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Misunderstanding Cults
Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field is an edited volume discussing various topics related to cults, including the scholarly field itself, the concept of brainwashing, and the public perception of the groups. The book was edited by Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins, and was published by University of Toronto Press on December 1, 2001. It includes contributions from 12 religious, sociological, and psychological scholars, in 14 essays.
The book includes contributions from scholars who have been labeled as "anti-cult", as well as those who have been labelled as "cult apologists". Other topics discussed include cult violence, the conflict that exists between new religious movements and their critics, and the ramifications of raising children in controversial religious movements.
The book received a generally positive reception, with praise for the quality of ideas expressed and its summarization of the controversial debate over cult research. Some reviewers criticized the book's organizational structure, as well as noting the book's chapters were reflective of the hostile debate around scholarly research into new religious movements and the quality of the research on sociology of religion more broadly.
The academic study of new religious movements has been noted to be unusually hostile, with scholars holding strong opinions as to the influence of cults on society. A 1998 article in the magazine Lingua Franca reported on the acrimony of the scholarly debate on the topic; in the "cult-anticult debate", scholars have been described as exhibiting a "toxic level" of suspicion toward others who research cults. The study often divided into two groups, which throughout the scholarly history of the topic developed very different opinions on issues like brainwashing, sexuality, violence, conflict, and apostates within the groups.
The two editors, Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins, are opposed on this topic, and state that their primary goal with the book is to restore a "moderate perspective" to cultic studies and encourage dialogue between the two camps. The book was controversial even prior to its publishing, with several prospective writers who had signed on withdrawing.
The book is made up of 14 essays in 13 chapters, with 12 authors. Contributors to the book include Dick Anthony, Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi, David Bromley, Lorne L. Dawson, Jeffrey Kaplan, Stephen A. Kent, Janja Lalich, Susan J. Palmer, Thomas Robbins, Julius H. Rubin, Amy B. Siskind, and Benjamin Zablocki. The book's introduction, written by Zablocki and Robbins, splits the writers between two camps, described as "cult bashers" and "cult apologists". The introduction also debates why the cult research field has become especially toxic, arguing that the "cult bashers" tend to be focused on individual cases of oppression of individuals, while the "apologists" tend to be focused on broader issues of repression by governments, which overlap in the coverage of specific cults or groups.
The book is focused on three primary aspects of the debate around cults, and is divided into three parts: "How objective are the scholars?", "How constrained are the participants?", and "How concerned should society be?", which discuss the scholarly motivations of those who study cults, the validity of the concept of brainwashing, and the public reaction to the groups, respectively. The essays are isolated, with only one case (between Kent and Dawson) of a rejoinder.
Benjamin Zablocki argues in the book that the social sciences have falsely disregarded the concept of brainwashing, which in his view is legitimate and based in the literature; Dick Anthony, however, argues that the concept of brainwashing is a pseudoscientific concept created (and refuted) by the CIA. Several writers in the book debate the ambiguity of the terms used. Writers in the book define "cult" variously, with Zablocki and Robbins describing a cult as a controversial social movement likely to be called a new religious movement, though others such as Lalich and Siskind define it more broadly; Lalich specifically does not necessarily define a cult as religious and applies the term to a Marxist-Leninist organization of which she had previously been a member.
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Misunderstanding Cults
Misunderstanding Cults: Searching for Objectivity in a Controversial Field is an edited volume discussing various topics related to cults, including the scholarly field itself, the concept of brainwashing, and the public perception of the groups. The book was edited by Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins, and was published by University of Toronto Press on December 1, 2001. It includes contributions from 12 religious, sociological, and psychological scholars, in 14 essays.
The book includes contributions from scholars who have been labeled as "anti-cult", as well as those who have been labelled as "cult apologists". Other topics discussed include cult violence, the conflict that exists between new religious movements and their critics, and the ramifications of raising children in controversial religious movements.
The book received a generally positive reception, with praise for the quality of ideas expressed and its summarization of the controversial debate over cult research. Some reviewers criticized the book's organizational structure, as well as noting the book's chapters were reflective of the hostile debate around scholarly research into new religious movements and the quality of the research on sociology of religion more broadly.
The academic study of new religious movements has been noted to be unusually hostile, with scholars holding strong opinions as to the influence of cults on society. A 1998 article in the magazine Lingua Franca reported on the acrimony of the scholarly debate on the topic; in the "cult-anticult debate", scholars have been described as exhibiting a "toxic level" of suspicion toward others who research cults. The study often divided into two groups, which throughout the scholarly history of the topic developed very different opinions on issues like brainwashing, sexuality, violence, conflict, and apostates within the groups.
The two editors, Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins, are opposed on this topic, and state that their primary goal with the book is to restore a "moderate perspective" to cultic studies and encourage dialogue between the two camps. The book was controversial even prior to its publishing, with several prospective writers who had signed on withdrawing.
The book is made up of 14 essays in 13 chapters, with 12 authors. Contributors to the book include Dick Anthony, Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi, David Bromley, Lorne L. Dawson, Jeffrey Kaplan, Stephen A. Kent, Janja Lalich, Susan J. Palmer, Thomas Robbins, Julius H. Rubin, Amy B. Siskind, and Benjamin Zablocki. The book's introduction, written by Zablocki and Robbins, splits the writers between two camps, described as "cult bashers" and "cult apologists". The introduction also debates why the cult research field has become especially toxic, arguing that the "cult bashers" tend to be focused on individual cases of oppression of individuals, while the "apologists" tend to be focused on broader issues of repression by governments, which overlap in the coverage of specific cults or groups.
The book is focused on three primary aspects of the debate around cults, and is divided into three parts: "How objective are the scholars?", "How constrained are the participants?", and "How concerned should society be?", which discuss the scholarly motivations of those who study cults, the validity of the concept of brainwashing, and the public reaction to the groups, respectively. The essays are isolated, with only one case (between Kent and Dawson) of a rejoinder.
Benjamin Zablocki argues in the book that the social sciences have falsely disregarded the concept of brainwashing, which in his view is legitimate and based in the literature; Dick Anthony, however, argues that the concept of brainwashing is a pseudoscientific concept created (and refuted) by the CIA. Several writers in the book debate the ambiguity of the terms used. Writers in the book define "cult" variously, with Zablocki and Robbins describing a cult as a controversial social movement likely to be called a new religious movement, though others such as Lalich and Siskind define it more broadly; Lalich specifically does not necessarily define a cult as religious and applies the term to a Marxist-Leninist organization of which she had previously been a member.