Warping Reality: Inside the Psychology of Cults

De: Wind Goodfriend, The Great Courses

Narrado por: Wind Goodfriend

Many of us have a deeply personal drive to seek inner fulfillment. We want to grow as individuals, explore our own potential, and make an important and lasting contribution to the world. It’s easy to run into groups that promise to help us along the way, and some of these groups are sincere. When a group, or even a charismatic individual, promises to help us meet our goals but then corrupts our good intentions for their own gain—when they exploit people in an organized fashion—that’s when you may have become a member of a cult. And it can happen much more easily than you might think.

In the 12 fascinating lectures of Warping Reality: Inside the Psychology of Cults, you will learn about some of the most widely known cults of modern times. But unlike any standard news reporting or documentary about the Peoples Temple, The Manson “Family,” The Branch Davidians, Heaven’s Gate, Children of God, the Unification Church, and NXIVM, your expert, Dr. Wind Goodfriend, will help you explore the psychology of these cults. How could these cult leaders have committed such heinous crimes under the guise of “helping” members in their development?

In this course, you will not only learn about cults, but you will also meet two former cult members who are willing to share their stories. They explain what led them to join these groups, what they had hoped to get from the groups versus the reality, and why they each stayed for over a decade before walking away.

It is not the cult members who were interested in cult membership to abuse and betray others, but it is the cult leader who has lied to, manipulated, and used their members in fraudulent and violent ways. Learning about cults and the psychology of their leaders is the best way to limit their control over our communities, loved ones, and ourselves.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

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Cultish-ness as a continuum

I appreciate the care taken to put forward rational, analytical theories and insights. The author did a fine job addressing a topic which is typically treated sensationally.

I find the concept of degree of cultish-ness as on a continuum useful, representative of my observations, and rational. The dissection of the phenomenon to consider characteristics and principles by which one may evaluate degree seems of course also pragmatic and readily applied. I include in the previous comment attributes of leaders, members, circumstance, and etc.

The topic would do well to be informed by more rigorous less anecdotally based research.

Chief critique: the narrator. Better as an author. Each sentence seemed inflected like a dramatic reading. That is to say, every sentence was made to feel like the most important sentence. Could / would be much better to match inflection and emphasis with what the most important points indeed.

Clear thorough organization and clarity

Excellent, documented, clear explanations. This is one of the best books on the subject. Highly recommended.

A Gentle Introduction

I enjoy Great Courses and I was intrigued by the title. I had recently seen the TV program "Escaping Polygamy" and as far as watching the show at face value, it was interesting to see how people processed life in cults and life outside them. I would say this course and the TV program were fairly consistent with how we generally understand cults as a society.
This program was very gentle, nothing too shocking or definitive about cults. There were two people who shared perspectives from being in cults. I think the most interesting part for me was how this course focused on how people who are looking for meaning in their own lives can wind up in cults.

Good, insightful

A pretty good, insightful book.
Informative, engaging, well-structured.
Highly recommend.
I particularly liked interviews with real-life cult members, their experiences, and reflections.