One way cult leaders obtain followers is through charisma and belief that they have knowledge no one else does. Cults are all different, but they start with a leader. This leader is one who is charismatic and has “a message that challenges both religious and secular authorities” (Cults Dangerous Devotion). Charisma refers to a “a special charm or appeal that causes people to feel attracted and excited by someone” (Merriam Webster). Someone who is charismatic is “usually a more convincing, power speaker”(Kellaher 15). People who have this quality are able to draw people in more easily than those who do not. It is with this quality that cult leaders have an easier time attracting normal, healthy individuals and convincing them to join him or
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The first condition in the thought reform process is deception. The individual needs to be kept unaware of the true agenda in order for the cult leader to be able to control and change the individual (Singer). The idea here is to keep the person unaware that his or her behavior is being changed. The second condition is that the leader must control time and physical environment (Singer). Singer explains that cults do not need to remove their group from the rest of society, they can be just as effective living amongst the rest of the world. All they have to do is control the member's time. The leaders need to ensure that members spend their time doing activities devoted to the cult. In other words, they should spend all their time with the cult doing things for the cults which will not allow their mind to wander and think. The third condition requires leaders to “create a sense of powerlessness, fear, or dependency” (Singer). The best way to do this, according to Singer, is to isolate them from their support systems and not give them the chance to act or think independently. This is part of the reason many cults take part in communal living. This way members have no way of interacting with the outside world, including friends or family. Sometimes cults will strip members of their wealth and ask them to quit their occupations. This makes members powerless and dependent on the
The first condition in the thought reform process is deception. The individual needs to be kept unaware of the true agenda in order for the cult leader to be able to control and change the individual (Singer). The idea here is to keep the person unaware that his or her behavior is being changed. The second condition is that the leader must control time and physical environment (Singer). Singer explains that cults do not need to remove their group from the rest of society, they can be just as effective living amongst the rest of the world. All they have to do is control the member's time. The leaders need to ensure that members spend their time doing activities devoted to the cult. In other words, they should spend all their time with the cult doing things for the cults which will not allow their mind to wander and think. The third condition requires leaders to “create a sense of powerlessness, fear, or dependency” (Singer). The best way to do this, according to Singer, is to isolate them from their support systems and not give them the chance to act or think independently. This is part of the reason many cults take part in communal living. This way members have no way of interacting with the outside world, including friends or family. Sometimes cults will strip members of their wealth and ask them to quit their occupations. This makes members powerless and dependent on the