8 ICSA TODAY
Margaret Thaler Singer Award
to Daniel Shaw
Presentation by Lorna Goldberg
After hearing Dan Shaw’s
presentation today, I’m sure
that you will understand why
Dan is our recipient of the
Margaret Thaler Singer Award.
I have known Dan as a kind
and intelligent person and a
novel thinker for over twenty
years. I remember the first time
Dan presented his profound
insights at one of our conferences. Dan conceptualized the
relationship between the cult leader and his followers in a
new way, focusing upon the leader’s dependence upon the
followers and explaining the following: The cult leader, largely
unconsciously, compensates for his inability to trust and
depend on others, and defends against the intense shame he
feels connected to [his] need and dependency, by attaining
control over his followers, first through seductive promises
of unconditional love and acceptance, and then through
intimidation, shaming, and belittling, [and thus,] contrives to
disavow his own dependency. These processes of subjugating
others and inducing in others what one loathes and seeks to
deny in oneself are extreme forms of manic defense against
the shame of dependency.
How emboldening it was for my clients to understand that the
cult leader was dependent on them!
Dan continues to write about the relational aspects of
overinflated narcissists and those they subjugate, most
recently, in his thought-provoking book, Traumatic Narcissism.
As a reflection of how this book was valued in the mental
health community, it was chosen as a finalist for the
Awards Presented at ICSA’s
2018 Annual Conference
Margaret Thaler Singer Award
to Daniel Shaw
Presentation by Lorna Goldberg
After hearing Dan Shaw’s
presentation today, I’m sure
that you will understand why
Dan is our recipient of the
Margaret Thaler Singer Award.
I have known Dan as a kind
and intelligent person and a
novel thinker for over twenty
years. I remember the first time
Dan presented his profound
insights at one of our conferences. Dan conceptualized the
relationship between the cult leader and his followers in a
new way, focusing upon the leader’s dependence upon the
followers and explaining the following: The cult leader, largely
unconsciously, compensates for his inability to trust and
depend on others, and defends against the intense shame he
feels connected to [his] need and dependency, by attaining
control over his followers, first through seductive promises
of unconditional love and acceptance, and then through
intimidation, shaming, and belittling, [and thus,] contrives to
disavow his own dependency. These processes of subjugating
others and inducing in others what one loathes and seeks to
deny in oneself are extreme forms of manic defense against
the shame of dependency.
How emboldening it was for my clients to understand that the
cult leader was dependent on them!
Dan continues to write about the relational aspects of
overinflated narcissists and those they subjugate, most
recently, in his thought-provoking book, Traumatic Narcissism.
As a reflection of how this book was valued in the mental
health community, it was chosen as a finalist for the
Awards Presented at ICSA’s
2018 Annual Conference
