Cult

Cult What causes people to join cults' One of the misconceptions is that the only people attracted to cults are those who are mentally unstable. But from research it is known that, those with greater education are more likely to join cults. It shows that cults are not always attractive to the uneducated, as one might think. The term cult means something different, something other than normal, something that is different. Generally most people think that a cult is strange or abnormal, the problem of identifying a cult is affected by the fact that even experts in cultic studies realize that, no scientific test accurately establishes whether or not a group is indeed a cult (Barker). Currently, the most popular cult is the Moonies, or the followers of Reverend Sun Myung Moon. This cult draws attention because of its “media and political linkages, financial practices and commercial diversification” (Maxim). A few years ago, twenty-one female and nineteen male followers of the Heaven’s Gate cult committed mass suicide in order to follow the Hale Bop comet (Zimbardo). This incident raised a new awareness of the damage cults can cause. Another example of cults would be the Branch Davidian Cult that existed in Waco, Texas. people, cults, cult, religious, causes, cialdini, join, person, demaris, conformity, bader, cause, stake, one, number, members, likely, education, because, years, turning, tend, survey, subjects, something, society, social, persons, order, made, less, first, different, another, whether