Coercive Control Articles

If you were indoctrinated into an authoritarian religious group—often referred to as a religious cult or high-control religion—chances are high you’ve experienced what cult experts call “programming.” These terms—authoritarian religion, high-control religion, and religious cult—can be used interchangeably because they all share a common thread: using religious doctrine to coerce and control the lives of…

When I first began to deconstruct my faith, I struggled to make sense of my experiences. I struggled because nothing in my religious past seemed to fit the conventional idea of trauma or abuse. I hadn’t been physically or verbally assaulted by a religious leader, and there really weren’t any dramatic moments of obvious manipulation…

Spiritual bypassing isusing spirituality or religious beliefs to avoid addressing unresolved emotional issues. It’s also used to avoid dealing with difficult circumstances or as a way to avoid engaging in personal growth. Spiritual bypassing could really be most accurately categorized as an “unhealthy coping mechanism.” It’s usually either the suppression of something “bad” or an…

We see a lot of narcissism in high control religions. But narcissism in these settings is not always easy to detect because of the ways these religious groups actually tend to foster narcissistic traits in people. Not only this, but high control religions will sometimes even frame narcissistic traits as positives — especially in the…

Religious cults, or high-control religions, use various tactics to manipulate and control nearly every aspect of their members’ lives. One of the most damaging forms of manipulation is emotion control. Emotion control isn’t unique to religious cults but is commonly used by authoritarian groups to maintain power over members. It often causes long-term harm, showing…

Phobia indoctrination is a tactic most commonly used by cults to convert and control followers. But did you know that high control religions also use phobia indoctrination with a similar intent — to convert people to their brand of religion and to then control them using fear-based tactics? Recognizing how these tactics are being used by certain…

Those of us who have experienced high control, authoritarian religions intuitively know that this type of religion makes women more vulnerable to abusive relationships. It’s a vulnerability I have experienced both personally and have encountered numerous times professionally. When you’re raised in a high control religion, or even indoctrinated into a high control religion as…

Someone recently asked me this question – “Why are religious people so prone to conspiracy theories?” It’s an excellent question. And it’s definitely a scary trend I’ve been noticing myself since coming out of the fog of my own religious indoctrination experience. I’m going to give you the short answer, and then we’ll unpack it…