International Cultic Studies Association
Annual International Conference
"Psychological Manipulation, Cultic Groups, and Harm"
Barcelona, Spain -
July 7-9, 2011
ICSA Conference info
Speaker info
Agenda
Karen's ICSA speaker profile
ICSA 2010 presentation
Karen Pressley's presentation:
"Creativity, Communication, and Cultic Groups:
Using Communication Models
to Explore How Members Cope, Create, and Communicate"
This 2011 presentation will discuss the application of the Hegemonic Communication Model (HCM) in the context of several additional case studies of former cult members to support the hypothesis Dr. Miriam Boeri and I posed in our 2010 presentation, "Creativity and Cults from Sociological and Communication Perspectives: The Processes Involved in the Birth of a Secret Creative Self."* The new case studies will reflect experiences of former members of harmful groups such as Seven Tribes, the Unification Church, Scientology, Children of God, and Jehovah's Witnesses. This presentation will address several research questions posed by the 2010 study such as, how influential is the birth of a secret creative self (sCS) on leaving a cult? Why do some cult members never give birth to a sCS but instead merge with their cult leader's views that obscure their creative self? Are only individuals who already have a healthy sense of creative self (pre-cult) able to resist suppression while under a dominant leader?
* At ICSA 2010, the presentation by Miriam Boeri and I discussed the assumption that all individuals are born with a creative self that expresses itself in varying degrees, which may become oppressed while a group member under totalitarian cultic leadership. We used a Symbolic Interactionist understanding of self and our HCM to suggest that cultic leaders abuse their power when they suppress individual creativity; this suppression may stimulate the birth of a secret creative self (sCS) in members. After a member leaves a cult and is free of suppression from the group, the birth (and life) of a sCS may develop into a strong creative self (SCS) that is more resistant to power dynamics outside the cult, and may result in highly elevated levels of creative expression. Our HCM illustrates the thought processes that a powerless cult member may use to negotiate his/her circumstances while dominated by a controlling leader.
GOOD NEWS! The long-awaited special issue of the Cultic Studies Review is at the presses (as of mid-December 2010). We'll have copies before the year's end! Read Miriam Boeri's and Karen Pressley's article, "Creativity and Cults from Sociological and Communication Perspectives: The Processes Involved in the Birth of a Secret Creative Self." Visit ICSA publications for more info
ICSA Conference info
Speaker info
Agenda
