Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 15, No. 2, 1998, page 45
will only catch fish bigger than the net‘s holes. If a majority of fish pass through the net
safely, one does not conclude that the net does not exist. Mind-control is defined by its
conditions, not its results, just as a net is defined by its structure, not how many fish it
catches. The power of mind-control is revealed in what it does to those whom it captures,
not by the number that it captures. Recruitment creates the opportunity for mind-control to
occur. Recruitment, though it may be very manipulative, is not necessarily, itself a full-
fledged mind-control program (Zablocki, 1997).
Objection: High Attrition Rates
The Passantinos‘ next objection is a corollary of the last --namely, ―high attrition rates.‖
The authors assert that the fact that many people who join cults eventually leave them
within a year or two without outside aid is ―deadly to the mind-control model‖ (p. 37). If
mind-control did exist, they imply, no one would be able to break its hold by himself. This is
a distraction. The issue is not whether there are high attrition rates or low conversion rates.
The issue is whether or not mind-control exists. We know of no professional who believes
that mind-control is 100% effective. On the other hand, an examination of history reveals
that when it is effective, indeed, it can be deadly. How else do we explain the mass suicide
of 912 people in Jonestown?9 A coincidental gathering of spiritually deceived individuals?
What kind of hold did David Koresh have over his followers that made them stay in the
building after the FBI started spraying tear gas into it? They had from about 6 o‘clock in the
morning till about noon to leave before the building finally caught fire. They could have left.
What kept them in there? What made one woman run back into the fire after she had run
out of the burning building? We could offer story after story of similar incidents. What led an
innocent boy from a small town in Illinois, Danny Kraft, to participate in the killing of a
mother, a father, a 13-year-old girl, an 11-year-old girl, and an 8-year-old girl? What led
the Nazis to gas Jews by the millions, and what led millions of Germans to pretend they did
not know what was going on?
The effects of mind-control can be diminished by numerous factors. One of them is how
conflicts and dissonance are dealt with. One young woman, describing her own voluntary
exit, said that every time she had a doubt or a misgiving about the group she would put it
on an invisible shelf so she wouldn‘t have to deal with it. But then one day, the shelf got
too heavy and caved in (Tobias &Lalich, 1994, p. 55). In other words, eventually there
were simply too many doubts and questions, and she was no longer able to ignore them
she had to deal with them.
Another factor that may weaken mind-control is a traumatic event that occurs in the cult
member‘s life or in the group as a whole. This could be a beating administered (or
threatened) by the leader or another member at the leader‘s behest. Haferd and Outlaw
describe one such incident involving Rose Watson Thomas, a member of an obscure group
named the Christian Alliance Holiness Church. They write:
Rose was terrified of what would happen when [an expected phone call from
the imprisoned leader] came through. Since the night before, the commune
residents had harangued her and threatened her with punishment. And she
had seen the punishment that Bishop Thomas [her father-in-law] meted out
to those who displeased him in his Christian Alliance Holiness Church-
merciless bloody beatings that left men and women with flayed skin on their
backs and flowing wounds for days afterward. This time, Rose felt sure, she
was going to be the one who would be beaten. She was sure the bishop‘s
next orders would deal with the punishment to be inflicted upon her. So Rose
had decided to take her son and run away from The Frontier [the cult‘s
compound in eastern Ohio] (Haferd &Outlaw, 1993, p. 5).
will only catch fish bigger than the net‘s holes. If a majority of fish pass through the net
safely, one does not conclude that the net does not exist. Mind-control is defined by its
conditions, not its results, just as a net is defined by its structure, not how many fish it
catches. The power of mind-control is revealed in what it does to those whom it captures,
not by the number that it captures. Recruitment creates the opportunity for mind-control to
occur. Recruitment, though it may be very manipulative, is not necessarily, itself a full-
fledged mind-control program (Zablocki, 1997).
Objection: High Attrition Rates
The Passantinos‘ next objection is a corollary of the last --namely, ―high attrition rates.‖
The authors assert that the fact that many people who join cults eventually leave them
within a year or two without outside aid is ―deadly to the mind-control model‖ (p. 37). If
mind-control did exist, they imply, no one would be able to break its hold by himself. This is
a distraction. The issue is not whether there are high attrition rates or low conversion rates.
The issue is whether or not mind-control exists. We know of no professional who believes
that mind-control is 100% effective. On the other hand, an examination of history reveals
that when it is effective, indeed, it can be deadly. How else do we explain the mass suicide
of 912 people in Jonestown?9 A coincidental gathering of spiritually deceived individuals?
What kind of hold did David Koresh have over his followers that made them stay in the
building after the FBI started spraying tear gas into it? They had from about 6 o‘clock in the
morning till about noon to leave before the building finally caught fire. They could have left.
What kept them in there? What made one woman run back into the fire after she had run
out of the burning building? We could offer story after story of similar incidents. What led an
innocent boy from a small town in Illinois, Danny Kraft, to participate in the killing of a
mother, a father, a 13-year-old girl, an 11-year-old girl, and an 8-year-old girl? What led
the Nazis to gas Jews by the millions, and what led millions of Germans to pretend they did
not know what was going on?
The effects of mind-control can be diminished by numerous factors. One of them is how
conflicts and dissonance are dealt with. One young woman, describing her own voluntary
exit, said that every time she had a doubt or a misgiving about the group she would put it
on an invisible shelf so she wouldn‘t have to deal with it. But then one day, the shelf got
too heavy and caved in (Tobias &Lalich, 1994, p. 55). In other words, eventually there
were simply too many doubts and questions, and she was no longer able to ignore them
she had to deal with them.
Another factor that may weaken mind-control is a traumatic event that occurs in the cult
member‘s life or in the group as a whole. This could be a beating administered (or
threatened) by the leader or another member at the leader‘s behest. Haferd and Outlaw
describe one such incident involving Rose Watson Thomas, a member of an obscure group
named the Christian Alliance Holiness Church. They write:
Rose was terrified of what would happen when [an expected phone call from
the imprisoned leader] came through. Since the night before, the commune
residents had harangued her and threatened her with punishment. And she
had seen the punishment that Bishop Thomas [her father-in-law] meted out
to those who displeased him in his Christian Alliance Holiness Church-
merciless bloody beatings that left men and women with flayed skin on their
backs and flowing wounds for days afterward. This time, Rose felt sure, she
was going to be the one who would be beaten. She was sure the bishop‘s
next orders would deal with the punishment to be inflicted upon her. So Rose
had decided to take her son and run away from The Frontier [the cult‘s
compound in eastern Ohio] (Haferd &Outlaw, 1993, p. 5).
