A Dissertation Presented to
The Faculty of the College of
Education
Ohio University
In Partial Fulfillment
of the
Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Philosophy
by
Ronald
Burks
March 4,
2002
____________________________________________
Associate Professor,
Department of Counseling
and Higher Education
____________________________________________
Dean of the
College of Education
Dedication
This work and all my
publications to this point, are dedicated to those to whom the words of a
pastor, guru, mentor or spiritual master have become wounds to the
soul.
This work is also dedicated to the memory of Louis Jolyon West, a
true pioneer in thought reform research and an example that those of us who work
for human rights must first be humans. Our care for those whose lives have been
hijacked by another’s selfishness must reflect our humanity. So must our
research. Researchers in human rights work must be accountable for their bias
and subject their work to rigorous examination. The cause of freedom of thought
can only be furthered with facts. Facts are more valuable than agendas. I hope
this work furthers his ideals as well as his hope that no group of people will
ever be judged for their beliefs or practices, only held accountable for the
effects of those beliefs and practices.
Acknowledgements
This
work would not have happened or this Ph. D. degree pursued, had it not been for
my good fortune to be able to work at Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center.
Its director, Dr. Paul R. Martin, is dedicated to rendering quality care and
developing that care through continuous research.
Through this association,
I have been privileged to meet several research professionals who have dedicated
their careers to the pursuit of human rights through freedom of thought. Dr.
Margaret Thaler Singer who has labored in this stony field for over 50 years was
gracious enough to read the proposal when it was in process. Dr. Michael
Langone, director of American Family Foundation, a research and information
resource organization who keeps encouraging researchers on four continents to
keep up the good work.
Dr. Peter Malinowski, whom I met when he was a
first-year doctoral student in Psychology at Ohio University and who has learned
a thing or two about research and statistics in the intervening years, read and
provided valuable input. Dr. Malinowski, Dr. Steve Lynn and others developed
with us at Wellspring what has become known on both sides of the Atlantic as the
Ohio Battery, a collection of measures through which the data this study was
collected. Dr. Steven Clay, faculty at the Ohio University College of
Osteopathic Medicine was read the drafts before they saw the light of day so my
glaring errors would be less noticeable. My spouse, Vicki made sure my little
errors, missing commas, wrong words, weak sentences would be less noticeable.
And finally, thanks to the faculty of the Counseling department, who
prepare students to be persons first, counselors second, and mirror that by
courageously being who they are. Dr. Davis, my committee chair, and advisor
demonstrates how counselor education is done. Dr. Jerry Olsheski, Dr. George
Johanson, and Dr. Steven Patterson, who has carried on the interest of the
Department of Psychology in this field by graciously agreeing to participate in
this endeavor, have all made this a very positive learning experience.
Table of Contents
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defined.
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Dedication
iii
Acknowledgements iv
Table of Contents v
Chapter I
1
Background of the Study 1
Statement of the Problem 2
Research
Hypothesis 2
Significance 2
Limitations 3
Delimitations
4
Definitions of Terms 5
Summary 7
Chapter II - Review of the
Literature 8
Introduction to the Literature 8
Critical Review of
Relevant Literature 9
Clinical Impressions of Ex–members 9
Thought
Reform or“Brainwashing”10
Empirical Studies of Current Members
13
Concerns with Studies of Current Members 15
Studies with Former
Members 16
Concerns With Studies With Former Members 20
Trauma and
Cults 20
Summary and Conclusions 21
Strengths and Weaknesses of the
Literature 21
The Proposed Research 21
How the Literature Supports the
Need for This Study 22
Chapter III - Methodology 23
The Sample
23
Data Collection 25
Operational Definition of the Variables
26
Instrumentation 26
Research Hypotheses 29
Design of the Study
30
Summary 30
Chapter IV - Results 32
Descriptive Analyses
32
Pre- and Post Treatment GPA Scores 38
Affective Contribution
39
Post Hoc Analysis 41
Summary 43
Chapter V - Discussion of
Implications, Conclusions and Recommendations 44
Overview 44
Reason
for the Study 44
Participant Demographics 44
The Hypotheses of the
Study: Discussion and Comment 46
Veracity of Ex-member Recollections
47
Relative Contribution of Measures of Affect 48
Discussion of Post
Hoc Findings 50
Limitations of the Study 50
Implications for
Counselors and Public Policy 51
Suggestions for Future Research
52
References 53
Appendixes 59
Appendix A - IRB Letters
60
Appendix B - Consent form Used by Participants in this Study
61
Appendix C - Demographic Questionnaire 62
Appendix D - The“Ohio
Battery”From Which This Study Was Taken 63
Appendix E - Boxplot of Post Hoc
Study 64 |
