Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 14, No. 1, 1997, page 7
leaders manage to dissemble and reformulate members according to the cult‟s desired
image. In other words, through a variety of social and psychological influence techniques,
they take away you and give you back a cult personality, a pseudopersonality. They punish
you when the old you turns up, and they reward the new you. Before you know it, you don‟t
know who you are or how you got there you only know (or you are trained to believe) that
you have to stay there. In a cult there is only one way--cults are totalitarian, set up to serve
the leader‟s whims and desires, be they power, sex, or money (Lalich, 1996).
In many cults, the sexuality and sex lives of members are controlled, manipulated, and
exploited, just as are other aspects of life. Cult leaders seem to realize rather quickly (if
they didn‟t already have it in mind) that a great source of power can be found in the sexual
control of their followers. Most people come into cults with certain personal values, including
having a sense of their own sexual preferences, behaviors, norms, and expectations. But
because of the influence of the group‟s persuasive methods, reinforced by leadership
demands and peer pressure, in most cases a cult member‟s value system and sense of
morality get altered, sometimes radically. Enforcing sexual submission may be considered
the final step in the objectification of the individual as cult member.
Although sexual exploitation of male cult members is not uncommon, here I will focus on
the psychosexual exploitation of women in cults. And even though cults are led by women
as well as men, I will use the masculine pronoun when referring to cult leaders since, as far
as we‟ve seen, most of them are men.
Prevalence of Sexual Exploitation in Cults
For the purposes of this article, sexual exploitation is defined as the exercise of power for
the purpose of controlling, using, or abusing another person sexually in order to satisfy the
conscious or unconscious needs of the person in power --whether those needs be sexual,
financial, emotional, or physical. Sexual abuse can range from having to live in a sexually
coercive environment (whether or not one is personally abused) to unwanted touching to
rape. It may masquerade as “marriage” to the leader or as some form of “spiritual” practice,
or it may come about as the overt seduction of vulnerable females (or males) by those in
power. In many groups, if not the leader, then the husbands are given absolute control over
their wives (and children), including a license for sexual activities without mutual consent.
Marital rape is an accepted standard in certain cults.
Sexual exploitation includes reproductive and general sexual controls through such policies
as enforced celibacy, arranged marriages, mandated relationships or intimacies, and
regulated childbearing. Even if no such specific practices are overtly employed, most cults
govern the sex lives of members with myriad rules and regulations.
Although no research has been done on the incidence of sexual abuse in cults, at one
postcult recovery workshop, 40% of the women present said they had been sexually abused
in their cult (Tobias &Lalich, 1994, p. 171). If we were to take that figure as an indicator of
the prevalence of sexual abuse in cults, I would predict that when solid research is finally
done in this area, we will find that 40% is actually an extremely low figure. I base this on
my own work as a cult information specialist and educator who meets regularly with former
cult members to help them get some clarity on their cultic experiences. The 26 female
former cult members seen by me in the past 9 months came from a wide spectrum of
cults.2 Fifteen of the women were directly abused (14 by their leader and on occasion also
by others in the cult, and 1 raped by her cult husband at the leader‟s orders). Eight had
their personal, marital, and/or sex lives manipulated and controlled by the cult. The
remaining three were not personally abused but eventually became aware of the sexual
victimization of other female members by the leader. In four of these cases, the sexual
activity included lesbian and/or bisexual liaisons and in three, the women were also
subjected to physical abuse, one of which was ongoing and extreme.
leaders manage to dissemble and reformulate members according to the cult‟s desired
image. In other words, through a variety of social and psychological influence techniques,
they take away you and give you back a cult personality, a pseudopersonality. They punish
you when the old you turns up, and they reward the new you. Before you know it, you don‟t
know who you are or how you got there you only know (or you are trained to believe) that
you have to stay there. In a cult there is only one way--cults are totalitarian, set up to serve
the leader‟s whims and desires, be they power, sex, or money (Lalich, 1996).
In many cults, the sexuality and sex lives of members are controlled, manipulated, and
exploited, just as are other aspects of life. Cult leaders seem to realize rather quickly (if
they didn‟t already have it in mind) that a great source of power can be found in the sexual
control of their followers. Most people come into cults with certain personal values, including
having a sense of their own sexual preferences, behaviors, norms, and expectations. But
because of the influence of the group‟s persuasive methods, reinforced by leadership
demands and peer pressure, in most cases a cult member‟s value system and sense of
morality get altered, sometimes radically. Enforcing sexual submission may be considered
the final step in the objectification of the individual as cult member.
Although sexual exploitation of male cult members is not uncommon, here I will focus on
the psychosexual exploitation of women in cults. And even though cults are led by women
as well as men, I will use the masculine pronoun when referring to cult leaders since, as far
as we‟ve seen, most of them are men.
Prevalence of Sexual Exploitation in Cults
For the purposes of this article, sexual exploitation is defined as the exercise of power for
the purpose of controlling, using, or abusing another person sexually in order to satisfy the
conscious or unconscious needs of the person in power --whether those needs be sexual,
financial, emotional, or physical. Sexual abuse can range from having to live in a sexually
coercive environment (whether or not one is personally abused) to unwanted touching to
rape. It may masquerade as “marriage” to the leader or as some form of “spiritual” practice,
or it may come about as the overt seduction of vulnerable females (or males) by those in
power. In many groups, if not the leader, then the husbands are given absolute control over
their wives (and children), including a license for sexual activities without mutual consent.
Marital rape is an accepted standard in certain cults.
Sexual exploitation includes reproductive and general sexual controls through such policies
as enforced celibacy, arranged marriages, mandated relationships or intimacies, and
regulated childbearing. Even if no such specific practices are overtly employed, most cults
govern the sex lives of members with myriad rules and regulations.
Although no research has been done on the incidence of sexual abuse in cults, at one
postcult recovery workshop, 40% of the women present said they had been sexually abused
in their cult (Tobias &Lalich, 1994, p. 171). If we were to take that figure as an indicator of
the prevalence of sexual abuse in cults, I would predict that when solid research is finally
done in this area, we will find that 40% is actually an extremely low figure. I base this on
my own work as a cult information specialist and educator who meets regularly with former
cult members to help them get some clarity on their cultic experiences. The 26 female
former cult members seen by me in the past 9 months came from a wide spectrum of
cults.2 Fifteen of the women were directly abused (14 by their leader and on occasion also
by others in the cult, and 1 raped by her cult husband at the leader‟s orders). Eight had
their personal, marital, and/or sex lives manipulated and controlled by the cult. The
remaining three were not personally abused but eventually became aware of the sexual
victimization of other female members by the leader. In four of these cases, the sexual
activity included lesbian and/or bisexual liaisons and in three, the women were also
subjected to physical abuse, one of which was ongoing and extreme.
