Watching for Violence: A Comparative Analysis of the Roles of Five Types of Cult-Watching Groups

Involvement in a New Religious Movement: From Discovery to Disenchantment

“…The 25 Western individuals interviewed by Lifton undoubtedly experienced horrific treatment over many years and may not easily be compared with the voluntary and usually limited involvement of people in NRMs. However, Lifton's work has been used as the basis of a model of cultic involvement by key helping professionals such as Singer, Hassan, and Langone (Anthony, 1999;Anthony & Robbins, 2004), all highly influential in informing what Barker (2002) has termed "cult awareness groups." The application of brainwashing or thought reform to NRM affiliation has consistently been rejected by many of those who study NRMs (Barker, 1984;Bromley, 1983Bromley, , 2007Palmer, 2008;Richardson, 2001;Richardson & Introvigne, 2001;Stark & Finke, 2000), yet has found lasting favor with health professional and cult information services (Anthony, 1999;Barker, 1997;Saroglou, Buxant, & Tilquin, 2008).…”

Freedom of religion and religious coercion The challenge posed by the prohibition of coercion as a condition of religious freedom

“…Not all scholars working is this field agreed on the impact that new religious movements (cults) have on its members and society and as a result different approaches to the study of new religions have developed over time. Barker (2001) identifies five types of cult-watching groups 2 . Two main approaches or viewpoints can be distinguished from these different cult watching groups.…”

Stepping out of the Ivory Tower: A Sociological Engagement in ‘The Cult Wars’

“…35 There are still those who strongly oppose the cooperation that now exists between ICSA and Inform, but there is an expanding network of cult-watchers who exchange information from a wide range of perspectives. Inform has benefitted greatly from its association with the diverse 'cult-watching groups' that start from different perspectives and employ different methods from those espoused by Inform (Barker 2002). I would, however, like to devote the rest of this paper to picking up a gauntlet thrown down by Dr Stephen Mutch, a lawyer of the Supreme Court of New South Wales, who teaches at Macquarie University and is an active Patron of the Australian CIFS (Cult Information and Family Support Inc.), which was initially formed in 1996 'by parents and family members of loved ones caught up in abusive groups' but now includes 'former members and concerned individuals working together towards a common goal, to provide support and develop awareness for those affected by high demand groups or cultic relationships'.…”

“…Each individual would build up his or her own picture of the movement in question (or 'cults-in-general'), but it soon became apparent that although each image was unique, there were systematic differences between the different categories of people as they constructed their images in a way that reflected their interests (Barker 2002). Thus, while members would stress the 'good' points of their movements and keep quiet about any skeletons in the cupboard, the so-called 'anti-cultists' would select what they considered to be the 'bad' features and ignore any positive attributes.…”