
Cults Inside Out: How People Get In and Can Get Out
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Narrated by:
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Daniel Adam Day
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By:
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Rick Alan Ross
About this listen
You’ve seen them in movies and on TV, but cults are more prevalent than you think - and they’re armed with strategies that can brainwash and persuade even the most unlikely of candidates.
But how do individuals get involved with cults in the first place, and what steps can be taken to “deprogram” and heal those who have been drawn into these damaging groups?
These questions and more are addressed in Cults Inside Out, written by leading cult expert Rick Alan Ross. Over the course of three decades, Ross has participated in around 500 cult interventions, provided expert court testimony, and performed cult-related work all around the world.
With the help of current and former cult members, Ross demonstrates many of the tactics the groups use for control and manipulation - and, more importantly, some of the most effective methods he and other experts have used to reverse that programming.
As a result, listeners will find themselves armed with a greater understanding of the nature of destructive cults and an improved ability to assess and deal with similar situations - either in their own lives or the lives of friends and family members.
©2014 Rick A. Ross (P)2021 Rick A. RossListeners also enjoyed...
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Performance
-
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Investigative journalist Sarah Berman explores the shocking practices of NXIVM, a cult run by Keith Raniere and many enablers. Through the accounts of central NXIVM figures, Berman uncovers how dozens of women seeking creative coaching and networking opportunities instead were blackmailed, literally branded, near-starved, and enslaved. Don't Call It a Cult is a riveting account of NXIVM's rise to power, its ability to evade prosecution for decades, and the investigation that finally revealed its dark secrets to the world.
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Detailed (best for those already interested)
- By JR on 05-02-21
By: Sarah Berman
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Cultish
- The Language of Fanaticism
- By: Amanda Montell
- Narrated by: Ann Marie Gideon
- Length: 8 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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What makes “cults” so intriguing and frightening? What makes them powerful? The reason why so many of us binge Manson documentaries by the dozen and fall down rabbit holes researching suburban moms gone QAnon is because we’re looking for a satisfying explanation for what causes people to join - and more importantly, stay in - extreme groups. We secretly want to know: could it happen to me? Amanda Montell’s argument is that, on some level, it already has.
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Get this book ASAP
- By chris boutte on 06-17-21
By: Amanda Montell
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Beyond Belief
- My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape
- By: Jenna Miscavige Hill
- Narrated by: Sandy Rustin
- Length: 11 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
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Jenna Miscavige Hill, niece of Church of Scientology leader David Miscavige, was raised as a Scientologist but left the controversial religion in 2005. In Beyond Belief, she shares her true story of life inside the upper ranks of the sect, details her experiences as a member Sea Org - the church's highest ministry - speaks of her "disconnection" from family outside of the organization, and tells the story of her ultimate escape.
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The Despicable Truth Behind Scientology
- By Tim on 02-07-13
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Cult Following
- The Extreme Sects That Capture Our Imaginations—and Take Over Our Lives
- By: J. W. Ocker
- Narrated by: Kimberly M. Wetherell
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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In Cult Following, Ocker sheds light on the terrifying attraction of cults, demonstrating the elasticity of belief, the desperateness of belonging, and the tragedy of trust.
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The closing was a drive home for the message of this book and was touching.
- By andrea on 01-22-25
By: J. W. Ocker
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The Cult of Trump
- A Leading Cult Expert Explains How the President Uses Mind Control
- By: Steven Hassan
- Narrated by: Steven Hassan
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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The Cult of Trump is an accessible and in-depth analysis of the president, showing that under the right circumstances, even sane, rational, well-adjusted people can be persuaded to believe the most outrageous ideas. Hassan’s audiobook is essential listening for anyone wanting to understand the Trump phenomenon and looking for a way forward.
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Tools to deprogram
- By N. Squier on 01-11-20
By: Steven Hassan
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The Program
- Inside the Mind of Keith Raniere and the Rise and Fall of NXIVM
- By: Toni Natalie, Chet Hardin
- Narrated by: Toni Natalie
- Length: 7 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Many have heard of NXIVM and its creator, Keith Raniere, the unassuming Albany man now prosecuted for ensnaring tens of thousands of people in the US, Mexico, Canada, and elsewhere to do his bidding and pay millions of dollars to participate in his self-improvement methodology. But where did Keith Raniere begin? Enter Toni Natalie, Keith's Patient Zero, the first one indoctrinated into Raniere's methodology and the first one to escape.
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Important addation to the NXIVM story
- By Dennis Hinkamp on 10-20-19
By: Toni Natalie, and others
So important
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Very informative
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The author outlines success stories and failures, it makes for an extensive perspective about dealing with people and interventions.
Informative and interesting read!
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Very insightful book
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A fascinating & thorough explanation of cults
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Ross details in psychological terms what leads people into cults, why they stay despite, perhaps because of, abuse and isolation, and why some of them get out either with help or by themselves. He spends a lot of time talking about his own experience being brought in by spouses, parents and other family and friends to break the hold cults have on their adherents. Most of the time, he says, he succeeds, but not always.
Besides discussing the cults themselves, he provides some very interesting history on how police, governments, the press, and mainstream religions react to and (usuallyt) try to battle cults.
I grabbed this book from Audible to get away from the long list of political books I've been reading and failed in that goal. Though this book was written before Trump's campaign and election, I couldn't help hearing just how much Trump's rhetoric resembled that of cult leaders in convincing them that he, and only he, could "fix" things and every time someone challenges him, it is a "witchhunt" or an attack.
It is also interesting that Ross discussed not only religious cults but many other types of organizations that try to control their adherents, including multilevel-marketing scams, yoga Gurus, and even family cults.
He does try to make a distinction between mainstream religion and dangerous cult religions, but sometimes it feels like he glosses over inconvenient facts there.
The reader in my Audible version, Daniel Day Adams, was pretty much as staid and workmanlike in reading as Ross was in writing the book. So don't expect an emotional experience listening to this book, but he is clear and concise in reading and, I guess, makes the book everything Ross intended. At 16h 20m, it is a long book and I admit I found myself wandering occasionally and having to go back and re-listen to parts, but overall, I feel I learned a lot by listening.
Fascinating, informative, dry-ish study of cults
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On a practical level, if you have a loved one who is in a situation that might be a destructive cult, this book will help you identify the hallmarks of such groups. If you have a loved one in an abusive relationship, there is a case study towards the end of the book that has a checklist that can help identify the characteristics of such a situation. Ross also has a website, https://culteducation.com/ where you can go to find help and learn more. I am blown away by the scope and breadth of his work, and appreciate him greatly, and also people like him who are helping the friends and families of those who have been manipulated by destructive cults and their deceptive, damaging practices. His website has a reading list on it for further study, if you click on the "books" link.
But back to this review. Years ago, my mother fell in with a group that transformed into a cult, and it had a terrible and painful impact on her, on me, and on my family. I'm pleased to report that our story had a happy ending, and my mom got out safely, with all her previous relationships intact, but it seemed utterly hopeless for a long time. She was isolated at a group compound in another state, and we lost contact with her for months. It was excruciating, and it took years for everyone, especially my mom, to heal.
I wish with all my heart that this book had been around then to guide me. I also wish the Internet had existed, but it didn't at the time. Reading this book recalled so many truths, and as Ross breaks down the patterns associated with cults and manipulative leaders, I found myself nodding my head and exclaiming out loud, "Exactly!" again and again. He knows what he is talking about.
Trigger warning- if you have a hard time listening to stories of child abuse, including murder and sexual assault, you may be very uncomfortable with the opening chapters, which lay out some of the most heinous cult behaviors of the last century. I know I did, but I forced myself to listen anyway- the writing and narration in this book is objective, and these stories are presented as factual events, not sensationalized in any way. They are also in a justified context, because it is critically important when evaluating cults to understand the havoc that they can create in people's lives. Understanding the history of what is possible when cults escalate to fever pitch grounds their potential to damage in a real context, as hard as it may be to fathom.
The book itself is on the academic side, and the general tone is scientific, objective and clinical. This description applies to both the text and the narration, which is good, but also sounds very much like a textbook. This is not the sensational text equivalent of a tabloid TV special, it's a factual book meant to educate the public about what cults are, how they develop, and how to deal with them. I was particularly impressed with how Ross is very respectful of both those who have become embroiled in cults and those who are trying to help them. He always sounds mindful, thoughtful, and understanding of each context in every one of the case studies described. This is the person you want guiding you if you are in any situation that might prompt you to consult a book like this because of circumstances in your own life.
Finally, this book clearly lays out what works and what doesn't when it comes to helping loved ones who are stuck in cults free themselves. There is a proven path to success, and Ross is very transparent about his own experiences in both successful and failed deprogramming efforts. I am thankful for this book, and I will be seeking out all other publications and work by this thoughtful author, whose work is nothing short of a public service.
Must-read, actionable advice in practical contexts
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