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This article is an electronic version of an article originally
published in Cultic Studies Journal, 1996, Volume 13, Number 2, pages 171-193.
Please keep in mind that the pagination of this electronic reprint differs from
that of the bound volume. This fact could affect how you enter bibliographic
information in papers that you may write.
Group Influence and the Psychology of Cultism
Within Re-evaluation Counseling: A Critique
Dennis Tourish, Ph.D.
Pauline Irving, Ph.D.
Abstract
Re-evaluation Counseling (often known as co-counseling, or simply RC) has
recently been described as an “innovative” form of therapy, despite the fact
that it has existed for over 40 years. It has also been suggested that it is, or
is becoming, a psychotherapy “cult.” This paper discusses the key theoretical
ideas of Re-evaluation Counseling and assesses the extent to which some of these
ideas could enable unscrupulous therapists to engineer artificial consent and
impose their own belief systems on clients. RC’s strong reliance on group-based
activities is also explored, and the extent to which this facilitates
unthinking conformity is considered. Finally, guidelines are discussed which
enable therapists and would-be clients to assess more clearly the potentially
negative effects of involvement in groups such as RC.
Full text available through
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