ICSA TODAY 18
By Michael D. Langone, PhD
By Michael D.
Langone
Editor’s Corner
This article was first published in the May 2013 issue of Therapy Today, the monthly journal of the British
Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). Visit TherapyToday.net to read more articles. E
stablishing a psychotherapeutic or consultative relationship
is a special challenge for people whose trust has been
betrayed. People who have been in cultic groups and
experienced “love-bombing” and pseudointimate relationships,
where sometimes people pretend to be similar to them in
order to influence them, tend to feel that the professional
relationship is cold and uncaring. Their experience of feeling
special, purposeful, taken care of, and of living with rules stating
exactly what to do can mean that clients pressure therapists
to be directive. Some of the key tasks in working with current
and former cultists are to help them to tolerate ambiguity and
uncertainty, and to express and accept a full range of emotions,
including existential angst, anger, and grief. A return to critical
thinking and the ability to make decisions is of paramount
importance.
Practitioners need to find the balance between not being overly
neutral when listening to atrocities and being open to people’s
feelings of loss and grief when they leave the cult. These are the
same skills needed to work with survivors of domestic violence
where it may alienate the client to demonize their former
partner. It is important for psychotherapists to acknowledge the
clients’ need to express the positive side of their relationships
or what they may have learned or enjoyed during an otherwise
traumatic experience, and to deal with personal anger and
countertransference in supervision and consultation.
Psychoeducation is a key element, whether working with
individuals or their families, so that people can understand the
experience and the principles behind undue influence. Lifton’s
model1 is extremely helpful in explaining the processes of
being in a totalistic environment. As family members come to
understand the power of undue influence, their anger toward
their loved one’s withdrawal or disturbing actions rightly
becomes focused on the destructive group.
The field has changed in the early days there were some
forced deprogrammings where people’s families kidnapped
them in a desperate attempt to get them to listen to another
point of view. Voluntary exit counseling has emerged since,
often delivered by former members who have a great deal
of specific information about the practices of various groups.
Exit counselors can also be called thought-reform consultants
or mediators, and they may refer clients to mental-health
professionals if there are signs of psychological difficulties.
It is likely that counselors will at some point work with people
who have been involved in cultic groups. I have not been
in a cult, although members of my family have. But I know
what it is like to be influenced, manipulated and deceived,
and I have done things under group pressure that made me
feel uncomfortable. These are universal experiences that can
help practitioners to work with individuals and families while
displaying the core conditions of empathy, unconditional
positive regard and congruence.
Good counseling skills, coupled with curiosity and willingness
to learn about the psychology of cultic influence while listening
carefully to the specifics of the person’s experience, will enable
practitioners to be helpful, and they can refer to specialists for
consultation as needed. n
Note
[1] Lifton, R. Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism.
Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1961.
About the Author
Linda Dubrow-Marshall, MBACP
(Accred), is psychologist and program
leader of the Applied Psychology
(Therapies) master’s program at the
University of Salford. She is cofounder
of Re-Entry Therapy, Information
&Referral Network (RETIRN) (see
RETIRN.com/Dr._Linda.htm).
LJDMarshall@aol.com n
By Linda Dubrow-Marshall
By Michael D. Langone, PhD
By Michael D.
Langone
Editor’s Corner
This article was first published in the May 2013 issue of Therapy Today, the monthly journal of the British
Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP). Visit TherapyToday.net to read more articles. E
stablishing a psychotherapeutic or consultative relationship
is a special challenge for people whose trust has been
betrayed. People who have been in cultic groups and
experienced “love-bombing” and pseudointimate relationships,
where sometimes people pretend to be similar to them in
order to influence them, tend to feel that the professional
relationship is cold and uncaring. Their experience of feeling
special, purposeful, taken care of, and of living with rules stating
exactly what to do can mean that clients pressure therapists
to be directive. Some of the key tasks in working with current
and former cultists are to help them to tolerate ambiguity and
uncertainty, and to express and accept a full range of emotions,
including existential angst, anger, and grief. A return to critical
thinking and the ability to make decisions is of paramount
importance.
Practitioners need to find the balance between not being overly
neutral when listening to atrocities and being open to people’s
feelings of loss and grief when they leave the cult. These are the
same skills needed to work with survivors of domestic violence
where it may alienate the client to demonize their former
partner. It is important for psychotherapists to acknowledge the
clients’ need to express the positive side of their relationships
or what they may have learned or enjoyed during an otherwise
traumatic experience, and to deal with personal anger and
countertransference in supervision and consultation.
Psychoeducation is a key element, whether working with
individuals or their families, so that people can understand the
experience and the principles behind undue influence. Lifton’s
model1 is extremely helpful in explaining the processes of
being in a totalistic environment. As family members come to
understand the power of undue influence, their anger toward
their loved one’s withdrawal or disturbing actions rightly
becomes focused on the destructive group.
The field has changed in the early days there were some
forced deprogrammings where people’s families kidnapped
them in a desperate attempt to get them to listen to another
point of view. Voluntary exit counseling has emerged since,
often delivered by former members who have a great deal
of specific information about the practices of various groups.
Exit counselors can also be called thought-reform consultants
or mediators, and they may refer clients to mental-health
professionals if there are signs of psychological difficulties.
It is likely that counselors will at some point work with people
who have been involved in cultic groups. I have not been
in a cult, although members of my family have. But I know
what it is like to be influenced, manipulated and deceived,
and I have done things under group pressure that made me
feel uncomfortable. These are universal experiences that can
help practitioners to work with individuals and families while
displaying the core conditions of empathy, unconditional
positive regard and congruence.
Good counseling skills, coupled with curiosity and willingness
to learn about the psychology of cultic influence while listening
carefully to the specifics of the person’s experience, will enable
practitioners to be helpful, and they can refer to specialists for
consultation as needed. n
Note
[1] Lifton, R. Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism.
Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press, 1961.
About the Author
Linda Dubrow-Marshall, MBACP
(Accred), is psychologist and program
leader of the Applied Psychology
(Therapies) master’s program at the
University of Salford. She is cofounder
of Re-Entry Therapy, Information
&Referral Network (RETIRN) (see
RETIRN.com/Dr._Linda.htm).
LJDMarshall@aol.com n
By Linda Dubrow-Marshall
