Cult Hackers

Raised as a Jehovah's Witness, now a YouTuber and ex JW activist, Jordan tells his story. He talks about his memories of growing up, dating and relationships, his difficulties when his Brother was disfellowshipped and the pain of his own shunning by his family. We also speak to him about his observations of the trend toward homeschooling as well as consider the possible futures of the Organisation...

Film and TV often depict cultic groups. This week we explore how this is done in Star Trek with the Episode 'The Way to Eden'. We scrutinise this fictional cult using former guest Dr. Lalich's Bounded Choice Model, and also consider how general anxieties in wider society help the viewer to make sense of what they are seeing. Plus we laugh at the amazing cauliflower ears of the cult leader in the s...

Chris is a podcaster, YouTuber and ex scientologist. We talk about his childhood, his journey out of the group, the worldview of Scientology and his studies into coercive control. We also explore the psychology of born-ins and child members of cults and their battle for a sense of self and identity once they leave. Chris is a wonderful guest and very passionate about helping people out of high con...

Just what is optimised crapness? Why should you care? And what has it got to do with customer service? We also introduce our new feature called Tweet of the Week. We've had a heavy few weeks so we thought today we'd lighten things up a bit and talk about some modern day problems with a hint of - how to deal with callers at your door trying to save you from Armageddon.

One of the most influential researchers into cults, Dr Lalich has experienced the phenomena of cults both from the inside, as a member and then as a researcher. She is Professor Emerita of Sociology at California State University, an author and educator and speaks eloquently and compassionately about the experience of being a member of a high control group.  We enjoyed a wonderful interview with D...

This bonus content is a pilot for a new series called Cults as Organizations where I explore Organizational Psychology and how it applies to cults.  In this episode I look at French and Raven's Bases of Power. If you want to watch the illustrations along with the audio you can access it here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqWStGShLgI  

Celine and Stephen look at the seminal work of Margaret Singer: Cults in Our Midst. Now over 25 years old, the book still has important information to tell us about the cult phenomena. Where do Jehovah's Witnesses sit on the Continuum of Influence and Persuasion? The book also prompted Stephen to think about whether we could or should be looking more closely at creating a new taxonomy of different...

Rob Crompton was a Special Pioneer, a full-time preacher for the Jehovah's Witnesses and dedicated to his faith, but he had a thirst for knowledge. After leaving and pursuing higher education he became a Methodist Minister. He is a prolific author with some controversial opinions about religion, the Bible and the process of leaving the High Control Group. Rob's books https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rober...

What is the relationship between commerce and LGBTQ+ issues? Are corporations allies? Or are they merely jumping onto a bandwagon to appear progressive? Is buying power a route to a more progressive society or is direct action more important? In this special episode Celine and Stephen think about these questions, as well as discuss attitudes towards Gay people within fundamentalist Christian group...

Dr Calonddu talks about her life as a young Jehovah's Witness, her academic studies into Anglo Saxon Christianity and its attitudes towards women and sexuality, her exiting process from the Witnesses, her mental health difficulties and recognition of her own sexuality. A fascinating and unique perspective from a remarkable guest. Resources https://www.faithtofaithless.com/  

What is 'Body Positivity'? Celine gives her dad the history and they discuss the somewhat mixed messages around this subject. Stephen thinks back to the negative messages about bodies and sinfulness that he remembers being raised as a Jehovah's Witnesses, and its association with the belief in the fall of man.

Our Sunday Interview is with Professor Chris French, Emeritus Professor and Head of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit at Goldsmiths, University of London. As well as being a well respected academic and researcher he has also appeared on many TV shows and documentaries investigating apparent psychic or supernatural phenomena. We talk to Professor French about his work on false memories and t...

What would happen to Christian Fundamentalist's beliefs if we discovered life on other planets or if they visited us on Earth? How would their theology cope with such a revelation? Jehovah's Witnesses and other Groups have a theology that puts the Earth at the centre of a sort of Universal courtroom drama, so what would this mean? You can read a transcript of the episode here: https://www.evilshee...

Celine asks her dad to explore what it means to be a man and she explores her female gender.  Questions based upon Heather Flowers @HTHRFLWRS    

A fabulous interview, Ali is an author and podcaster. Ali talks about her life as a Jehovah's Witness, her secret passion for writing, why she enjoyed doing assignments in the Theocratic Ministry School and how she left, including the fears she experienced as she exited the High Control Group. We explore with Ali the difficulties of leaving behind everything she knew, the pain of losing family con...

As a Jehovah's Witness getting involved in making the world a better place is not encouraged. When you leave such a High Control Organization the opportunity to get involved can be exciting and a bit overwhelming. We discuss activism in all its forms.

A very special episode today as we interview Alex Millar, world renowned artist. Alex was raised as a Jehovah's Witness and was an elder before leaving, going through a very difficult period until he discovered his real calling. Warning: During our discussion there is mention of suicidal thoughts. Alex talks frankly, and with plenty of humour about his life as a Jehovah's Witness child, growing up...

One of the most common ways of describing a cult is that it has a charismatic leader, but just what does that mean. Charisma has been studied or decades in organizational psychology so Stephen and Celine explore some of the research and discuss whether it's a good or a bad thing.    References Bass, B. M., & Steidlmeier, P. (1999). Ethics, character, and authentic transformational leadership behav...

High Control Organisations often take a very specific political stance. Jehovah's Witness are taught that Christians must be politically neutral, which means not voting - not even having an opinion about issues that affect you, such as how much tax you should pay or what the laws should be. Upon leaving it feels wonderful to be able to make your own decisions. Today we look at just a few political...

Today We take a very deep dive into Festinger, Riecken & Schacter's seminal work "When Prophecy Fails". This episode is packed with crazy stuff; exploration of the 1800's Millerite movement (to later inspire Jehovah's Witnesses and others), automatic writing, UFO cults, dianetics practitioners, flood prophecies, flying saucers, Atlantis with a bit of 'The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu' thrown in for...

How does it go when a Jehovah's Witness child explains to a teacher why he is not comfortable reading a book with foul language? Spoiler alert! Not well!

Riley is an ex Jehovah's Witness and activist. He talks about his experience leaving the organisation, the changes he has seen in himself and the excitement of being able to make decisions about politics. He talks about the people who were there for him and his newly found passion for martial arts. Riley's YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTJ2YmTMxtqdhYpdrVtwWGQ  

High control groups normally have a lot to say about how you should raise your children. First we look at child-rearing using the Bible as guide. Stephen remembers listening to the sound of corporal punishment at the Kingdom Hall and then we look at what psychological research has to say - particularly around attachment theory.   Example of the Strange Situation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jql...

As a partner to the Episode 26. 'The Supernatural', Celine and Stephen review Red Lights, a movie starring Sigourney Weaver, Robert De Niro and Cillian Murphy, about a team of professional investigators into psychic phenomena.  Celine suggests an alternative but intriguing alternative reading to the film.  

Celine and Stephen explore the question of whether the supernatural exists. What about faith healers and Spirit Mediums? Stephen remembers some of the weird and wonderful beliefs he was taught and the strong cultural tropes Jehovah's Witnesses and Ex JW's will recognise about 'The Demons'. There are stories about demonic possessed return visits and demons inhabiting second hand furniture!    Readi...