Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 15, No. 2, 1998, page 62
Respondents were also asked to report about perceived benefits of the group, as well as
about factors that influenced their decision to leave. The background questionnaire also
contained 12 items on which respondents were asked to report the quality of personal
relationships with parents, spouse, and one other significant individual such as a friend,
sibling, or other relative (referred to as other) before, during, and after CUT involvement.
For example, one item asked respondents to ―indicate the quality ...of your relationship
with your father BEFORE you were in the group.‖ The relationship rating scale ranged from
1 (poor) to 5 (excellent).
Procedure
From a mailing list for a newsletter that is primarily sent to former members and some
families of current members, 90 former members of CUT were identified. The survey
materials were sent to all of them. In order not to violate people‘s trust by revealing their
names and addresses, the investigator never had access to the mailing list. Instead, the
newsletter‘s editor affixed address labels to the sealed and stamped envelopes and
delivered them to the post office. Survey materials were also sent to 6 former members
who had not been aware of the newsletter, but who heard of the study by word of mouth
and requested a copy of the survey materials.
We did not ask survey recipients for their names or other information that would have
violated their anonymity. To obtain their approximate ages, we asked them their birth year.
Respondents were informed that by completing and returning the forms, they consented to
have their responses included in the study.
Respondents
A total of 61 individuals returned questionnaires that were useable for statistical analysis.
The response rate (63.5%) is unusually high for survey research, which may be partially
attributable to the fact that survey recipients were encouraged to pass on the materials to
other former members if they themselves did not wish to respond. (We excluded one
questionnaire because more than 50% of the items on each instrument were unanswered.)
Of the 61 returned surveys, 60 included both GPA forms, 58 included the EPQ-R, 55
included the SCL-90-R, and 60 included the background questionnaire.
A total of 35 (57.4%) of the respondents were female, and 26 (42.6%) were male. In
addition, 57 (93.4%) respondents were White, 2 (3.3%) were Black, and 2 (3.3%) were of
mixed ethnicity.
Respondents‘ religious upbringing was as follows: 31.1% Roman Catholic, 24.6% Protestant
liberal, 16.4% Protestant fundamental, 9.8% CUT, 3.3% Jewish, 1.6% Mormon, and 1.6%
New Age (other than CUT). An overwhelming 80.3% reported having no specific religious
affiliation at the time the study was conducted, 8.2% identified themselves as being Roman
Catholic, 6.6% as fundamental Protestant, and 4.9% as liberal Protestant.
The median annual household income was $50,000. The mean number of years of
education was 15, and 87% had completed at least one year of higher education.
The age of respondents ranged from 18 to 79 years, with a mean of 45.1 (SE =1.4). Age
at the time of joining CUT ranged from 0 (born into the group) to 58 years, with a mean of
25.7 (SE =1.4). Nearly 60% had joined between the ages of 18 and 28.
The length of time respondents reported having spent in CUT ranged from 1.8 to 22.2
years, with a mean of 11.4 (SE =0.7). The level of involvement varied widely, ranging
from ―Keeper of the Flame,‖ which may be considered the lowest level of affiliation or
commitment, to attending the leader and her family as their personal staff. The length of
time between exiting CUT and completing the survey ranged from 0.6 to 20.0 years, with a
mean of 7.8 (SE =0.7).
Respondents were also asked to report about perceived benefits of the group, as well as
about factors that influenced their decision to leave. The background questionnaire also
contained 12 items on which respondents were asked to report the quality of personal
relationships with parents, spouse, and one other significant individual such as a friend,
sibling, or other relative (referred to as other) before, during, and after CUT involvement.
For example, one item asked respondents to ―indicate the quality ...of your relationship
with your father BEFORE you were in the group.‖ The relationship rating scale ranged from
1 (poor) to 5 (excellent).
Procedure
From a mailing list for a newsletter that is primarily sent to former members and some
families of current members, 90 former members of CUT were identified. The survey
materials were sent to all of them. In order not to violate people‘s trust by revealing their
names and addresses, the investigator never had access to the mailing list. Instead, the
newsletter‘s editor affixed address labels to the sealed and stamped envelopes and
delivered them to the post office. Survey materials were also sent to 6 former members
who had not been aware of the newsletter, but who heard of the study by word of mouth
and requested a copy of the survey materials.
We did not ask survey recipients for their names or other information that would have
violated their anonymity. To obtain their approximate ages, we asked them their birth year.
Respondents were informed that by completing and returning the forms, they consented to
have their responses included in the study.
Respondents
A total of 61 individuals returned questionnaires that were useable for statistical analysis.
The response rate (63.5%) is unusually high for survey research, which may be partially
attributable to the fact that survey recipients were encouraged to pass on the materials to
other former members if they themselves did not wish to respond. (We excluded one
questionnaire because more than 50% of the items on each instrument were unanswered.)
Of the 61 returned surveys, 60 included both GPA forms, 58 included the EPQ-R, 55
included the SCL-90-R, and 60 included the background questionnaire.
A total of 35 (57.4%) of the respondents were female, and 26 (42.6%) were male. In
addition, 57 (93.4%) respondents were White, 2 (3.3%) were Black, and 2 (3.3%) were of
mixed ethnicity.
Respondents‘ religious upbringing was as follows: 31.1% Roman Catholic, 24.6% Protestant
liberal, 16.4% Protestant fundamental, 9.8% CUT, 3.3% Jewish, 1.6% Mormon, and 1.6%
New Age (other than CUT). An overwhelming 80.3% reported having no specific religious
affiliation at the time the study was conducted, 8.2% identified themselves as being Roman
Catholic, 6.6% as fundamental Protestant, and 4.9% as liberal Protestant.
The median annual household income was $50,000. The mean number of years of
education was 15, and 87% had completed at least one year of higher education.
The age of respondents ranged from 18 to 79 years, with a mean of 45.1 (SE =1.4). Age
at the time of joining CUT ranged from 0 (born into the group) to 58 years, with a mean of
25.7 (SE =1.4). Nearly 60% had joined between the ages of 18 and 28.
The length of time respondents reported having spent in CUT ranged from 1.8 to 22.2
years, with a mean of 11.4 (SE =0.7). The level of involvement varied widely, ranging
from ―Keeper of the Flame,‖ which may be considered the lowest level of affiliation or
commitment, to attending the leader and her family as their personal staff. The length of
time between exiting CUT and completing the survey ranged from 0.6 to 20.0 years, with a
mean of 7.8 (SE =0.7).
