Manipulating Minds: The Use of Persuasion and Coercion in Cults, Authoritarianism, and Trumpism-Part 4
Part 4 of a 5-Part Series
Photo by David Trinks on Unsplash
Dear Reader: While my Substack posts normally come to your inbox no more than weekly, I've been posting twice a week because this particular series relates to a phenomenon that plays an integral part in the US election. After the next and final post in this series, I’ll return to weekly posting. Thanks for reading!
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We live in “interesting times.” Fascism is growing around the world, including here at home. Within these fascist elements are groups which seem to feed the fascist flame, authoritarian-type groups we might even think of as cults. Cults and fascists fit like hand and glove.
This post is a continuation of a series about coercion and the relationship between cults and authoritarian regimes at this point in time. If you missed the beginning this series, it would be a good idea to start there prior to reading this segment. Click here to read Part 1.
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III. HOW WE CAN PROTECT OURSELVES
A. How can we become alert to this type of coercion when it is being used?
Education is the primary key to recognizing and preventing ourselves from succumbing to the coercion of an unhealthy group. If we are unaware of how persuasion can be used to affect us negatively, we will likely not recognize it, since the very nature and purpose of this type of persuasion is to make us unaware of being persuaded. For example, in a more benign example of coercion, marketers don’t want us to be aware that the television commercial we are watching is attempting to change our mind through tactics of which we are totally unaware. Remember, they often approach us through the peripheral route in order to bypass logic and discrimination. However, if we study marketing just a little, we can become aware of these tactics so that we recognize them at once, and we’re then much less susceptible to that sort of advertising—and to coercion.
Although there’s not a clear-cut, instant test for determining whether an organization is a cult, it’s much easier to determine whether coercion is being used, and the use of coercion is a warning flag that the organization or group might be a cult. When the persuasion used is manipulative with an intention that is not in the individual’s best interest, but serves to further the organization or its leader, that could be a strong indication that coercion is being used, and that that group is a cult, or at least cultish.
I would suggest that if coercion is used by only one means, while there are also many aspects of the organization that could be beneficial for the individual, the organization is relatively low on the “cult-factor” scale and could be called “cultish,” while if coercion is used by multiple means and the organization is extremely authoritarian in structure, the organization is a good candidate to be called a cult. In other words, it’s a matter of the total number of cumulative factors rather than a definitive “yes” or “no” that determines whether an organization’s use of coercion indicates that it is a cult.
I propose that one way you might look at an organization to determine whether the organization has cult-like features or uses coercive tactics would be to use the list in the previous post in “III. E. Common coercive tactics,” assigning values—for example, a scale of 1 to 5—to each of the characteristics for that particular group and totaling them. A total score that is high could indicate that the group has cultish characteristics and should be approached with caution, while a low score might indicate that the group is fairly low in cult-like or unhealthy characteristics.
While this is a totally subjective approach, and probably few people would rate the organizations in exactly in the same way, I believe that this, coupled with your own research, could be used a means for making a decision on how you might want to proceed with your participation in a group, thereby offering some protection against being coerced.
I don’t, however, believe that it’s prudent for governments or society as a whole to label organizations as cults or non-cults, as this could result in suppression of religious freedom or free speech. Also, as I mentioned, the determination is always subjective and should not be considered otherwise, unless there is concrete evidence of danger or criminality. But I think it would be beneficial on an individual level to have some basis for critically evaluating your experience of an organization in order not to succumb to cult-like tactics.
For example, if you find that other group members of an organization extend an unusual amount of interest or flattery toward you, you will see that this falls under “Recruiting” and it’s possible that they are engaged in recruiting using a technique sometimes called “love-bombing.” While you might not want to be overly cautious to the point of being jaded or suspicious, you could use that caution as a clue to stay alert and explore the situation critically.
By analyzing the coercive factors I listed in the previous segment, and through an internet search for current information and peer-reviewed research on the particular group, we can look at an organization through logical analysis, thereby being less vulnerable to cultic coercive tactics. And by being aware of our own personal issues that might render us more vulnerable in general to coercion (see III. D. “What makes us vulnerable to persuasion?” in thte previous segment), we can further protect ourselves from it. Education and awareness can, I believe, go a long way in preventing recruitment or falling into a group with unhealthy tendencies.
B. What can we do if we see people around us taken in by these groups? How can we help them?
1) The most important thing to do when attempting to communicate with people in these groups is to reach out to them with kindness and without judgment. The last thing you want to do is make them feel that you think they’re stupid because you think they’re in a cult. Remember, anyone is vulnerable to being taken in by a cult, given the right circumstances. Being kind and non-judgmental will let them know that you’re a safe person for them to confide in. And you might be the only person outside of the group with whom they feel comfortable being themselves.
2) Don’t rush in your effort to help them. It took time for them to be indoctrinated and it will take time for them to emerge from the haze of the cult (or cultish group).
3) Don’t expect to change their minds in one meeting or conversation. Plant the seeds. Give them time.
4) Remember that leaving a cult or a cultish group often requires recovery time while the person reacclimates to a more normal life. They might feel fear, anxiety or sadness for some time after losing what to them was their stability or the most important part of their lives.
5) If you know what made them vulnerable to the cult—for example, they had suffered a loss just before they joined the cult—offer solace for that particular issue. Help them begin to recognize that solace and acceptance can come from outside the group.
6) Do your best to understand what they found in the group they drew them to it. That original pull is the wound in them that left them vulnerable. You can help them find other ways to heal it or to soothe themselves or feel accepted or good about themselves.
7) Recognize that they do get that solace from the group; that means that, to them, you’re trying to take away something that gives them comfort or meaning.
8) Let them know that you understand that they found something positive in the group and they’re not wrong about that. That is real to them.
9) Do your best to help them join others outside the group, maybe for a book club or dinner out with friends so that they begin to relate to other people again, or at least maintain ties outside the group
10) Don’t assume that they should drop all ritual and other things that remind them of the group. It might be helpful for them to discover that they can create the experience they’re craving from the group in their own homes for themselves or in a different way. For example, if meditation was, or is, a big part of their lives in the group, they can also meditate at home or find a comfortable secular group in which to meditate.
11) Help them think of the things they used to enjoy that they no longer do and people important to them that they no longer see as a result of being enmeshed in the group by bringing up these things in passing.
12) Remind them of good times they had before the group so they remember what their life was like. Remind them of the person they were and the thing they used to enjoy and the great things they did.
13) If you have had similar experiences, you might share them, keeping in mind that no two people have exactly the same experience of the same circumstances. But they might see enough of themselves in what you share that they will feel more comfortable sharing with you and trusting you.
14) Be respectful and listen to them carefully. Don’t automatically discount what they say. Instead, listen for their truth.
15) You might explain to them casually, in a non-threatening or attacking manner, what coercion is. But don’t make it sound as though you’re trying to convince them. Their automatic defenses will go up if you do, and they won’t hear anything you say due to coercive programming to resist.
16) Remember that they no longer see all of the information that the rest of us do. In the case of the Trump Movement, I can say with certainty that many of those followers no longer see the majority of the real news and see only what the Trump Movement wants them to know or believe, broadcast by Fox News and several other media outlets, which most of them watch continuously. So they won’t necessarily understand your references. You won’t understand all of theirs.
17) Never be angry or provocative or argumentative with them. That will only shut down further communication. Remember, you cannot persuade them through logic, as that has been turned off. And not being a calm, safe space for them just shuts down any possibility of getting through to them.
18) Remember, they’ve been trained through the skillful use of coercion to automatically reject or dismiss any questions or criticism about their group or their leader, or of them for being aligned with the group.
Stay tuned for Part 5, the conclusion of the series, in just a few days!
To start at the beginning of this series, click here to read Part 1.
If you’d like to succeed at creating what truly matters to you and making your dreams a reality, read Elena's latest book, ABRACADABRA! A Manual for Making Dreams Come True, now available on Kindle!
Thanks for the tips for helping people move away from a cult. It does seem challenging though.