I am providing this information because I talk to so many people who are stuck in, or are recovering from highly controlling churches... Dr. Steven Hassan has developed the BITE method of determining if a church is a cult, or getting close to it.
B = Behavior control
I = Information control
T = Thought Control
E= Emotional Control
The BITE Method consists of four major methods of control: Behavior control, Information control, Thought control, and Emotional control. By exerting all four of these types of control, a church or cult can gain full power over a human being and essentially strip them of their free will. There is quite a bit of overlap between these four categories as, for example, our behavior is often dictated in part by our thoughts and emotions; however, by controlling these four areas of someone’s life, you can sever their ability to think for themself.
Behavior Control
Behavior control has to do primarily with restricting and controlling the physical movements of a human being. It’s essentially telling someone, “Go here. Don’t go there.” Cults seek to control who their members live with and associate with, hoping to keep people apart who might share similar dissenting ideas. They also seek to control who you have a relationship with or who you have sex with (probably because they’re afraid that a happy relationship might fill the emotional hole that that person was trying to fill by joining a cult).
Information Control
Successfully brainwashing people necessitates that they don’t have access to information that is contrary to the teachings of the group. In a general sense, this means deliberately withholding information from the cult members, distorting the information so that it’s more in keeping with the ethos of the cult, and systematically lying to cult members.
In its practical applications, information control is carried out by restricting members’ access to television, newspapers, or other media outlets, cutting off their contact with people outside of the cult, and distributing information sources approved by the cult. Cults also encourage their members to spy on each other, creating a sort of buddy system to ensure that no one is consuming outside information.
Thought Control
While behavior control and information control are methods of control imposed by the cult itself, thought control is where members start to internalize the teachings of the cult and impose them on themselves. A huge part of getting people to think in the way you want is to stop them from thinking in contrary ways.
In fact, cults often encourage (though not by name) thought-stopping techniques, meaning techniques that shut down the process of questioning. Activities like chanting, speaking in tongues, singing, humming, dancing, and praying become substitutes for questioning one’s reality, encouraging people to never allow “negative” thoughts into their minds.
In these ways and through the entire atmosphere of the cult, they seek to instill a black-and-white way of thinking into their members. Anything that is in agreement with the cult is good, and anything contrary to the cult is bad and should be avoided or even destroyed. Questions are not allowed.
Emotional Control
In a similar way to how cults teach that certain thoughts are bad, they also teach their members that they must do away with certain emotions. Emotions like restlessness, doubt, homesickness, or anger can cause cult members to dissent, and so cults do everything in their power to eliminate those emotions in their members.
The primary way that cults control people’s emotions is through fear. If you fear the outside world, why would you ever think of leaving the cult? If you fear that you will never find happiness or salvation if you don’t follow the teachings of the cult, why would you ever doubt?
Another way that cults manipulate people’s emotions is by convincing them that all of their problems are their own fault and never the fault of the leader or the group as a whole. By doing so, they instill a sense of self-loathing in their members that causes them to seek the help of the cult to fix their “wretched” ways.
Final thoughts... it is important to remember that these methods aren’t only used by the Branch Davidians and the Manson Family, they can be found in corporate cultures, frat houses, churches, sports teams, and all over the world.
It's a beautiful day in God's world, be sure to see the good.
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I am leading a trip to Ireland October 15-24, 2024.
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If you have questions, feel free to email me at jsbrink57@gmail.com
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