusions about
historical roles, being �chosen ones�, the �vanguard� �pioneers� and
leading new, mass social, political, religious or scientific movements.
This gives a sense of purpose in life, for members who entered feeling
their life had no meaning or goal.

Disturbed Gurus
15) Cult leaders are often charming, charismatic figures with above
average intelligence. The charismatic charmer is one their personalities
� a pseudo-personality - Many suffer from borderline, disassociate or
multiple personality disorders. Members feel honored to be with, and be
seen, around them. But their personality can change dramatically in a
flash. Cult leaders are always very disturbed individuals. They are
usually victims turned persecutor, having a history of involvement in
other social, political or religious cults and/or suffering the effects
of a traumatic childhood. Behind their strong and confident exterior
(pseudo-personality) they need their leader position to compensate for a
very fragile sense of self-worth, self-esteem and self-identity. This is
also shown be the fact that they cannot "hack it" in the real world and
need to live in a cult/sect environment to live out their problems.
Their past histories show social marginality and a tendency to drift
from one cause to another, one cult to another, one job to another, one
marriage to another, etc. They spend their lives dedicated to their
cause (increasing through the Internet, also now). They are
obsessive-compulsive, fanatical and manipulative. Nothing will stand in
the way of their visions, schemes and self-glorification - not even the
well-being of their partners or children. They manipulate the minds of
vulnerable members, extorting money and sexual favors and/or abusing
them psychologically, physically and/or sexually