Challenge and Change test 2

What are the 10 signs that a group is a cult?

1. Single, charismatic leader that demands total obedience

2. Leader claims to be God or has total access to God

3. Members are required to hand over large sums of money to the leader

4. Members are required to have sex with the leader or leaders, or new recruits.

5. Outsiders are seen to be “evil” or “wrong” and the group is seen as the “chosen people.”

6. Ex-members described as a threat and leaving the group will have devastating consequences

7. The group lives in an area that is isolated in some way from the community

8. Behaviour is tightly regulated and there is punishment for rule-breaking

9. Members are required to reject family or friends or to give up our outside jobs

10. The leader asks or tells the group to do things they don’t do, or does things the rest of the group is not allowed to do.

11. New language or terminology is created or used by the group. -eg. calling bodies, vehicles (heaven’s gate), kitchen smth else, etc.-creates more isolation and group behaviour kinda

What is a sect?

A small group of people (religious, political, etc.) that broke away from bigger, more established groups in order to follow different beliefs or a specific leader.

Buddhism- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Based on beliefs of the Buddha (Awakened One)

• Taught people how to realize enlightenment themselves- based on the 4 noble truths

• Non-theistic- don’t believe in a specific god like other religions but taught how to realize truth by ourselves- practice rather than belief

Religion:

• Because it teaches people belief and value systems for how to reach enlightenment-doesn’t feed you a specific idea-find it for yourself

• Doesn’t isolate people

• Doesn't worship a specific person

The Snake Handlers- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Hold venomous snakes and dance with them- if they don’t get bit/get bit and survive god allowed them to live/protected them-used as a way to show faith

• Based on part of the bible that says; “they shall take up serpents”-think if christians are real christians they should test themselves by taking up serpents (kind of a branch of christianity)

• Sometimes other forms of self harm like burning themselves is also done, don’t believe in going to a hospital after-”god will save you

Sect:

• Branches from Christianity but focuses more on a specific part that is typically not seen as important in the bigger religion of Christianity.

• There is no specific charismatic leader that claims to be a God that people follow, and it is a smaller group that broke away to follow different beliefs.

• Members also aren’t typically very isolated either, and outsiders are not seen as evil or bad.

Branch Davidians- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Branch of an earlier group allied Davidian Seventh-day Adventists (which split from Seventh-day Adventist group)

• Believed that the world was in its final days + that end times are imminent with a major apocalyptic battle happening soon- only way they can be saved is to listen to him

• Leader (Koresh) said that he was the Lamb of God referenced in the Book of Revelation- not necessarily Jesus Christ, but a prophetic figure who would open the seven seals and reveal the truth

Cult:

• Leaving the group will have devastating consequences- everyone will die in the apocalypse except for us

• The leader was very in control of everyone’s actions- can’t leave to go to the bathroom when he’s speaking for 4 hours, could only go to bed at specific times, etc.

• Also the leader is allowed to have sex with members' wives but members aren’t allowed to have sex. - also members are required to have sex with leader (not exactly required but highly encouraged)

Scientology- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect (actually be able to argue cult, sect, or religion for this one-can skip the rest but know this one in depth)

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Leader/prophet (L. Ron Hubbard) of this was a science fiction author-say that history that happened on earth was actually a result of brainwashing- and that the aliens possessed humans so we’re all thetans (souls of the dead aliens have possessed us)

• Oppose psychology- use dianetics instead- remove reactive mind (therefore suffers no negative effects of the reactive mind like mental illness)

• Built around becoming clear- reaching enlightenment- go through OT (operating thetan) levels to get to clear- said people at clear level can create their own universe. Also think paying taxes is bad- considered a religion in some places though so they can pay less taxes.

Cult:

• Members are required to hand over large sums of money to leaders- pay for courses- sometimes thousands

• See themselves as chosen ones- only they can reach true enlightenment while others are seen as like not being aware (because of the thetan belief)

• Also, they can’t get a job outside of it + if the person’s family says something bad about scientology they have to cut them off- more isolating.

• Have billion year contracts (cause they believe in reincarnation) where they can’t talk about the teachings- isolating to the community of Scientology

LDS Church/Mormons- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Founded by Joseph Smith in 1830 + consider themselves a branch of Christianity (talk about Jesus and stuff but don’t really consider themselves Christian)

• Joseph Smith is the prophet- said he saw Jesus and God while praying in the woods (called the First Vision). Said an Angel Moroni helped him interpret the Book of Mormon that was written on gold plates

• Follow teachings of Bible and Book of Mormon- change some beliefs in the bible- eg. say that the Garden of Eden is in Missouri, allow multiple wives (historically), believe America is the holy land instead of middle east, etc., pay tithing (10% of total income) to the church (unlike charity in other religions), Sunday Sabbath, conservative clothing, etc.

Sect:

• Branch of Christianity

• Not forcing anyone to join/stay

• Aren’t isolated in any way

• Outsiders are not seen as bad and they’re not really seen as “chosen ones”

Jehovah’s Witnesses- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Founded by Charles Taze Russell- originally a bible study group- viewed as the prophet for his interpretation of the bible

• Non-Trinitarian Theology- denies the divinity of Jesus- God (Jehovah) is the highest being and Jesus Christ was his agent

• Witnesses believe that they are living in the last days (Armageddon), and look forward to the fast approaching establishment of God’s Kingdom on Earth- if you're a Jehovah’s witness you are saved, if not you’re not (if not you die-get annihilated). 144 000 people go to heaven while the rest live on “paradise earth”

• Don’t believe in blood transfusions

Cult:

• Isolates people from their family in the religion- being shunned/ignored if you do something wrong

• Group isolates themselves from people not in it (because they’re believed to not go to Heaven), etc

• Group is seen as the “chosen people” to help get everybody get to paradise (everyone that doesn’t believe in their beliefs gets annihilated)

Jesus Morning Star- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Christian religious movement- Christians don’t believe in this though.

• Believe that women should rid their sins through sexual intercourse with the leader, most followers are young women (most underage-15-16), those who don’t join JMS won’t go to heaven, connections with former embers must be cut off

• “Health checks” (sexual) are mandatory

Cult:

• Leader can do things others in the cult can’t- women only have sex with the leader- pressure to participate in sexual activities because of the religious ties to it

• Members forced to have sex with leader

• Isolation- cut off people not members or former members

The People’s Temple- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Jim Jones- leader- took ideas from Christianity and they believed that racism was bad and should be fought against. Also had socialist ideas.

• However, because of allegations of abuse within the group and public scrutiny, the group moved from Indianapolis to Jonestown

• There was a mass suicide in the group with 918 members dying.

Cult:

• Group with a single charismatic leader demanding total obedience

• Everyone had to follow specific rules of the group

• Isolation- moved to Georgetown.

Eucharistic Catholic Church- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Don’t force to join, free membership, members can leave at any time. The official catholic church does not recognize the group as catholic

• Female leaders (unlike catholic church where it's basically all male in high leader positions)

• Position on LGBTQ+ communities is that they support them and accept it and don't think it’s banned- think no throw away people in God’s creation

Sect:

• There is no specific charismatic leader that demands complete obedience from people in the group

• There are no isolative rules

• Members are free to leave and are not forced to join

• Branch off Catholic beliefs.

American Evangelical Christian Movement- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Believe the Bible is the absolute word of God, the divinity of Jesus and that it is their duty to “spread the word" to and convert non-believers (“us” and “them”). Also another all or nothing religion- either believe in everything or you don’t

• The movement rejects evolution and global warming and strongly opposes teaching these in public schools

• They also reject abortion and LGBTQ+ rights (“love the sinner but hate the sin”)

Sect:

• There is no leader that demands complete obedience

• Followers daily lives are not controlled by the religion in a way that is cult-like (not isolated, minor behaviors like clothes and stuff aren’t controlled)

• Leader doesn’t do things that followers aren’t allowed to do

• Branches off Christianity- believe in the Bible just differently.

Heaven’s Gate- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Beliefs are a combination of Christianity and UFOs- interpreted the Book of Revelations and the four Gospels to say that there was a UFO visitation on earth, and many humans would evolve to the “next level”

• Contact with family is discouraged- Ti (a leader) was writing secret letters to her daughter and advised her to “conform to society” though. Leaders were called Ti and DO (by the end of it).

• Also believed in genderlessness- if you did something too masculine or feminine you would get made fun of.

• Believe that when people kill themselves that they’d wake up 3.5 days later and be taken up to heaven- believe that all humans are aliens that are evolving and that the leaders knew how to make them evolve faster.

Cult:

• Leader doesn’t have to follow rules that members do

• Contact with outsiders and family is discouraged- isolation

• The new language/terminology (calling body vehicles)

• Made to conform to something- controlling- everyone had to have the same haircut, not speak with much gender in your voice, had to have new names (3 letters of your first name and then end with ody), everyone ate the same food, etc.

NXIVM- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• They were trying to use different methods of psychology to bring out the best in somebody- one of the leaders was a psychologist. Keith Raniere was the leader.

• Members paid a couple thousand dollars to go to an intensive where they learned how to implement psychology into businesses.

• There was a secret organization within the group (meant for female empowerment)- called DOS where there was like a slave system where people had to show devotion and faith in their “masters” by giving some sort of life running collateral that the “master” could use against them to ruin their life if they left. Were manipulated into getting branded with the leader’s name, told that sexuality was a way of enlightenment so they should seduce the leader, etc.- basically like brainwashed and manipulated to do things and called it enlightenment and that your reactive mind telling you not to do something was holding you back.

Cult:

• Members are encouraged to do things the leader doesn't-women are encouraged to do sexual things that Keith doesn’t do- also relates to the members are forced to have sex with the leader point

• Members that leave face devastating consequences

• Charismatic leader- Keith was described to be super charismatic.

Christian Science- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Based on Christian principles and holds some Christian values.- emphasizes healing but believes that mainstream Christianity shifted from the essential concept of healing. Mary Baker Eddy was the founder.

• Reject all medical practices and their main assertion that disease and injury can be healed purely through spiritual means- believe that prayer is more effective at healing than conventional medicine.

• Disease is rooted from our cognition (is fictitious/made up) and no physical reality exists- everything is a manifestation of God’s consciousness.

Sect:

• The movement is very free (people aren’t forced to join, they don’t really publicize themselves-go door to door trying to recruit)

• People are free to leave without consequences

• There is no leader- people are free to have their own interpretations of texts (reading rooms)

• People are not encouraged to isolate themselves from family or friends, etc.

• Based on Christian values- but add on Mary Baker Eddy’s teachings.

Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity (Nuns)- 3 point summary + cult religion or sect

Three-point summary of this movement:

• Catholic beliefs

• You leave everything behind and devote everything to helping people

• Working through suffering and suffering for their religion is viewed as good and like ur more holy- you’re respected more

Cult:

• Couldn't listen to radio-controls tiny aspects of life

• Had to cut family off and leave past lives behind- could only write them and visit every couple of months or 10 years respectively

• Single mother superior leader who they were supposed to blindly obey

• Rigid rule enforcement- eg. if sister fell asleep during meditation leaders had to put onion juices in their eyes- if leader fell asleep they wouldn't have to do this (leader enforces rules that the themselves don’t have to follow)

When are we most likely to conform? (5)

When the person or group is…

• Like us in the first place

• Popular or has a high stats

• Attractive or admired

• Trustworthy or an expert

• Able to offer us rewards or impose punishments

What are psychological explanations of social change

• Focus on the link between people’s attitudes (what they think) and behaviours (what they do)- eg. to stop drinking and driving, do you need to change your attitude?

• Psychologists say YES, you need to want to change your attitude in order to modify recurring behaviour

• Studies show that regardless of the reward, people can’t/won’t change their attitude unless they want to

Cognitive Consistency

Most individuals desire this in their beliefs- it means we want to avoid attitudes that conflict with one another and we are most satisfied when this is the case

Cognitive Dissonance Theory- include and example and what this explains

• What we believe (our attitudes) and what we do (our behaviours) conflict with each other

• Example: you smoke but believe smoking causes cancer, so you experience dissonance, meaning that what you do conflicts with what you think

• You may attempt to avoid thinking about it, but dissonance causes anxiety- can try to ignore or downplay it, but may become hostile if someone criticizes your behaviour

• This explains why we get very angry when somebody chastises us after we do something we know is wrong (because there is dissonance between what we do and what we think)

False-Consensus Effect

A cognitive bias where people OVERESTIMATE the legitimacy or belief of their own opinions (ie. ”millions of people share my opinion”) – it can be common, and it explains everything from online trolling to arrogant social media posts

Confirmation Bias

Favouring information that confirms your pre-existing beliefs

The Dunning-Kruger Effect

• The psychological phenomenon by which incompetent people tend to overestimate their ability because they can’t grasp how much they don’t know (in other words, people believe that they are smarter and more capable than they really are).

• Essentially, people of low ability do not possess the skills needed to recognize their own incompetence.)