CultNEWS101 Articles: 12/2/2025
Patrick Ryan
The International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA), founded in 1979, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing knowledge of cultic influence through research and education to support survivor recovery and deepen public understanding. ICSA is entirely nonprofit and receives no government funding. Our work depends on the generosity of members and donors who make it possible to publish research, host conferences, and provide recovery and professional training resources worldwide.ICSA believes that awareness is the first step towards recovery, prevention, and change.
Here are a few key facts:
- Although precise numbers are difficult to establish, multiple independent surveys indicate that, at least two million Americans have been involved in cultic groups, and an estimated 500,000 people belong to such groups at any given time. Source: Langone, drawing on Lottick, ICR Survey Research Group, and multiple national surveys.
- A UK-based survey of survivors from 36 different high-control groups found that 60% of respondents experienced suicidal thoughts, that members had done unpaid labour, and many were isolated from families and lost years of life. Source: The Family Survival Trust, 2022
- A recent study found that 70% of families affected by coercive control were cut off or severely restricted from seeing their loved one. Among 264 participants, 42.6% had no face-to-face contact and 25.1% had no regular contact. Source: Almendros et al., Journal of Family Violence (2025) .
- Most mental health professionals receive little or no training on cultic dynamics, leaving survivors to educate their therapists or rely on under-resourced peer networks. ICSA helps fill this gap by educating professionals and connecting survivors with informed resources.
- Legal systems remain poorly equipped to recognise or prosecute coercive control. Despite hundreds of cult-related lawsuits in the U.S. from the 1970s to early 2000s, only a small fraction resulted in meaningful legal victories due to legal technicalities and First Amendment protections. Source: Van Hoey, “Cults in Court,” Cultic Studies Journal (Vol. 8, No. 1, 1991, p. 42).
These are not fringe issues. They affect individuals, families and communities.
"We all – or at least most of us – like to believe that we are rational thinkers, that our decisions come from logic, intention, or conscious evaluation. But the truth is far more surprising… and much more human.
Every day, without even noticing, our brain uses shortcuts to make fast judgments. These shortcuts, known as psychological biases, quietly shape the way we think, choose, react, trust, doubt, spend, and even relate to other people.
And the most surprising part?
These cognitive biases don’t only appear in complex situations or high-stakes business moments. They influence everyday life – what we buy, who we believe, how we judge situations, what we pay attention to, what we feel is “true,” and which decisions feel right, even when they aren’t based on facts."
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