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Why do people join cults?
Today, there are thousands of cults around the world. Broadly speaking, a cult is a group or movement with a shared commitment to a usually extreme ideology that's typically embodied in a charismatic leader. But what exactly differentiates cults from other groups – and why do people join them? Janja Lalich describes how cults recruit and manipulate their members. [Directed by Globizco, narrated by Addison Anderson, music by Manuel Borda].
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SOME OF THE GAME-CHANGERS
IN OUR FIELD
ROBERT JAY LIFTON
Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism
EDGAR SCHEIN
Coercive Persuasion
STANLEY MILGRAM
Obedience to Authority
ERVING GOFFMAN
Asylums
LEON FESTINGER
When Prophecy Fails
MARGARET THALER SINGER
Cults in Our Midst
PHILIP ZIMBARDO
The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil
ROBERT CIALDINI
Influence: The New Modern Psychology of Persuasion
JUDITH HERMAN
Trauma and Recovery
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Resources: Services
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