'Dangerous groups' seek students

Does God exist? What is the meaning of life? What is my place in the world?

Wouldn't it be nice to have someone hand you the answers?

Well, the good news is that somebody is willing to try. The bad news is what they may seek in return.

Rick Hill, coordinator of interfaith ministries at James Madison University in Harrisburg, Va., said many "dangerous groups" - or cults, as they are more commonly known - are giving students the answers to many of life's most baffling questions.

A cult, Hill said, is a destructive group with a hidden agenda of power. This agenda is achieved by deceptive recruitment and control over the minds and lives of its members.

College students make easy targets for cult recruitment.

"College students are between two major stages in their lives," Hill said. This transition phase results from the questioning of one's borrowed faith, developed in childhood, and a need to establish one's personal beliefs. The internal chaos makes students "susceptible to someone who says this is the answer," Hill said.

"Students must be comfortable with mystery or ambiguity," Hill said. "Be comfortable with not knowing."

Charles LaBounty, a professor of psychology at Hamline University in Madison, Wis., said students and much of the college-aged population are at risk of psychological manipulation.

"A student is a person in progress," Hill said.

When encountering new ideas and belief systems, the safest way to protect your well-being is through critical thinking, experts said.

Don't take any information a group presents at face value, Hill said. "Always question, don't trust any body's answer, get a variety of viewpoints," he said.

When trying to distinguish whether or not an organization has legetimately good intentions, LaBounty suggests checking out its sources.

"Go to a relevant website and see what people have to say, both critics and supporters," LaBounty said.

One of the websites LaBounty suggested, http://www.skepdic.com, gives a complete listing of questionable groups under the keyword "cults."

Although DPS officials state they have no knowledge of any dangerous groups on campus, students aren't so sure.

"You always see the people out on the Diag," LSA first-year Adam Slater said. If they are cult-like groups, "the University should take actions to stop them, or make students more aware of what's going on."

LSA first-year student Kristin McCasey said she would like to see the University make more information available to students.

"I'm not really informed about cults, I think it would be interesting to know," McCasey said.

Although freedom of speech and freedom of religion rights inhibit public universities from banning representatives of certain groups on campus, other universities have focused their efforts on educating the student population.

At Hamline University, LaBounty teaches a class on manipulative psychology. Other universities, including Madison University, have offered informational lectures on the subject of cult awareness.

Cult Tactics

1. Deception: A group representative won't identify the fact that they are recruiting for a group.

2. Control: The dangerous group may manipulate one into group dependency for identity and support.

3. Confession and Guilt: Confessions may be used to convince the person of how sinful the person was before they came into the group.

4 Rejection of Family, Friends and Society: The group will try to cut one off from outside influences.

5 Obedience: The dangerous group will expect total obedience.

6 Total Commitment: The group expects one to spend all assets, both financial and otherwise.

10-07-98