Comprehending Cults: The Sociology of New Religious Movements

Henry G. MacLeod teaches sociology at both Trent University and the
University of

Waterloo.

Drawing on the latest social scientific research, this book attempts to
dispel popular misconceptions about contemporary religious cults. In
particular, the author is responding to what he views as superficial and
often hostile media portrayals of cults as organizations run by
charismatic leaders who use violence and sophisticated mind-control
techniques to maintain control over members.

Dawson presents a more balanced picture of the beliefs, practices,
failings, and significance of cults in North America. He argues that
there is great diversity among the new religious movements, and that
they emerge from a desire to satisfy spiritual needs. He cites a study
that suggests that media bias probably contributed to the deaths of the
Branch Davidians, under David Koresh, in Waco, Texas. In addition to
defining new religious movements, Dawson discusses why they are growing
in size and number, who joins and why, whether converts are brainwashed,
why some cults turn violent, and the significance of these movements for
the future of religion and culture in North America.

Dawson draws heavily on the sociology of religion. Scholars in that
field will find a few shortcomings. For example, the presentation of the
church–sect–cult typology only briefly mentions the denomination,
which many see as a major category. The general reader, unfortunately,
may find the accounts of the media and the anti-cultists easier to read
and thus more appealing. Caveats aside, Comprehending Cults is an
important book.