"The Myth of Brainwashing and Mind Control"
The charge that members of new religious movements (NRMs) are brainwashed
has perhaps been the most widely publicized of all the allegations against them.
The concept of "brainwashing" originated as an attempt to explain what
took place in prisoner of war camps during the Korean War. American soldiers
were subjected to attempts by the Communists to change their political ideas
about communism and capitalism through various depravations, group discussions
and written confessions. This, of course, was done while they were being held
under total physical coercion. As a result, during captivity, some gave the
appearance of having been changed, but only a few were genuinely changed in
their political views. 1
With the growth of NRMs in the US in the 1960s and 70s, many parents
became alarmed at the sudden lifestyle change exhibited by their adult children
after they had converted to a new faith. Many of these young adults left college
and dedicated themselves to full-time work in their new faith community,
oftentimes changing the manner of their appearance (as in the eastern robes of
the Hare Krishna), and donating all of their money to the groups. Unable to
accept this natural occurring conversion experience of their children, some
parents hired professional faith breakers to illegally kidnap their adult
children, confine them and "break them" until they recanted their new faith.
Thus was born in the early 1970s a new cottage industry which came to be
called "deprogramming", undoubtedly borrowing a term from the emerging computer
industry. More accurately, these "guns for hire" were professional "faith
breakers" who assailed their victims with countless hours of imprisonment,
restricted bathroom use, theological harangues, social vilification, sleep and
food depravation, guilt and physical pain. In essence, the victim was
spiritually raped until they "confessed" that they no longer believed in their
new faith.
Despite the emotional appeal of the of the "brainwashing" theory, it has
been repeatedly discredited and dismissed by a wide variety of sociologists,
psychiatrists, theologians and others. Noted psychiatrist Thomas Szasz of the
State University of New York in Syracuse says simply that no one can "wash
brains". Instead, "brainwashing", like many dramatic terms, is a "metaphor." He
adds: "A person can no more wash another's brain with coercion or conversation
than he can make him bleed with a cutting remark. If there is no such thing as
brainwashing, what does the metaphor stand for? It stands for one of the most
universal human experiences and events, namely, for one person influencing
another. However, we do not call all types of personal of psychological
influences "brainwashing." We reserve this term for influence of which we
disapprove."2
The well known Harvard theologian Harvey Cox has this to say about
"brainwashing": "The term "brainwashing" has no respectable standing in the
scientific or psychiatric circles, and is used almost entirely to describe a
process by which somebody has arrived at convictions that (another person)
disagrees with."3
There have been several well executed academic studies of Unification
Church members during the last 20 years (see The Odyssey of New Religions Today,
by John T. Biermans, The Edwin Mellon Press, Lewiston, NY, 1988.)
After careful analysis and study by leading sociologists and psychiatrists, the
conclusion reached was that there is no such activity that could be remotely
construed as "brainwashing" in the Unification Church. In fact, several studies
cited in the same book recount the beneficial aspects of being a member of a
dynamic faith community.
Finally, after several highly publicized court cases involving the
"kidnapping and deprogramming" controversy, courts have ruled and continue to
rule against allowing the theories about "brainwashing" to be admitted as
evidence. The theories have been dismissed as pseudo-science and no longer have
any merit in the academic community.
Also, at the same time, courts and law enforcement began to recognize that
individuals' rights were being trampled upon and stiff sentences were being
handed down on the kidnappers and their associates.
Hundreds of members of NRMs suffered at the hands of these professional
faith breakers and many families were torn apart by them. This social phenomenon
of the 1970s and 80s will surely be remembered as one of the worst instances of
gross human rights violations in US history. Fortunately, science and the law
has prevailed to bring about justice on this issue.
Chris Corcoran
Public Affairs Director
Unification Church of America
June 23, 1999
- 1 Donald T. Lunde and Thomas E. Wilson, "Brainwashing as a Defense to
Criminal Liability: Patty Hearst Revisited", Criminal Law Bulletin, vol. 13,
1977, 347-48.
- 2 Thomas Szasz, "Some Call It Brainwashing", The New Republic, March 6, 1976.
- 3 "Interview With Harvey Cox", in Steven J. Gelberg, ed. Hare Krishna,
Hare Krishna, (New York: Grove Press, 1983) 50.
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