The International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA) is a non-profit anti-cult organization focusing on groups it defines as " cultic" and their processes. It publishes the ''International Journal of Cultic Studies'' and other materials.

History

ICSA was founded in 1979 in

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as the American Family Foundation (AFF) – one of several dozen disparate parents' groups founded in the late 1970s by concerned parents. For a time it was affiliated with the Citizens’ Freedom Foundation (CFF) which later became the

Cult Awareness Network The Cult Awareness Network (CAN) was an anti-cult organization created by deprogrammer Ted Patrick that provided information on groups that it considered to be cults, as well as support and referrals to deprogrammers. It was founded in the wak ...

(CAN). It also developed links with Christian counter-cult movements such as the

Christian Research Institute The Christian Research Institute (CRI) is an evangelical Christian apologetics ministry. It was established in October 1960 in the state of New Jersey by Walter Martin (1928–1989). In 1974, Martin relocated the ministry to San Juan Capistrano, ...

. In December 2004, it changed its named from American Family Foundation to International Cultic Studies Association. ICSA is a non-profit organization, with a stated mission "to study

psychological manipulation Manipulation in psychology is a behavior designed to exploit, control, or otherwise influence others to one’s advantage. Definitions for the term vary in which behavior is specifically included, influenced by both culture and whether referring t ...

, especially as it manifests in cultic and related groups".Cowan, Douglas E. and Bromley, David G. ''Cults and New Religions: A Brief History''. Blackwell Publishing. 2009. pp. 4, 219–222.

Publications

Print magazines

In 1984, the American Family Foundation's early print magazine, ''The Advisor'', was replaced by the ''Cult Observer'' and the ''Cultic Studies Journal''.

''Cultic Studies Review''

In 2001, publication of the ''Cultic Studies Journal'' ceased, and the AFF began publishing the ''Cultic Studies Review'' as an online journal with triennial print editions. In 2005, the final AFF published edition of ''Cultic Studies Review'' was released. Subsequent editions were published by the International Cultic Studies Association until 2010.

''International Journal of Cultic Studies''

In 2010, the first print and online editions of the ''International Journal of Cultic Studie''s (IJCS) were published online, as a self-described "refereed annual journal that publishes scholarly research on cultic phenomena across a range of disciplines and professions". Former Australian MP Stephen Mutch has served on the journal's editorial board.

Reception

Connections with post-communist governments

Bryan Edelman and James T. Richardson state that China has borrowed heavily from Western

anti-cult movement The anti-cult movement (abbreviated ACM, and also known as the countercult movement) consists of various governmental and non-governmental organizations and individuals that seek to raise awareness of cults, uncover coercive practices used to a ...

s, such as ICSA, to bolster their view of non-mainstream religious groups, and so the support campaigns of oppression against them. In a previous article Richardson and Marat S. Shterin said that Western anti-cult organizations, including the CSA, had been a source of anti-cult material in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

Criticism

In their book, ''Cults and New Religions: A Brief History'', sociologists Douglas E. Cowan and David G. Bromley describe the ICSA as a "secular anticult" organization. They point out that the ICSA provides no indication of how many of their characteristics are necessary for a group to be considered "cultic". The checklist creators do not adequately define how much of certain practices or behaviors would constitute "excessive", nor do they provide evidence that any of the practices listed are innately harmful. Finally, Cowan and Bromley criticize the ICSA list as being so broad that even mainstream organizations such as

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religions, Indian religion or Indian philosophy#Buddhist philosophy, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha. ...

Evangelical Protestantism Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "born again", in which an individual experi ...

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

, and the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

fall within the criteria.

References

{{Authority control Anti-cult organizations International organizations based in the United States International religious organizations Organizations based in Florida