Life inside a deviant “religious” group: Conformity and commitment as ensured through ‘brainwashing’ or as the result of normal processes of socialisation

The ‘dependency inducing practices’, sometimes called ‘brainwashing’, that are commonly alleged to occur in deviant “religious” groups such as a cult movements or new religious movements are not well understood and have promoted considerable debate. There is a general agreement that many of these groups are controlled environments in which conformity to behavioural, emotive, cognitive and social expectations as determined by leadership is expected and enforced; however, whether conformity is the result of normal processes of socialisation or deviant practices such as brainwashing that cause harm continues to be disputed. To gain an increased understanding of the conformity and commitment inducing practices that occur in ‘cult movements’, the accounts of group life of 23 former members of 11 different groups were analysed. A conceptualisation of ‘brainwashing’ as on a continuum of social influence is proposed, and some legal implications are discussed.