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ICSA Survey's

Former Cult Member Questionnaire

ICSA Religion Committee

NOTE:  We no longer need subjects for this survey - feel free to take the survey.  We thank very much the more than 250 people who did respond - see a report on the results.

ICSA’s Religion Committee seeks to develop a network of mainstream religious organizations (e.g., churches, synagogues, campus religious groups) that can provide former members of cultic groups a safe religious environment without hidden agendas and that can offer them practical help or advice (e.g., housing, employment, medical care), pastoral counseling, referral to psychotherapists, and other assistance.  Many religious organizations already offer such services to populations in need.  ICSA hopes to tap into this resource, offer training to religious organizations, and connect them to cult-aware resources, such as therapists, support groups, and others.  Eventually, we hope to have at least one or two participating religious organizations in each major metropolitan area.

We are aware that some former members of cultic groups are reluctant to approach mainstream religious organizations.  However, many are not; indeed, many seek assistance from these organizations, although with mixed results.  This project focuses on those who are open to help from mainstream religious organizations.

Before establishing a network of cult-aware religious organizations, ICSA wants to survey former members of cultic groups and others in order to determine the specific kinds of assistance that ex-members need.  Your responses to the questionnaire below will help us to understand what kinds of help former members need. Please answer whether or not you would or would have considered seeking support from a religious  institution.

“Ex-member” in the questions below refers to the person who is/was in a cultic group. 

Family members, friends, and helping professionals may also complete the survey. Helping professionals who have worked with multiple ex-members and/or second generation adults may select one or more cases that specifically address the questions in this survey. Please resubmit a new form for each case, limiting the number to those most salient for the purposes of this survey and leaving blank those questions that seem inappropriate.

Thank you!

Please provide the following contact information, if you wish.  Do provide your birth date and gender. Thank you.

 

First Name
Last Name
Middle Initial

Organization

(if applicable)

Street Address
Address (cont.)
City
State/Province
Zip/Postal Code
Country
Work Phone
Home Phone
FAX
E-mail
URL
Birth Date
Gender Male Female
1A Are you a former member of a cultic group?

Yes No

1B

Are you a family member or friend of a person who was involved in a cultic group? 

Yes No

1C Are you a helping professional?

Yes No

1D If you are none of the above, what would you call yourself?

2 Name of group to which ex-member belonged (or name of leader if the group has no name):  

3 Year/month that ex-member joined group (approximate):

Yr (2000) Mo (12)

4 Year/month that ex-member left (approximate):

Yr (2000) Mo (12)

5 Religion in which ex-member was raised:

6 Protestant - specify denomination

7 Other - specify

8 Religion that ex-member currently practices:

9 Protestant - specify denomination:

10 Other - specify:

11 After ex-member left his/her group, did he/she ever seek assistance from a church, synagogue, or other mainstream religious organization?

Yes No

12

If yes, please rate the helpfulness of this assistance. 

not at all helpful
somewhat helpful
helpful
very helpful

 

13

If yes, please describe who helped you and what kind of help you received or sought but did not receive:

14

If assistance at a mainstream religious organization, such as a church/synagogue, had been available to ex-member when he/she left the group, how likely would he/she have been to take advantage of it?

very unlikely
unlikely
uncertain
likely
very likely

 

15

If ex-member needed help for family, friends or him/herself when he/she left the group, please indicate below who needed help by checking all that are applicable.

yourself
siblings    How many?
spouse
children   How many?
parents
friends or other family

 

 

Please rate the degree to which the ex-member or others who left with him/her needed the particular service when he/she left the group.  If more than one person needed the service, give the rating for the person who needed it most.

  Service not needed slight need moderate need high need extreme need

don’t know

16 Housing
17 Medical Services
18 Transportation
19 Childcare
20 Legal Guidance
21 A Job
22 Financial Guidance
23 Employment/Vocational Guidance/Training
24

Therapist

25 Specialist on Cults
26 Support Group
27

Food

28 Clothing
29 $ for Incidentals
30 Educational Counseling
31 Paperwork (e.g., Photo ID, Birth Certificate, Social Security Number)
32 Health Insurance
33 Information on Cults
34 Spiritual Guidance
35 Other
36 Please describe below any other factors that you believe we should consider in trying to develop a network of churches, synagogues, and other mainstream religious organizations that can serve as resources for former members of cultic groups.

Author information goes here.
Copyright © 2008International Cultic Studies Association. All rights reserved.
Revised: 10/04/08

 
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