International Journal of Coercion, Abuse, and Manipulation Volume 9 2026 90
Understanding Women’s Experiences in Cultic Groups in Québec
Through the Lens of Coercive Control: A Qualitative Study
Andréa Lagorse1
Abstract: This article presents the main conclusions of a master’s dissertation on the specific experiences of women in a
cultic context. Only a few studies have been conducted on this subject. Nevertheless, the cultic context seems to provide an
opportunity for leaders and their groups to use psychological and sexual violence against women. Violence, gender inequalities,
power relations, and stigmatization that women have suffered for decades in society are found in cultic contexts. These groups
often maintain a patriarchal system that views women as inferior to men. Eight in-depth, semi-structured interviews were
conducted with female former cult members using a qualitative methodology. The participants’ testimonies were analyzed
from a feminist perspective, based on Stark’s (2007) theory of coercive control. The results show that women are subject
to coercive control by the leader, which is reinforced by other group members and sometimes family members involved in
the group. Participants are locked into roles that often stem from a patriarchal vision of women’s place in society, forcing
them to respond to the requirements of the leader and the group. Women also encounter difficulties when they leave the
group, particularly in relation to seeking formal help. Considering the data collected, awareness, training, and research on
understanding the specific cultic experiences of women to help them while respecting what they have experienced are needed.
Keywords: cultic groups, violence against women, coercive control, feminist theory
1 Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Andréa Lagorse, Email: andrea.lagorse@umontreal.ca
Context
Violence against women is a major issue in
contemporary societies. Despite progress in the
recognition of women’s rights, gender-based violence
persists in both public and private spheres and is even
regressing in certain regions. According to the United
Nations General Assembly ,violence against women
encompasses “any act of gender-based violence that
results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or
mental harm or suffering to women, including threats
of such acts, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty,
whether occurring in public or in private life.” (1993,
article 1). Such violence not only causes immediate
harm but can also produce long-term repercussions,
especially when victims are not believed, supported,
or adequately protected. In Canada, victims have no
formal or official role within the justice system, which
often minimizes their voices and experiences. As a
result, they may be blamed, discredited, or excluded
from decision-making processes related to the violence
they endured (Dick, 2020 Kelly &Radford, 1990
Randall, 2010). Moreover, intimate partner violence
and coercive control are still not fully recognized under
Canadian criminal law, leaving significant gaps in legal
protection.
Violence against women must be understood from a
feminist perspective as both individual acts and deeply
embedded in systems of patriarchal power (Kelly,
1987 Kelly &Radford, 1990 Stark, 2007 Walby,
1989). These feminist scholars have long argued that
women’s experiences of victimization must be analyzed
in light of the structural inequalities that shape their
social, political, and intimate lives. This analysis must
include the barriers women face when seeking help,
the institutional disbelief and secondary victimization
they often endure, and the ways in which control over
their bodies, voices, and choices is normalized through
cultural and social practices.
Cultic groups represent a particularly acute
manifestation of these gendered dynamics. Cults are
defined as
a group or movement exhibiting a great or
excessive devotion or dedication to some
person, idea, or thing and employing unethically
manipulative techniques of persuasion and
control designed to advance the goals of the
group’s leaders, to the actual or possible
detriment of members, their families, or the
community. (West &Langone, 1986, p. 87)
doi: 10.54208/1000/0009/007

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Andréa Lagorse |Understanding Women’s Experiences in Cultic Groups in Québec
These environments tend to reinforce patriarchal
logics in highly structured and coercive ways. The
group context exacerbates the gender inequalities
experienced by women in society (Ward, 2000). Many
groups maintain a patriarchal power system marked
by the superiority of men, and women are forced to
adopt more traditional, subordinate roles as mothers
and wives (Collective of Women, 1997 Jacobs, 1991
Lamboley et al., 2022 Ward, 2000 Weishaupt &
Stensland, 1997 Whitsett &Post Rosow, 2020). This
domination makes them vulnerable to violence and
sexual exploitation from the leader or other members
of the community (Lalich, 1997). In this context,
women may be subjected to sexual relationships with
the leader, often framed as a spiritual duty, privilege,
sign of loyalty, or means of connecting with the divine
(Lalich, 1997). They may also experience various
forms of physical violence, including intimate partner
violence, medical neglect, forced or arranged marriages,
and reproductive coercion. The central issue, however,
lies in the fact that women are unable to give free and
informed consent within such a coercive environment
(Dayan, 2018). This lack of autonomy erodes their self-
esteem, strengthens their psychological dependence
on the group, and makes it even more difficult to leave
(Collective of Women, 1997 Ward, 2000 Whitsett &
Post Rosow, 2020).
To better understand these dynamics, this study draws
on coercive control theory (Stark, 2007), a feminist-
informed framework that conceptualizes violence
not as a series of discrete events but as a pattern of
ongoing, often subtle strategies designed to dominate,
isolate, and regulate women’s everyday lives. While
Stark (2007) developed this theory in the context
of intimate partner relationships, its relevance to
cultic environments, where control is both collective
and individualized, is increasingly recognized in the
literature. This framework thus allows us to grasp the
mechanisms through which cultic groups maintain
women’s subjugation and prevent their exit, while
reinforcing gendered norms that strip them of their
agency and autonomy.
Theoretical Framework
In his book Coercive Control: How Men Entrap
Women in Everyday Life, Evan Stark (2007) introduces
the concept of coercive control as a framework for
understanding how power and domination are
maintained in gendered relationships, often beyond
visible or legally recognized forms of violence.
According to Stark (2007), despite the progress in
women’s rights, women continue to be dominated and
subjected to male authority. This persistent inequality
places them in a subordinate position and reflects the
enduring influence of historically patriarchal systems.
In this context, men use violence instrumentally to
maintain inequality.
To capture this dynamic, Stark (2007) defines coercive
control as a pattern of often minor but frequent acts
designed to intimidate, isolate, humiliate, exploit,
regulate, and control all aspects of women’s daily lives.
To implement coercive control, men personalize their
domination by using structural and cultural constraints
and adapting them to their intimate relationships.
Coercive control is then difficult to detect because the
tactics used can easily be confused with the sacrifices
society expects women to make in their roles as wives
and mothers. Coercive control is therefore a long-
term process, part of a continuum of violence and
domination, reinforced by the gender inequalities
that persist in our society. But how does this control
translate into concrete interpersonal relationships?
Stark (2007) highlights four main tactics used by men
to dominate women in intimate relationships. The first
is violence towards the partner. This violence can be
found both in sexual coercion (forcing the woman to
have non-consensual relations) and acts of physical
violence. Stark (2007) points out that frequency and
cumulative effect of minor violence distinguish coercive
control from other forms of violence. In the case of
coercive control, physical violence is not, for men, an
end, but an additional means of dominating women.
Men control women’s daily activities so that they feel
like hostages, consumed by the fear of making a false
move. Each man uses the privileged information he has
about the woman to define his control tactics. These
strategies make coercive control even more difficult to
detect by women and society alike.
Intimidation is the second tactic Stark (2007) identifies.
This intimidation is characterized by constant
surveillance of the woman, her gestures and actions,
with the aim of inducing a fear in her that will push
her into ever greater submission. Intimidation is also