''Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field'' was edited by
Benjamin Zablocki
Benjamin Zablocki (January 19, 1941 – April 6, 2020) was an American professor of sociology at Rutgers University where he taught sociology of religion and social psychology. He published widely on the subject of charismatic religious movement ...
and
Thomas Robbins. The book was published by
University of Toronto Press
The University of Toronto Press is a Canadian university press founded in 1901. Although it was founded in 1901, the press did not actually publish any books until 1911.
The press originally printed only examination books and the university cale ...
, on December 1, 2001, and includes contributions from ten religious, sociological, and psychological scholars.
The book is unique in that it includes contributions from scholars who have been labeled as "
anti-cult
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 ...
", as well as those who have been labelled as "
cult apologists". The book features a section which discusses the need for scholarly objectivity when researching cults, as well as emphasizing the danger of partisanship while researching these controversial groups. Other topics discussed include
brainwashing,
cult violence, the conflict that exists between
new religious movement
A new religious movement (NRM), also known as alternative spirituality or a new religion, is a religious or spiritual group that has modern origins and is peripheral to its society's dominant religious culture. NRMs can be novel in origin or th ...
s and their critics, as well as the ramifications of raising children in controversial religious movements.
Contributors
The book includes contributions from researchers with varied viewpoints on the subject of cults:
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Dick Anthony
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Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi
Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi ( he, בנימין בית-הלחמי) (born June 12, 1943) is an Israeli professor of psychology at the University of Haifa, Israel. In 1970 Beit-Hallahmi received a PhD in clinical psychology from Michigan State University. ...
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David Bromley
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Lorne L. Dawson
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Jeffrey Kaplan
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Stephen A. Kent
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Janja Lalich
Janja Lalich (b. 1945) is an American sociologist and writer. Lalich is best known as a foremost expert on cults and coercion, charismatic authority, power relations, ideology and social control. She is a professor emerita of sociology at the ...
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Susan J. Palmer
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Thomas Robbins
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Julius H. Rubin
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Amy B. Siskind
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Benjamin Zablocki
Benjamin Zablocki (January 19, 1941 – April 6, 2020) was an American professor of sociology at Rutgers University where he taught sociology of religion and social psychology. He published widely on the subject of charismatic religious movement ...
Reception
William Sims Bainbridge
William Sims Bainbridge (born October 12, 1940) is an American sociologist who currently resides in Virginia. He is co-director of Cyber-Human Systems at the National Science Foundation (NSF). frames the book as part of the debate whether
sociology of religion
Sociology of religion is the study of the beliefs, practices and organizational forms of religion using the tools and methods of the discipline of sociology. This objective investigation may include the use both of quantitative methods (surveys, ...
is truly scientific. He notes that a lot of the debate in the book is centered on the validity of
brainwashing as a concept. He writes that "In many respects this is an excellent book, containing insightful essays written from a variety of perspectives," noting however that "Not a single paper in the collection makes use of quantitative data or conducts any other kind of formal theory testing," and decrying the scarcity of connections to research on
group influence from
social psychology
Social psychology is the scientific study of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the real or imagined presence of other people or by social norms. Social psychologists typically explain human behavior as a result of the ...
or sociology in general. Bainbridge also writes that
See also
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List of cult and new religious movement researchers
The academic study of new religious movements is known as new religions studies (NRS).
The study draws from the disciplines of anthropology, psychiatry, history, psychology, sociology, religious studies, and theology. Eileen Barker noted tha ...
References
{{reflist
2001 in religion
2001 non-fiction books
Books about cults
Religious studies books
University of Toronto Press books