VOLUME 13 |ISSUE 3 |2022 17
When I think of Margaret Singer, I think of an
educator. I learned much from her writings. I
believe the more we can learn, the more we can
accomplish.
The children born and raised in Tony Alamo
Christian Ministries introduced me to a world I
never really knew. They absolutely turned my
world right-side-up. I will never forget the time I
took them to the ICSA 2014 Annual Conference
in Washington, D.C. That trip helped me start to
discover our world through their eyes and filters.
And then the people I met in ICSA–other writers
as well as researchers, teachers, mental health
providers, cult survivors of all generations–ignited
my desire to turn my energy toward a new
direction to continue to learn, educate, and do
what I can to help our communities be safe places
for all children and adults who have suffered from
coercive control.
Thank you for this award. I feel honored and
humbled to receive it, and vow to continue
to work with all of you in every way we can to
provide the means for survivors to thrive.
ICSA 2022 Lifetime Achievement Award
Acceptance by Debby Schriver

ICSA TODAY 18
Dianne Casoni was an important collaborator of
Info-Cult/Info-Secte for more than 25 years, and sat
on its board of directors for more than a decade. She
was a prominent figure in research in the fields of
religion and cultic phenomena. In particular, Professor
Casoni analyzed different elements of engagement
or participation within various groups that had a high
level of control. She also worked on issues pertaining
to the relationship between the leader(s) and followers.
Likewise, Dianne was interested in the links between
the different group ideologies and their structures.
Throughout her career, she worked closely with people
who have lived in such groups to better understand
their experiences. Dianne also worked on issues
related to terrorism and, more broadly, radicalization.
An experienced psychologist and psychoanalyst,
she taught for over twenty years in the School of
Criminology at the Université de Montréal.
In order to honor the memory of Dianne and to
highlight her important contributions to research, this
award aims to promote and reward written work which
addresses one or more aspects of cultic phenomena
or which deals with the various areas of intervention
in cultic environments. The award is given for scientific
and/or academic writings, professional texts, or literary
work in English or in French, completed during the
year prior to the closing date of the competition. The
criteria for evaluating the submissions are the quality
of the work (writing style, mastery of the language,
accessibility, etc.) interest, contribution, and relevance
of the work to a better understanding of cultic
phenomena, individual experiences and/or methods of
intervention and the potential impact and longevity of
the work.
Info-Cult/Info-Secte Inaugural
Dianne Casoni Award
Dianne Casoni’s daughters Marie-Claude Brunet and Laurence Brunet
hold the 2022 Dianne Casoni Award plaque.