Introduction
Cults are an interesting phenomenon, I watched a video a while ago about this cult led by Jim Jones. It was a cult in the late 70s and consisted of about 900 people completely isolated from the rest of the world. What is frightening is not that all these people were completely in his spell in terms of accepting them as their leader, or that he proclaimed himself as the messiah. No there was something far more sinister and spine-chilling about this story. Namely, Jones had told his followers that the world was coming to an end and that the United States government and other external forces were plotting against them. Therefore, as a sort of revolutionary act he convinced all his followers with him to end their life. On November 18, 1978, the authorities discovered the bodies of Jim Jones and all 909 of his followers including men, women and many children.
“if I were born German in the 1920s, I would not have been manipulated by the Nazi regime”
Although this made me feel sick to my stomach, I did find it fascinating. Because I could not grasp the thought of someone convincing me to take my own life. However, I quickly realized that I as many others could be influenced and would be more than likely also be seduced by his words. It’s like people explaining to the world “if I were born German in the 1920s, I would not have been manipulated by the Nazi regime” Which is a common, yet dangerous, misconception. It does not take into account the power of propaganda, the normalization of violence, or the sense of belonging to a group we as humans so desperately strive for.
I wanted to understand what makes cult leaders like Jim Jones so attractive, and how they are able to exploit the psychological needs of people to maintain control. What types of systems, ideologies or manipulation techniques they use in order to create a sense of unquestionable loyalty. Here are some of the things that I discovered.
1. Seeming ‘Larger Than Life’
The first thing that I noticed about cult leaders is that they make themself appear to be larger than life. What does this mean? It means that they make themselves appear to be different from other people, or the public. This makes them not only stand out among the crowd but it makes them appear to be special and builds a persona that people look up to. Having an audience that looks up to you is important because it creates a sense of authority, and makes the words a person uses to be seen as more credible. Creating a larger-than-life persona can be done by using either words or actions but when executed right both can be equally powerful.
Example: Shoko Asahara’s God-like Persona
An example of a cult leader who has used his words in the past to be seen as some kind of godly figure was Chizuo Matsumoto, or better known as Shoko Asahara. He was the founder of the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo. Shoko used a combination of psychological and religious tactics to convince his followers that he was the reincarnation of Jesus Christ. For example, Asahara used words that implied he had some kind of secret knowledge and hidden truths which made him appear to have wisdom that no ordinary people had. Statements such as “Only I have been given the vision to see what is to come.”
“Only I have been given the vision to see what is to come.”
To further strengthen his image as a visionary, he used words such as “liberation” and “transcendence,” hinting that he alone could lead his followers to ultimate freedom and a release from suffering. He made statements like, “I will guide you to transcend your earthly limitations,” combining vague and ambiguous language and making promises that sound both mysterious and bold. Due to the ambiguity of his words, it allowed his followers to project their meaning and desires making the words he used and messaged perceived even stronger.
Mastering the Art of Appearing Larger Than Life: David Blaine’s Illusionary Tactics
Another way of appearing larger than life is by the actions of a person. A great example of someone who has mastered the art of appearing larger than life is illusionist and magician David Blaine. Due to his theatrical tactics, daring stunts, and his careful use of props and gimmicks, he appears to be inhuman to some. During a podcast on the Joe Rogan Show, he stunned the audience by stabbing his own hand with an ice-pick, penetrating his skin and the ice-pick could be seen to almost come out of hand on the other side. Blaine showed no pain or emotion, and there was also no blood to be seen which made it seem impossible.
2. Creating an ‘Us vs. Them’ Mentality
Another important psychological tactic that can be used by cult leaders to exploit human psychology is to create a shared enemy. A great example of a time when a leader fabricated a scapegoat in order to create division and rile up people together was during the Second World War. Due to the Treaty of Versailles after the First World War Germany needed to pay reparations which caused its economy to suffer during these times. Adolf Hitler used the Jewish population to falsely blame them for Germany’s economic problems, including the hyperinflation of the early 1920s, and the Great Depression.
However, the use of a scapegoat or a common enemy is still being frequently used today, namely in politics. Politicians often use immigrants or refugees as scapegoats to blame them for straining social welfare systems. Another example is how politicians demonize Muslims after a terrorist attack.
For cult leaders fabricating a scapegoat is a great tool as it allows them to rally up a crowd of followers with fear and hatred which gets them into an emotional state to be easily manipulated rather than allowing them to think rationally.
3. Love Bombing and Withdrawal
Once a new person has been identified and introduced to the group a tactic that cult leaders use is love bombing and withdrawal. I believe that a lot of people are already familiar with this tactic as it is also commonly used by narcissists and people in abusive relationships. It works by allowing people when they enter a group or relationship to be flooded with attention and praise. This immediately creates a sense of belonging and leads to people being emotionally invested.
As soon as the follower is invested enough, the cult leader or entire group withdraws their affection instilling doubt and fear that this person will lose their community. It’s a great way to make someone obedient and loyal as it relies on human psychology which can be traced back to the survival needs of ancient hunter-gatherer societies. In those societies, staying with the group increased the chances of protection from predators and survival. Losing community ties, meant in a lot of cases death which explains why we still have such a strong fear of being excluded from our communities even while we live in a modern society.
4. Using Fractionation to Create Emotional Addiction
An additional manipulative tactic that is used to control people is this psychological technique called fractionation. While love bombing and withdrawal focus on love and affection and the absence of it over a longer period, fractionation is a technique that is often used during normal conversations.
How does fractionation work?
It works by creating a roller coaster experience through what seems to be for the victim a normal conversation. The perpetrator stirs conversation in which he asks deliberate questions that are meant to create high peaks of positive emotions followed by a drop of negative emotions repeated throughout the conversation. It is this change between intense positive and negative emotions that make it so effective as it exploits human psychology as it uses the the human rewards system. It is the cycle that keeps individuals in a state of craving, as they seek to regain the positive feelings they initially experienced. This irregular reinforcement is a powerful motivator because it creates unpredictable rewards that increase anticipation, it’s like a slot machine that keeps the person in a state of anticipating never knowing when to expect a big win.
5. Gaslighting and Bright Siding: Making People Question Their sense of Reality
What is gaslighting?
Another manipulative technique that cult leaders use are bright siding and gaslighting. I believe that most people are familiar with the term gaslighting which is a form of mental manipulation where people purposely try to have people question their sense of reality. It works by systematically causing someone to doubt their perceptions and memories by reframing past situations to create confusion and dependency. Gaslighting can be as small as questioning a minor detail from a story or memory, all the way to fabricating entire stories or purposely convincing the victim they have said those things.
What is brightsiding?
Brightsiding is a form of gaslighting but is focused on extreme and fabricated positivity. It works by forcing positivity onto people in a way that dismisses or invalidates their genuine feelings or struggles. For example, cult leaders would manipulate their followers who are struggling with their emotions due to no longer seeing family members by reframing the loss as a liberation and emphasizing the fact that it must have happened for a reason and is part of a higher purpose. This would make it difficult for followers to express their discontentment as every problem they had would be carefully rephrased into something positive. In the end, changing someone’s outlook on their current situation would make it that they had less or no reason to leave and stay loyal to the cult.
6. Isolation from Friends and Family
In order to make sure no outside sources interfere with the cult or its practices, cult leaders often actively try to isolate their members from not only their friends and family but the complete outside world. When a new member joins they are frequently cut off from their social support in order to maintain control over them. One way how cult leaders do this is by trying to physically isolate them. An example is that they tell their followers that they can not meet with their friends or family anymore or in extreme cases these cults have a settlement where the victim is supposed to come live. This is to maintain power and control over the group at all times. However, isolation can also happen online. For example, when influencers lure their followers to private groups and chatrooms such as Telegram or Discords to influence them without the interference of outside social control, one can argue that this is already a form of cult-like practice.
7. Multiple Levels of Hierarchy
To increase both loyalty and anticipation in the cult, cult leaders often install multible levels of hierarchy within the group. Cult members often want to show their leader that they are devoted which creates a competitive landscape in which cult members compete to show which one is most devoted to the group and practices. The one who has shown that he or she is most worthy will be able to go up in the ranks. Cult members who are higher up in ranks than others are also more likely to stay loyal as they do not want to lose this higher status position that they so desperately have competed for in the first place. A real-life example of what can be seen as cult life practices is a hierarchy within the Roman Catholic Church. You have in total 7 steps within the faith. These are
1: The laypeople who are all baptized Catholics. 2: The Deacon who is the assistant of the Priest. 3: The Priest. 4: The Bishop. 5: Archbishop. 6. The Cardinal. 7: The Pope.
8. Creating a Sense of Authenticity Through Religious Texts and Symbols
To enforce the ideas and beliefs of the cult, cult leaders often make use of symbols and texts from the past to make the things the cult preaches to be seen as authentic and rooted in ancient wisdom. An example of this is how the founder of Scientology, L. Ron Hubbard used a combination of science fiction and spiritual teachings to create his beliefs and practices that have attracted a lot of people over the years.
An example of this is the thetan, which is an immortal soul that moves beyond the body and is reborn in different lifetimes, whose ideas are very similar to the ideas of the soul’s journey and reincarnation in Hinduism and Buddhism. Also, the Church of Scientology uses a variety of religious symbols such as the Scientology “S” Double Triangle Symbol, but also the use of its another prominent symbol. According to reports, the Church of Scientology has anywhere between 20,000 to 50,000 active members with one of the most prominent members and active spokespersons being Hollywood actor Tom Cruise.
9. Dress Codes to Foster Group Identity
Besides creating an us vs them mentality, cult leaders can create a feeling of unity within a group by introducing dress codes. The reason why this creates a sense of unity is that it strengthens the group identity. This is also one of the reasons that some schools require their students to wear uniforms as it makes the students less divided by demographics such as culture, religion, race or socioeconomic background. Besides a feeling of unity within the group, it also makes it difficult for each member to stand out which promotes conformity and adherence to traditions and norms within the cult.
10. Vague and Ambiguous Language
Deceptive leaders frequently use vague and ambiguous language to captivate the imagination of their followers. By employing words and expressions that can be interpreted in various ways, they instill a sense of mystery and intrigue, enabling followers to project their own meanings onto the leader’s messages.
This strategy not only ensures that followers remain engaged but also empowers the leader to retain a degree of flexibility and authority over their interpretations. It represents a kind of intellectual dominance that caters to the followers’ quest for answers while keeping them alert.
A good example of people who often use vague and ambiguous language are politicians. They deliberately use words that can be interpreted in many ways so that their words has the most impact on as many people. In 1961, John F. Kennedy said during his inaugural speech the following quote: “Ask not what your country can do for you—ask what you can do for your country” This is a great example of a leader using vague and ambiguous language for the following reasons. Reason one is flexibility, it is not specific to any group so it relates to everyone listening. The second reason is that it encourages people to think big and inspires people to be a part of something bigger than themselves. The final reason is that it creates a sense of unity by deliberately asking the listeners to think of what they can do for their country.
Conclusion
By understanding how different cult leaders manipulate their followers it gives a good insight into how we all as humans can sometimes be easily manipulated. Cult leaders such as Jim Jones, Shoko Asahara, or even politicians and individuals all make use of techniques to influence and hold power, sometimes with much darker intentions than others.
However, to be armed with the awareness that we are no different than others and can be influenced, we empower ourselves to make better choices and be conscious of our vulnerabilities. By understanding that we sometimes need to take a step back and be able to critically think we can protect ourselves from people who want to exploit our trust and beliefs.