Them and Us: Cult Thinking and the Terrorist Threat [Paperback]

M.D. Arthur J. Deikman (Author), Doris Lessing (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 17, 2006

Shows the connection between extreme cult manipulation and group pressures that can be found in any organization.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this expansion of his 1990 book The Wrong Way Home, UCSF psychiatry professor Deikman persuasively links cult thinking to patterns of behavior and thought found in everyday life-and, with no qualitative differences, to the terrorist groups that threaten that life. He argues that bizarre cults such as those of Jonestown and Waco are not utterly alien, but are extreme forms of behavior and thinking so common that "almost all of us might be seen as members of invisible cults." The core of cult thinking, says Deikman, is the dependency dream, the universal wish to be protected by a strong, wise parent ruling over a close family-epitomized by a Peanuts cartoon as the "wish to ride in the back seat of the car." This fantasy is dangerous because it is unrealistic and entails hostility toward outsiders, characterized as "Them." In a chilling case study of two cult members, Deikman explores four basic cultish behaviors: compliance with the group; dependence on a leader; devaluing the outsider; and avoiding dissent. But he spends more time showing how these behaviors operate in established religion, business, government, media, and other "normal" venues. He makes suggestions for escaping cult thinking (such as fostering dissent) and applies his research to the seeming thinking behind al Qaeda-like movements.. The book has flaws, including weak updating (many references are no fresher than the 1980s) and a set of political touchstones that may alienate some readers. But his central point is well taken: that cult thinking is both pervasive and worth resisting.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"A highly persuasive, ground-breaking analysis." -- Booklist

"An excellent guide on how to recognize these tendencies in yourself and others, and do something about them." -- Whole Earth Review

"Incisive, extremely useful, and ultimately forward-looking." -- Janja Lalich, Asst. Professor of Sociology, California State University, Chico and author of Bounded Choice

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Bay Tree Publishing (August 17, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 097200212X
• ISBN-13: 978-0972002127
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,572,028 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A chillingly in-depth psychological study, February 7, 2004

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Them and Us: Cult Thinking and the Terrorist Threat (Paperback)

Them And Us: Cult Thinking And The Terrorist Threat by Arthur J. Deikman (Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, University of California - San Francisco and a recognized expert on cult psychology) is a close and compelling study of human tendencies that can be (and have been) drawn into extreme variants that promote horrific human behaviors. Belittling others, clamping down on dissention, relying too heavily on an inspiring leader, are all common traits that, if embraced with no checks or balances, can readily lead to such nightmares as the loss of life at Waco or the September 11th attacks. Them And Us is commended as a particularly thought provoking, scholarly, and chillingly in-depth psychological study.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary Insight into Modern Social Movements, June 30, 2008

By 

Amélie - See all my reviews

This review is from: Them and Us: Cult Thinking and the Terrorist Threat (Paperback)

Deikman compassionately analyses the psychological mechanisms by which we can become enmeshed in cult thinking. The sobering conclusion is that none of us are immune: we are all vulnerable and, to some extent, already enmeshed in a number of "cults" ("If you're not with us, you're against us" -- sound familiar?). The key is to understand how the relevant psychology works, and recognize its action in ourselves and others, lest we allow it to "get behind us" and influence decisions that ought to be rational.

Deikman never despises the people he studies, nor does he reduce them to being helpless victims and/or evil oppressors. Rather, he presents a clear and compassionate view of complex truths, backed up by solid evidence from modern psychological and sociological data. I strongly recommend this book for anyone interested in religion, politics, or modern society.