Cults have come and gone throughout history. Leading thousands of people to give up their whole lives to follow a group and a leader. A cult can be defined as: groups that often exploit members psychologically and/or financially, typically by making members comply with leadership's demands through certain types of psychological manipulation, popularly called mind control, and through the inculcation of deep-seated anxious dependency on the group and its leaders (Salande p. 88). The main question to be answered is: How are normal people able to rise up and control mass groups of people? Climbing inside the mind of a cult leader is a mind blowing experience. Here are some common characteristics:
In North Korea, for example, many of the citizens believe that supreme leader Kim doesn't even go to the bathroom. It is absolutely insane that an authority figure can manipulate others to the point of disregard of normal human bodily functions.
A few words from Creed Bratton:
Video Posted by: cdngrl99
-Miller, T. W., Veltkamp, L. J., Kraus, R. F., Lane, T., & Heister, T. (1999). An adolescent vampire cult in rural america: Clinical issues and case study. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 29(3), 209-19. doi:http://services.lib.mtu.edu:2080/10.1023/A:1022613007676
-Olsson, P. A. (2013). "Normal" compared to abnormal leaders and groups. The Journal of Psychohistory, 41(1), 39-43. Retrieved from https://services.lib.mtu.edu:5003/docview/1412593493?accountid=28041
-Salande, J. D., M.S., & Perkins, D. R., PhD. (2011). An object relations approach to cult membership. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 65(4), 381-91. doi:http://services.lib.mtu.edu:2080/10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.2011.65.4.381
-Wilson, L. S., & Kwileck, S. (2003). Are these people crazy, or what? A rational choice interpretation of cults and charisma. Humanomics, 19(1), 29. Retrieved from https://services.lib.mtu.edu:5003/docview/203023289?accountid=28041
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Master Manipulators
Cult leaders paint a perfect picture for their members.
In order for a group of people to follow an authority figure, there has to be something attractive about the leader. Most of the time it's not just one thing about the leader that seems appealing, their image is perfect. Leader's must manipulate the members to view them as if they're above everyone else on the planet. "As stated by Kernberg (1984), "Primitive idealization creates unrealistic, all-good and powerful images" (p. 16). This is expressed in the classic cult behavior of blindly following an "all-good" or "all powerful" charismatic leader"(Salande). Once the leader can cause a sense of "blindness" within their members, it is all in their control. Many cult leaders share this manipulative personality trait with powerful dictators of the world. |
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Malignant Narcissism
A craving for the lime light
Destructive cult leaders take narcissistic personality traits to a level unknown. Imagine coming up with a belief system and rules that revolve around only you. All of the meetings that are held within the cult have some tie to the you, the leader. Every action, word and thought has to go through you, the leader. That is extreme narcissism. "Most Utopian dreams emerge out of the psychological cesspools of malignant individual and group narcissism"(Olsson). What Olsson means by this quote is that a cult leader's narcissism can create a dangerous environment for everyone involved. Infamous dictators such as Hitler and Stalin were found to dream of a utopian society for his followers.
-Here is a short video by Kyle van Rensburg describing his take on 7 signs of a cult leader:
Charismatic Characters
A likeable personality...at first!
At first encounter, the personality of a cult leader must be desirable. Why else would people follow the cult leader blindly if they didn't love them? The behavior of a cult leader has to reflect positive energy in order to drawn in followers. We all gravitate to excitable traits in others such as outgoing personality, humor and a happy outlook on life. It is just our human nature. However, as many times as it has been studied, there is no answer why charismatic leaders are superior over all other types of leadership. "Somehow, charismatic leaders "galvanize the complete commitment of followers in ways unparalleled by other forms of authority" (Dawson 1998:140)"(Wilson). In charismatic leaders, we see someone that we want to be. Someone that everyone likes and looks up too. This is my theory to why people are drawn to charismatic leaders. Inevitably, the outgoing, fun person that we all saw as a god reveals their fragile self. The cult will lose traction and crumble to the ground.Summary
The important point to gather is that these personality traits are occurring on a very large scale. These cult leaders are truly not normal people in society. They are showing that their strive to create obedience within a group of people cannot be halted. The term obedience correlates with the personality traits of a cult leader. Obedience is the direct submission by a group of people to an authority figure. This social psych term is the most important tactic to a cult leader in my opinion. The personality traits explained in this post are the reason that they are able to obtain obedience within their cult so effortlessly. Their personality attributes their their so called success in gaining that authoritarian edge. Miller adds some additional descriptive characteristic that he found in his study. "Hare suggested schizotypal features may be present in cult leaders and some members which may be characterized by grandiosity, egocentricity,manipulative, dominance, shallow affect, poor interpersonal bonding, lack of empathy, anxiety, and guilt"(Miller 1). Having charisma isn't always a bad thing. We know many of our friends posses this similar characteristic. The difference being our friend isn't making us pray to them at night.A few words from Creed Bratton:
Video Posted by: cdngrl99
-Miller, T. W., Veltkamp, L. J., Kraus, R. F., Lane, T., & Heister, T. (1999). An adolescent vampire cult in rural america: Clinical issues and case study. Child Psychiatry and Human Development, 29(3), 209-19. doi:http://services.lib.mtu.edu:2080/10.1023/A:1022613007676
-Olsson, P. A. (2013). "Normal" compared to abnormal leaders and groups. The Journal of Psychohistory, 41(1), 39-43. Retrieved from https://services.lib.mtu.edu:5003/docview/1412593493?accountid=28041
-Salande, J. D., M.S., & Perkins, D. R., PhD. (2011). An object relations approach to cult membership. American Journal of Psychotherapy, 65(4), 381-91. doi:http://services.lib.mtu.edu:2080/10.1176/appi.psychotherapy.2011.65.4.381
-Wilson, L. S., & Kwileck, S. (2003). Are these people crazy, or what? A rational choice interpretation of cults and charisma. Humanomics, 19(1), 29. Retrieved from https://services.lib.mtu.edu:5003/docview/203023289?accountid=28041
Nicely written post also really interesting. In addition to what you have written I think cult leaders manipulation tactics work so well because they seek out people who are already vulnerable (lonely, filled with doubts). Cult leaders provide these people with "answers" to their problems making them not only feel more connected but a sense of owing something to their now "leader." This goes with what the book talks about as the obedient participant. Just another aspect I thought I'd bring up there is also an article I read I have attached the information below if you have time you should check it out. http://theconversation.com/how-cult-leaders-like-charles-manson-exploit-a-basic-psychological-need-57101.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Hali, I think these leaders of cults find the easiest of targets. I do not feel that cults are very strong as a unit because most times they form through manipulation rather than through the members actually having faith in their group. Obviously this is not true of all cults as their have been and still are very strong and dangerous cults. One question I have for you is do you think these members feel they "owe" their leaders something because the leader tells them they do and manipulates them into thinking that or do you think it is because these people before joining were lonely and this group was their last shot so they felt that their leader saved them? Just curious of your thoughts.
DeleteI honestly think its the second part the thought that their leader has "saved" them, I know there is probably people who join cults who may not be lonely etc. but I think for the most part there is a disconnect within their lives and when someone is able to "fix" this they feel an obligation to that person. Then a snowball effect happens they start believing that what they are doing is "helping" and that this person who they now trust, will be able to fix this same void for others.
DeleteBen - nice post, really good information!
DeleteHali - I really like your addition to the post.
I agree that a large part of why people follow cult leaders is because they are missing something in their life and are vulnerable to tactics used by cults to gain followers. I think that once these people are a part of the group they feel as if they cannot leave or owe some sort of allegiance to the group. In addition, they may just be scared to leave, whether that is because they found something they needed in the group or they fear the social consequences of leaving.
It’s pretty amazing how one person can influence so many people. I’m not gonna lie, when I first started reading your post (specifically the part where you talked about cult leaders painting a perfect picture of themselves), I immediately thought of the move The Interview. If you’ve seen it, you might know why as it’s about a TV personality going to interview Kim Jong-un. In the movie, it discusses how the people of Korea didn’t think Kim used the bathroom. I then read the part where you said that they actually do think that. I would have never believed that was true before reading your post as The Interview is a comedy and I thought they had made that part up. The infamous Jonestown ran by cult leader Jim Jones reminds me of North Korea as Jones controlled all communication within the compound and there was no TV or newspapers. Knowing that these leaders were able to create a society in which people treat them as gods and follow just about anything they say is insane. Charles Manson got people to commit murders, something I don’t think many of his followers would have done had they not have been under his influence. I think Hali had a really great point in saying that cult leaders probably go after those that are vulnerable in some way. This makes it easier for leaders to manipulate them if they provide an answer or appeal to their unmet needs in life. I think you did a really great job with this post and explaining the main characteristics of a cult leader. I’d also like to give you props for putting that clip of Creed at the end of your post. Really enjoyed that.
ReplyDeleteI totally agree on your thought about the movie The Interview. You brought up an interesting point of Kim-Jong-un that I never really paid much attention to in the movie. It is crazy to think people can get other people to follow them and treat them like gods aimlessly. It is also crazy to think these followers actually committed murders. Looking at the outside, it is hard to wrap your head around why anybody in their right mind would do that. I think Marcus brought up a lot of key characteristics that make cult leaders so easy to follow. I also think Hali had a good point about looking at the followers instead of the leader. A cult can not be a cult without a leader or followers, so it was very interesting to look at the characteristics of each on both sides.
DeleteThroughout reading this post, all I could think about was Jim Jones, and how he fit each of those characteristics. He was clearly an extremely charismatic person; practically any video featuring him will demonstrate that, whether it be one of his sermons or his attempts to recruit more people to the Peoples Temple. is narcissism, while not as easy to pick up on, was still relatively profound when you carefully analyzed some of what he's said. “If you see me as your father, I’ll be your father. If you see me as your brother, I’ll be your brother. If you see me as your Savior, I’ll be your Savior. I can go even further than that. If you see me as your God, I can be your God.” The mere fact that he was accepting -- almost encouraging -- people giving him the title of God should've been a massive red flag of a bloated ego. This welcoming demeanor also naturally flowed into what gave him the impression of being the "perfect picture" you described earlier, at least to his followers. Obviously back then, it would've been harder to pick up on what makes a cult leader from a distance, and it should in theory be easier to know the warning signs today, but you can only wonder how much of these behaviors are being exhibited together by individuals today, and without much second thought from the rest of the world.
ReplyDeleteThanks for your input Adam. If you want to watch a really interesting documentary on Netflix, there's this documentary called Inside the Minds of: Cult Leaders. It explains crazy details about leaders like Jim Jones and how he carried out his task in "Jones Town." It also expands on stories like the Branched Dividians. The conditions people lived through to follow their leader and their beliefs was unbelievable. The living conditions at Jones Town were absolutely unbearable. Was that part of his plan? To make everything uncomfortable? I think the more he had people uncomfortable the more control he had.
DeleteNice post, Marcus! I also thought of Jim Jones immediately when reading your post. Last semester I took Abnormal Psychology, and we watched a documentary about Jim Jones and his church, and it was both intriguing and terrifying at the same time. He seemed like such a genuine and kindhearted man in the beginning, like you mentioned most cult leaders are, and people flocked to his church that was so welcoming and fun. In watching the film, I picked up on many red flags throughout the story, but the people directly involved followed blindly and got sucked in. The documentary showed some people realizing they were in serious danger toward the end, but these individuals seemed to think they were in too deep and couldn't get out, fearing punishment if they left or rebelled. The idea that one individual can be so attractive and subtly persuasive and manipulative, especially to the extreme of facilitating a mass suicide, is extremely interesting from a social psychology perspective, but is also scary at the same time.
DeleteI really enjoyed this post. I personally have done some extensive research on cults and the relationship between the leader and its followers. You touched on the really key points as to how it all works. It truly is fascinating how they can manipulate people to do what you want. I would be curious to your thoughts on why some leaders go as extreme on their requests as they do in comparison to other leaders, like Charles Manson. Is it a form of insanity or more of falling into believing themselves with the more power they receive from the loyalty of their followers. Overall very interesting and educational post.
ReplyDeletePersonally I believe that your latter hypothesis is correct. It reminds me of some advice that I learned somewhere that went along the lines of "Be careful what you say, speaking it makes it the truth." Now, she meant that for when I would put myself down for others, but it worked all the same. A lie is a lie is a lie at the end of the day. It might take longer for a person to believe that they're the spawn of a god or something, but if they can convince other people why not themselves?
DeleteThis is a great overview of cults/cult leaders!
ReplyDeleteI think that there are several ways that cult leaders draw in followers--one of them of course being the facade of "perfection" or the charisma and promises of betterment.
But it seems like for many, under the facade is a harsh and controlling personality, that often hides under the guise of compassion.