Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 2, No. 3, 2003, Page 13
Table 3
Item-scale correlations and Cronbach’s Alpha values
Nr
of
ite
ms
Correlation
range
Mean Alpha
GPA 27 ,24 ,73 ,50 ,88
Compliance 9 ,47 ,70 ,60 ,86
Mind control 9 ,24 ,57 ,43 ,74
Exploitation 9 ,21 ,64 ,44 ,76
Scores in the GPA Spanish Version
The average score of this 27 item Spanish version of the GPA scale was 99.82 (SD=18.66)
for the sample of 61 Spanish subjects. As far as the 9 item subscales are concerned, Mind
Control showed the highest average score (37.21 SD=6.65) followed by Compliance
(36.91 SD=8.34), and Exploitation with the lowest average score (25.75 SD=8.07).
Taking the average scores for each item in the original North American and Spanish
samples, we used the Mann-Whitney U test in order to analyze whether there were
statistically significant differences amongst means of the average scores obtained in the
North American and Spanish samples in the Spanish version of the scale and subscales.
Figure 2 shows the means obtained in both samples and the Mann-Whitney U test values for
the global scale and for each subscale. There were no statistically significant differences
either among means of the average scores obtained in both samples for the total scale or
for any of the subscales. Although the means for the Spanish sample were slightly lower, a
similar pattern can be observed for the varieties of psychological abuse.
Discussion
Results obtained in the present work, though preliminary, show an adequate validity and
reliability for the Spanish version of the GPA scale, with enough empirical evidence to
support its appropriateness for evaluating psychological abuse in group contexts.
Of the three subscales found for our sample, the first, Compliance, refers to a relationship of
submission where the subject bows to the group‘s will and/or the leader, who favor a strong
dependency among members. This dependency is emotionally expressed towards the
leader, who is regarded as a superior being, not subject to criticism or negative expression.
Fear of the consequences if they dare to leave the group generates insecurity and becomes
a factor that justifies any instruction given by the leader. In this way, compliance becomes a
behavior in the shape of servitude towards the leaders and their instructions, even with
sacrifice of personal goals and belongings, which leads to final acceptance and
dissemination of the doctrine. The second subscale, Mind Control, refers to members'
regarding themselves as a part of a special elite group and to the use of coercive persuasion
by the group, that is, the use of deceit and psychological pressure, members' inability to
make their own decisions or independent, critical judgments, and the use of thought-
stopping techniques. The third subscale, Exploitation, describes the relationship with the
outer environment of the group. In this sense, there is a clear isolation from the outside
groups are closed members live together and even intimate relationships, if allowed, are
controlled. This subscale also includes a component of deviation from the norm, that is, the
behavior of the group regarding people who are not related to it (threats, violence) or the

Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 2, No. 3, 2003, Page 14
environment (breaking the law). So far as behaviors inside the group are concerned, this
subscale refers to a certain despotism towards the members, who are criticized or led to
certain activities or attitudes such as prostitution or rejection of medical care.
When comparing this factor structure to the one found by the original authors, there are
similarities in the dimensions for both versions. The subscale Compliance in the Spanish
sample is mostly the product of elements of two subscales, Compliance and Anxious
Dependency, in the original version. In this sense, we understand that both original
subscales are conveniently expressed under the term Compliance, taking into consideration
that the construct refers both to items describing submission and obedience to an authority
figure (leader/s or group), as well as extreme dependency to it. Thus, in the new subscale,
Compliance, we find the four items from Anxious Dependency that mainly accounted for the
covariance in the original subscale, those with the highest values of item-total correlation
(Items: 7, 8, 10 and 23 Values: 0.49, 0.34, 0.54 and 0.39 respectively). The remaining
three items of Anxious Dependency: 5, 16 and 17, had lower values for the item-total
correlation (0.03, 0.19 and 0.25). Item 5 was excluded from the scale as it hardly related to
the global scale. We are of the opinion that item 16 (―exercises remove doubt‖), that has
been moved to the subscale Mind Control for the Spanish sample, refers better to this one
than to Anxious Dependency because, although the exercises described in the item are
driven by negative emotions (fear, guilt) experienced by the members, the item does not
ask about them, but refers to the purpose of those exercises (cognitive control). Finally, we
also consider that item 17 (―no medical help‖) is better placed in the subscale Exploitation,
to which it is moved for the Spanish version, as it represents an action carried out by the
group to the detriment of its members. As far as the subscale Mind Control obtained in the
Spanish version is concerned, it corresponds almost perfectly with the same subscale in the
original instrument. Finally, the subscale Exploitation has remained almost the same as in
the original.
In our study we have observed an important fact, which is the similarity of the varieties of
psychological abuse shown by former members of different manipulative groups in two
cultural contexts: North American and Spanish. When comparing the average scores for
both samples, we found that in both cases the subscale with the highest average score was
Mind Control (Spanish average: 37.21 North American average: 39.70), followed by
Compliance (Spanish average: 36.91 North American average: 37.36) and finally the
subscale Exploitation (Spanish average: 25.75 North American average: 30.13).
All this strengthens the hypothesis that the most consistent factor in abusive groups is mind
control, leaving at a second level other aspects like isolation, which is more characteristic of
other kind of organizations or of brainwashing processes, mentioned by Lifton (1961) in his
initial studies.
Among the limitations of this study, we could mention the difficulty in verifying the
representativeness of the sample regarding the universe of different situations of people
who have been involved in manipulative groups. All this is due to the difficulty, usual in this
kind of study, of getting in touch with former members of manipulative groups in a way that
produces adequate sample sizes and permits the use of probabilistic methods, especially
when, as in our case, 68.9% of the sample were interviewed, with just a few subjects being
surveyed after information was provided by phone (Almendros, 2001 Langone, 1994). Our
sample of 61 subjects is not the most adequate in size for the kind of analysis we have
used, especially if we consider the large number of items in the original scale (28 items).
Therefore the data obtained should be viewed as preliminary. However, the ratio
subjects/items in our study is similar to the one in the original study (308/112).
In future studies, it will be helpful to analyze the diagnostic validity of the Spanish version
of the scale, using as comparison a group of former members of non manipulative groups.