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| | {{epname|Singer, Margaret}} | | {{epname|Singer, Margaret}} |
| | + | '''Margaret Thaler Singer''' (July 29, 1921 – November 23, 2003) was a [[clinical psychology|clinical psychologist]]. Her main areas of research included [[schizophrenia]] and [[family therapy]], but she is best known for her work on [[cult]]s. Margaret Singer was a well-known proponent of the idea that [[New Religious Movement]]s (NRM), or "cults" as she considered them, used "[[brainwashing]]" to recruit, train, and retain members. |
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| | + | Her research garnered the attention of respected psychological institutions and high-profile prosecutors, and she was called to testify as an expert witness in numerous trials involving [[deprogramming]] of members of NRMs. Singer chaired the [[American Psychological Association]]'s (APA) task force that investigated whether "brainwashing" or coercive [[persuasion]] did indeed play a role in recruitment by such movements. Their report was rejected by the APA, and Singer's credibility rapidly declined as the public became better informed about the true nature of deprogramming. |
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| | + | Singer was one of those well-meaning but misguided professionals who came to prominence in the latter part of the twentieth century, at the time when New Religious Movements, including the [[Unification Church]], emerged as a powerful force bringing about a new spiritual awakening in American society. The ignorance regarding such religions on the part of the public, particularly family members of those recruited, rapidly turned to fear with tragedies such as the [[Jonestown]] mass [[suicide]]s of members of [[Jim Jones]]' [[Peoples Temple]]. To those desperate to save their children, Margaret Singer appeared as a lifeline. Unfortunately, her efforts were misguided, and many suffered at the hands of deprogrammers. Her legacy remains as an example of how even those trained in the study of human nature can be misled by false accusation. |
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| − | '''Margaret Thaler Singer''' (1921 - 2003) was a clinical psychologist and adjunct professor emeritus of [[psychology]] at the [[University of California, Berkeley]], [[United States|U.S.]].
| + | ==Life== |
| − | | + | Margaret Singer was born in [[Denver]], [[Colorado]] on July 29, 1921. The only child of an Irish Catholic family, Singer’s father worked as the chief operating engineer at the [[U.S. Mint]] while her mother worked as a secretary to a federal judge. |
| − | Singer's main areas of research included [[schizophrenia]], [[family therapy]], [[brainwashing]] and [[coercive persuasion]]. Singer performed research at the [[University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center|University of Colorado]]’s [[Medical School|School of Medicine]], [[Walter Reed Army Medical Center]] Institute of Research, the [[National Institute of Mental Health]], the [[United States Air Force]] and the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]. She received many awards for her work, including the [[Leo J. Ryan Award|Leo J. Ryan Memorial Award]], the Research Scientist Award from the National Institute of Mental Health, and both the Hofheimer Prize and the Stanley R. Dean Award from the American College of Psychiatrists.
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| − | In the 1960s she began to study the nature of [[cult]]s and [[mind control]] and served on the board of the [[American Family Foundation]]. She is the author of the book ''[[Cults in Our Midst]]''. She gave expert testimony in several cult-related trials, including the 1976 trial of [[Patty Hearst]], who had previously been kidnapped by the [[Symbionese Liberation Army]], and the 1977 hearing for five members of the [[Rev. Sun Myung Moon]]'s [[Unification Church]].
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| − | In 1987, as head of the [[APA taskforce on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control]] for the [[American Psychological Association]], Dr. Singer oversaw the production of a report that was later rejected by the APA's Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology. Thereafter, Singer's expert testimony in four subsequent cases was not accepted. In 1992 she sued the APA for "defamation, frauds, aiding and abetting and conspiracy," but in 1994 she lost.
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| − | Articles in ''[[The New York Times]]'' and the ''[[The Los Angeles Times]]'' reported complaints by Singer and her family that she had been enduring harassment and death threats due to her "battles" with the cults.
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| − | ==Education== | |
| − | Singer was born in [[Denver]] and received her bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from the [[University of Denver]]<ref name="Lancet">[http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-4232879_ITM Margaret Thaler Singer. (Obituary)(Biography)], ''[[The Lancet]],'' 31-JAN-04, Ivan Oransky.<br />Singer played cello in the Denver Civic Symphony as she earned her bachelor's degree in speech, master's degree in speech pathology, and PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Denver, graduating in 1943. </ref>. | |
| − | *[[Ph.D.]], [[clinical psychology]], 1943
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| − | *[[M.S.]], [[speech pathology]]
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| − | *[[B.S.]], [[Speech communication|speech]]
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| − | ==Career as psychologist==
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| − | ===Brainwashing===
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| − | After obtaining her [[Ph.D.]], Singer worked at the [[University of Colorado at Denver and Health Sciences Center|University of Colorado]]’s [[Medical School|School of Medicine]], in their department of psychiatry for eight years<ref>"Brainwashing Expert Dies of Pneumonia," [[Los Angeles Times]], Dennis McLellan</ref>.
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| − | Margaret Singer began to study [[brainwashing]] in the 1950s at [[Walter Reed Army Medical Center]] Institute of Research in [[Washington, D.C.]], where she interviewed U.S. soldiers who had been taken prisoner during the [[Korean War]]. Singer's research at Walter Reed has been described as "ground-breaking" within her field<ref>[http://www.rickross.com/reference/general/general446.html Psych Sleuth, Margaret Singer has made history delving into the psychology of brainwashing], [[San Francisco Chronicle]], May 26, 2002, Kevin Fagan</ref><ref>[http://www.rickross.com/reference/singer/singer5.html Margaret Singer, 82; Expert on Brainwashing, Cults Testified at 1976 Trial of Patricia Hearst], [[Los Angeles Times]], November 28, 2003, Dennis McLellan </ref>. She moved to Berkeley in 1958.
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| − | ===Schizophrenia===
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| − | Singer's research also focused heavily on the areas of [[family therapy]] and [[schizophrenia]]. She conducted research with the [[National Institute of Mental Health]], the [[United States Air Force]] and the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]<ref>[http://www.rickross.com/reference/singer/singer5.html Margaret Singer, 82; Expert on Brainwashing, Cults Testified at 1976 Trial of Patricia Hearst], [[Los Angeles Times]], November 28, 2003, Dennis McLellan </ref>.
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| − | ===Cults===
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| − | Dr. Singer began studying cults in the late 1960s. She published <!-- prolifically —> in the field of [[cult]]s, [[mind control]] ("psychological coercion") and similar areas, and received a number of honors for her work.
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| − | She developed theories about how cults recruit and retain members (such as her Theory of Systematic Manipulation of Social and Psychological Influence) and was on the board of the [[American Family Foundation]], the major anti-cult group in the United States. She chaired the [[APA taskforce on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control]] (DIMPAC) in 1987 for the [[American Psychological Association|APA]], whose report was rejected.
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| − | ===Professor===
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| − | Dr. Singer was a professor of [[psychology]] at [[UC Berkeley]] from 1964 to 1991<ref>"Brainwashing Expert Dies of Pneumonia," [[Los Angeles Times]], Dennis McLellan.</ref>.
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| − | In addition to UC Berkeley, she also served as a Faculty Member and/or Lecturer at The [[Albert Einstein College of Medicine]], The [[Washington School of Psychiatry]], The Department of Psychiatry at the [[University of Rochester]] [[Medical School|School of Medicine]], the Department of Psychology at The [[University of California at Los Angeles]], the Department of Psychiatry at the [[University of California at San Francisco]], and other institutions<ref name="Barden">[http://www.stopbadtherapy.com/reform/letter.shtml The Barden Letter, RE: Truth and Responsibility in Mental Health Practices Act], R. Christopher Barden, Ph. D., J.D., LP, to The Honorable Henry Hyde, Chairman, Judiciary Committee, United States House of Representatives, January 5, 1995</ref><ref>[[The New York Times]], December 7, 2003, Anahad O'Connor</ref>.
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| − | ===Expert witness===
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| − | She testified, with variable success, as an [[expert witness]] on mind control in numerous trials in the 1980s. She gave evidence at the 1976 trial of [[Patty Hearst]], who had previously been kidnapped by the [[Symbionese Liberation Army]]. Singer interviewed more than 3,000 cult members, and assisted in over 200 court cases. She testified at the 1977 hearing for five young members of the [[Rev. Sun Myung Moon]]'s [[Unification Church]] when their parents requested external help for them<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/11/25/BAGAG3A5A11.DTL Margaret Singer—expert on brainwashing], [[San Francisco Chronicle]], November 25, 2003.</ref>.
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| − | An article by [[J. Gordon Melton]] examines her court testimonies, noting ways these build on and differ from her professional publications and expands from general assertions of social influence within "cults" to a more robust "Singer hypothesis" which leads directly to a "robot theory" of brainwashing, expanded in the 1978 book ''[[Snapping|Snapping: America's Epidemic of Sudden Personality Change]].'' <ref>[http://www.cesnur.org/testi/melton.htm Brainwashing and the Cults: The Rise and Fall of a Theory by J. Gordon Melton] on [[CESNUR]] web page. Accessed April 1, 2001.</ref>
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| − | At one point, Dr. Singer interviewed [[Charles Manson]]<ref name="Lilienfield">[http://www.srmhp.org/0301/tribute.html In Memoriam: Dr. Margaret Thaler Singer], ''[[The Scientific Review of Mental Health Practice]]'', Spring/Summer 2004 Volume 3., Number 1., by [[Scott O. Lilienfield]], [[Emory University]]</ref>. Singer played a role in the trial of [[Kenneth Bianchi]], in the "[[Hillside Strangler]]" case. Singer concluded that Bianchi had faked symptoms of [[multiple personality disorder]], in order to escape responsibility for the murders of several women in [[Los Angeles]]<ref name="Lilienfield" />. Later, she guested on ''[[PBS Frontline]]'', speaking about the trial, in a special show entitled: "The Mind of a Murderer." Singer asserted that Bianchi was a [[psychopath]], and stated: "He may simply be evil."<ref name="Lilienfield" />
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| − | Her expert testimony was not accepted in four cases after the report of the [[APA taskforce on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control]], of which she was chair, was rejected by the ''Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology'' (BSERP) of the [[American Psychological Association]].
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| − | ==Professional associations ==
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| − | Margaret Singer was a leading researcher in the field of psychosomatic medicine, and was made President of the American Psychosomatic Society in 1974. She was the first female and first psychologist president of the Society<ref>[http://www.psychosomaticmedicine.org/cgi/reprint/36/1/1 "Presidential Address] Singer, 'Psychosomatic Medicine', Vol. 36, No. 1</ref>
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| − | She also served as a board member of the Kaiser Foundation Research Institute Review Board and the [[American Family Foundation]]<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/11/25/BAGAG3A5A11.DTL Margaret Singer—expert on brainwashing], [[San Francisco Chronicle]], November 25, 2003</ref>.
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| − | Dr. Singer served on [[President Gerald Ford]]’s Biomedical Research Panel.<ref name="Barden" />
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| − | Singer was very active in the fields of communication and family therapy and for eight years; a member of the Board of Directors of Family Process.
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| − | She was also co-creator of FACTNet<ref>[http://factnet.org FACTNet.org]</ref> and served on their advisory board<ref> [http://www.factnet.org/Margaret_Thaler_Singer/Margaret_Singer.html Margaret Thaler Singer, Ph.D.], Descriptive page, FACTnet.</ref>.
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| − | In 2001, Dr. Singer appeared on a panel on [[pseudoscience|pseudoscientific]] therapies organized by [[Scott O. Lilienfeld]] of [[Emory University]]. The panel discussion was held in [[San Francisco, California]], at the 2001 Conference of the [[American Psychological Association]]<ref name="Lilienfield" />.
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| − | ==Honors and awards==
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| − | * She was reported to have been nominated twice for a [[Nobel Prize]], for her work in [[schizophrenia]].<ref>''Contemporary Authors Online'', [[Thomson Gale]], 2005.
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| − | Entry updated: October 18, 2005.<br />AWARDS
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| − | Hofheimer Prize for Research, 1966, and Stanley R. Dean Award for Research, 1976, both from American College of Psychiatrists; two- time nominee, Nobel Prize; received awards from American Psychiatric Association, American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Association, and Mental Health Association of the United States.</ref>
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| − | *[[Leo J. Ryan Award|Leo J. Ryan Memorial Award]]<ref>[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_profile/singer_margaret.htm Bio, 1999 Conference: Cults, Psychological Manipulation & Society], Minneapolis, MN, May 14-19, 1999</ref>, for research on cults, from [[Citizens Freedom Foundation]]<ref name="Barden" />
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| − | *Research Scientist Award from the National Institute of Mental Health<ref>[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_profile/singer_margaret.htm Bio, 1999 Conference: Cults, Psychological Manipulation & Society], Minneapolis, MN, May 14-19, 1999</ref>
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| − | *Hofheimer Prize, [[American College of Psychiatrists]], 1966<ref>[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_profile/singer_margaret.htm San Francisco Chronicle, Tuesday November 25, 2003]</ref>
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| − | *Stanley R. Dean Award from the [[American College of Psychiatrists]], Research in Schizophrenia, 1976<ref>[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_profile/singer_margaret.htm San Francisco Chronicle, Tuesday November 25, 2003]</ref>
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| − | *Achievement Awards - Mental Health Association of the United States<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/11/25/BAGAG3A5A11.DTL Margaret Singer—expert on brainwashing], [[San Francisco Chronicle]], November 25, 2003 </ref><ref>"Brainwashing Expert Dies of Pneumonia," [[Los Angeles Times]], Dennis McLellan.</ref>
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| − | *McAlpine Award for Achievement in Research from the Mental Health Association of the United States<ref name="Barden" />
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| − | *American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Award for Cumulative Contributions to Research in Family Therapy<ref name="Barden" />
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| − | ;"Margaret Singer Award"
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| − | In 2004, the [[International Cultic Studies Association]] created the "Margaret Singer Award" in her honor. [[Philip Elberg]], Esq. received the award in 2004 for "his work in advancing the understanding of coercive persuasion and undue influence"<ref>[http://www.math.mcgill.ca/triples/infocult/AlmendrosetalLibroResumenesUAM4.doc Psychological Manipulation, Cultic Groups, and Other Alternative Movements], [[Universidad Autonoma de Madrid]], [[Madrid, Spain]], July 14-16, 2005.</ref>. [[Arnold Markowitz]], [[M.S.W.]] received the award in 2006, for "26 Years of Helping Families and Ex-members"<ref>[http://www.icsahome.com/infoserv_conferences/2006Denver/2006_conference_handbook.htm Margaret Singer Award – 26 Years of Helping Families and Ex-members: Lessons from the JBFCS Cult Hot-Line and Clinic], [[Arnold Markowitz]], [[M.S.W.]], 2006 Conference, [[Denver, Colorado]]. [[International Cultic Studies Association]].</ref>.
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| − | ==DIMPAC task force==
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| − | {{main|APA taskforce on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control}}
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| − | In the early 1980s, some U.S. mental health professionals became well-known figures due to their involvement as expert witnesses in court cases against groups they considered to be cults. In their testimony they presented theories of [[brainwashing]], [[mind control]], or [[coercive persuasion]] to support the legal positions of former group members against their former groups.
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| − | The [[American Psychological Association]] (APA) in 1983 asked Singer, who was one of the leading proponents of coercive persuasion theories, to chair a taskforce to investigate whether brainwashing or "coercive persuasion" did indeed play a role in recruitment by such groups. The task force was titled ''APA Task Force on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control'' (DIMPAC).
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| − | The final report of the Task Force was completed in November of 1986. The APA Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology (BSERP) rejected the report, stating that it lacked scientific rigor and an evenhanded approach, but also stating that it did not have sufficient information to take a position. There is dispute about whether the rejection of the report constituted a rejection of Singer's theories by the APA.
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| − | Singer and her professional associate, sociologist [[Richard Ofshe]], subsequently sued the APA, and a group of scholars and lawyers <ref>''Experts on Cultism Sue Academic Associations''. The Cult Observer, Vol. 9 No. 8,1992</ref> in 1992 for "defamation, frauds, aiding and abetting and conspiracy"<ref>''Dr. Margaret Singer and Dr. Richard Ofshe Sue Associations'', The Cult Observer, Vol. 9 No. 8, 1992</ref> and lost in 1994. <ref>Case No. 730012-8, Margaret Singer, et al., Plaintiff v. American Psychological Association, et. Al., Defendants <br />"This case, which involves claims of defamation, frauds, aiding and abetting and conspiracy, clearly constitutes a dispute over the application of the First Amendment to a public debate over matters both academic and professional. The disputant may fairly be described as the opposing camps in a longstanding debate over certain theories in the field of psychology.
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| − | The speech of which the plaintiff's complain, which occurred in the context of prior litigation and allegedly involved the "fraudulent" addition of the names of certain defendants to documents filed in said prior litigation, would clearly have been protected as comment on a public issue whether or not the statements were made in the contest of legal briefs. The court need not consider whether the privilege of Civil Code 47 (b) extends to an alleged interloper in a legal proceeding. Plaintiffs have not presented sufficient evidence to establish any reasonable probability of success on any cause of action. In particular Plaintiffs cannot establish deceit with reference to representations made to other parties in the underlying lawsuit. Thus Defendants' Special Motions to Strike each of the causes at action asserted against them, pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure 425.16 is granted."</ref> In a further ruling, James R. Lamden ordered Ofshe and Singer to pay $80,000 in attorneys' fees under California's [[SLAPP]] suit law. At that time, Singer and Ofshe declared their intention to sue Michael Flomenhaft, the lawyer that represented them in the case, for malpractice.<ref>Allen. Charlotte, ''Brainwashed! Scholars of Cults Accuse Each Other of Bad Faith'', December 1998. [http://linguafranca.mirror.theinfo.org/9812/allen.html Available online]</ref>
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| − | Singer was subsequently not accepted by judges as an expert witness in four cases alleging brainwashing and mind control.<ref>District of Columbia Court of Appeal, case 853 F.2d 948, Kropinski v. World Plan Executive Council.<br />"Kropinski failed to provide any evidence that Dr. Singer’s particular theory, namely that techniques of thought reform may be effective in the absence of physical threats or coercion, has a significant following in the scientific community, let alone general acceptance. </ref><ref>''Robin George v. International Society for Krishna Consciousness of California'', District Court of California Appeals, August 1989, case cited in Lewis, James R. ''The Oxford Handbook of New Religious Movements'', pp.194, ISBN 0-19-514986-6</ref><ref>Boyle,Robin A., ''Women, the Law, and Cults: Three Avenues of Legal Recourse—New Rape Laws, Violence Against Women Act, and Antistalking Laws'', Cultic Studies Journal, 15, 1-32. (1999) in reference to ''United States v. Fishman'', United States District Court of California, CR–88-0616; DLG CR 90 0357 DLG</ref><ref>''Jane Green and Patrick Ryan v. Maharishi Yogi'', US District Court, Washington, DC, 13 March 1991, Case #87-0015 OG</ref>
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| − | After the report was rejected, Singer reworked much of the rejected material into the book ''[[Cults in Our Midst (book)|Cults in Our Midst: The Hidden Menace in Our Everyday Lives]]'', which she co-authored with [[Janja Lalich]]. <ref>Bill Piekarski, Southwestern Coll. Lib., [[Chula Vista, California]], [[Library Journal]], 1995, [[Reed Business Information]], Inc. <br />In 1992, Singer (emeritus adjunct, psychology, Univ. of California at Berkeley) unsuccessfully sued the American Psychological Association and the American Sociological Association, alleging conspiracy to discredit her research and destroy her reputation. That suit and this book hinge on whether Singer's theory of "coercive persuasion" (i.e., nonphysical coercion) is demonstrably valid. Fully a third of this book is a replay of Singer's previous studies and arguments, with the remainder applying her questioned paradigm to cult-associated tragedies. </ref>
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| − | ==Landmark Education legal dispute (1996)==
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| − | In 1996, [[Landmark Education]] sued Singer, for defamation. Singer mentioned Landmark Education in ''Cults in our Midst''; it was unclear whether she labeled Landmark Education as a cult or not. Singer issued a statement pursuant to a settlement agreement stating that she did not intend to call Landmark a cult, nor did she consider it a cult. <ref>Dr. Margaret Singer, statement, [http://www.landmarkeducation.com/uploaded_files/694/msing.pdf Landmark Education, website, files]</ref> Singer removed the references to Landmark Education from subsequent editions of the book. She also stated at deposition that she had "no personal, firsthand knowledge of Landmark or its programs."
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| − | Amanda Scioscia reported in the [[Phoenix New Times]] that Singer never called Landmark a cult, but that she described it as a "a controversial [[New Age]] [[training]] course." She also stated that she would not recommend the group to anyone, and would not comment on whether Landmark uses [[coercive persuasion]] for fear of legal recrimination from Landmark<ref>[[Amanda Scioscia]], 2000, [[Phoenix New Times]], [http://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/Issues/2000-10-19/news/feature_print.html ''Drive-thru Deliverance''] Singer said she never called it a cult in her book, but simply mentioned it as a controversial New Age training course. In resolution of the suit, Singer gave a sworn statement that the organization is not a cult or sect. She said this doesn't mean she supports Landmark. "I do not endorse them—never have," she said. Singer, who was in her 70s at the time, said she can't comment on whether Landmark uses [[coercive persuasion]] because "the SOBs have already sued me once." "I'm afraid to tell you what I really think about them because I'm not covered by any lawyers like I was when I wrote my book."Singer said, however, that she would not recommend the group to anyone.</ref>
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| − | ==Harassment and death threat complaints==
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| − | An article in [[The New York Times]] described harassment and death threats against Singer, and that this was due to her "battles" involving [[cult]]s and [[brainwashing]]. A biography of Singer published by [[Thomson Gale]] states that her "enemies among cults" were responsible for harassing her<ref>''Contemporary Authors Online'', Thomson Gale, 2005.
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| − | Entry updated: 10/18/2005.<br />Singer's work earned her numerous enemies among cults, whose members were known to leave dead rats on her doorstep, threatening letters in her mailbox, and hack into her computer. Undeterred, Singer continued her work right up to the time of her death, her most recent projects involving con artists and the frauds they perpetrate on senior citizens such as herself.
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| − | </ref>.
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| − | According to an obituary in [[The New York Times]], she occasionally found dead animals on her doorstep
| + | An avid [[cello|cellist]], Singer played in the [[Denver Civic Symphony]] while attending the [[University of Denver]] where she earned her bachelor’s degree in speech, and later, a master’s degree in [[speech pathology]] and [[special education]]. In 1943, Singer received her doctorate in [[clinical psychology]]. She remained in Colorado for the next eight years working in the department of [[psychiatry]] at the University of Colorado’s [[School of Medicine]]. |
| − | <ref>[[The New York Times]], December 7, 2003, Anahad O'Connor<br />
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| − | Dr. Singer's battles made her a target for harassment and death threats. At times, she found dead animals on her doorstep.</ref>. Another obituary that appeared in in the [[The Los Angeles Times]], claims that [[cult]] "operatives" went through Singer's trash and mail, picketed her lectures, hacked into her computer and released live rats in her house.<ref>[http://www.rickross.com/reference/singer/singer5.html Margaret Singer, 82; Expert on Brainwashing, Cults Testified at 1976 Trial of Patricia Hearst], [[Los Angeles Times]], November 28, 2003, Dennis McLellan<br />But not everyone agreed with her views on the subject, and Singer paid a price for her work. Cult "operatives" dug through her trash, went through her mail, picketed her lectures and sent her death threats. They also hacked into her computer countless times, once released dozens of live rats in her house, and frequently left dead rats on her doorstep with threatening notes.</ref> Statements made by her family to the [[San Francisco Chronicle]], include allegations that one "cultist" worked her way into Singer's office, stole students' term papers and sent notes to Singer's students, and that groups harassed her family as well.<ref>[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/05/26/CM67534.DTL Margaret Singer has made history delving into the psychology of brainwashing], San Francisco Chronicle, May 26, 2002.<br />
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| − | Once a cultist talked her way into working in Singer's campus office, then stole a sheaf of term papers and sent bizarre notes to the students.
| + | In 1953, Singer began studying the effects of [[brainwashing]] at the [[Walter Reed Institute of Research]] in [[Washington, D.C.]] where she interviewed U.S. prisoners of the [[Korean War]] who had been coerced into denouncing the [[United States]] and embracing [[communism]]. While working in Washington, D.C., Singer met and married her spouse of 48 years, Jerome. In 1958 the couple relocated to [[Berkeley]], [[California]] where she would become an adjunct professor at [[UC Berkeley]] when her husband joined the faculty of the [[physics]] department there. Singer would remain at Berkeley until her death in 2003 at the age of 82. She was survived by her husband, two children, and five grandchildren. |
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| − | "One of those groups went through my mom's mail and knew everything about us - my girlfriend's name, where we went, what we bought, all kinds of stuff," says her son Sam Singer, a publicist in San Francisco. "We all put up with a lot, but nobody more than her.</ref>.
| + | ==Work== |
| | + | Upon her arrival in Berkeley, Singer found the college campus a prime location to study the [[New Age]] [[cult]] scene of the 1960s and 1970s where organizations such as [[Hare Krishna]] sought to recruit university students. Singer claimed there existed similarities between the [[coercion|coercive]] techniques applied to [[Korean War]] [[prisoner of war|prisoners of war]] and those applied to prospective cult members. |
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| − | A [[Time Magazine]] article described Singer as an outspoken [[Scientology]] critic who traveled under an assumed name to avoid harassment. <ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,972865-9,00.html The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power], [[Time Magazine]], [[Richard Behar]], 1991.<br />Psychologist Margaret Singer, 69, an outspoken Scientology critic and professor at the University of California, Berkeley, now travels regularly under an assumed name to avoid harassment</ref>.
| + | Singer's research also focused heavily on the areas of [[family therapy]] and [[schizophrenia]]. She conducted research with the [[National Institute of Mental Health]], the [[United States Air Force]], and the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]. In addition to UC Berkeley, Singer also served as a visiting lecturer at the [[Albert Einstein College of Medicine]], the [[Washington School of Psychiatry]], the department of psychiatry at the [[University of Rochester]] school of medicine, the department of psychology at the [[University of California at Los Angeles]], the department of psychiatry at the [[University of California at San Francisco]], and various other institutions. A member of the [[American Psychosomatic Society]], Singer was elected its first female president in 1972. |
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| − | == Death ==
| + | Singer published numerous articles in the field of cults and "[[brainwashing|mind control]]," receiving a number of honors for her work. She developed a theory about how cults recruit and retain members, which she entitled the ''Theory of Systematic Manipulation of Social and Psychological Influence''. Singer's beliefs garnered the attention of lawyers who would use Singer as an expert witness in high-profile cases involving cult practices. Some of the more prominent cases of which Singer's opinion was sought involved the [[People’s Temple]], the mass [[murder]]-[[suicide]] at [[Jonestown, Guyana]], the [[Hillside Strangler]] of [[Los Angeles]], and the [[Heaven’s Gate]] cult. Singer also interviewed [[Charles Manson]] and his followers. |
| − | Margaret Singer died of pneumonia on November 23, 2003 in [[Berkeley, California]], at the [[Alta Bates Medical Center]]. She was 82.
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| − | Dr. Singer was survived by her husband, two children, and five grandchildren<ref name="Lancet" />.
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| − | == Publications ==
| + | She was also active with the [[American Family Foundation]], the major anti-cult group in the United States at the time. Singer was an advocate of [[deprogramming]], the process of removing a person thought to be under "mind control" from a [[religion|religious]] or other community and influencing him or her to abandon allegiance to the group. Commissioned by concerned relatives, often parents of adult children, the process often involved forcible [[abduction]], holding the person against their will, and subjecting them to various coercive techniques designed to break their faith. |
| − | ===Books===
| |
| − | ;Author
| |
| − | * ''[[Cults in our Midst (book)|Cults in our Midst]]'', 1995, ISBN 0-7879-0051-6
| |
| − | * ''[[Crazy Therapies]]: What Are They? Do They Work?'', 1996, ISBN 0-7879-0278-0
| |
| − | * ''Las Sectas Entre Nosotros/[[Cults in our Midst (book)|Cults in our Midst]],1997, Lauguage:Spanish, ISBN 8474326052
| |
| − | ;Contributor
| |
| − | * ''[[Recovery from Cults]]'', Contributor: Preface, as Margaret Thaler Singer, Ph. D., 1995, ISBN 0-393-31321-2
| |
| − | * ''Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology'', Contributor: "New Age Therapies," as Margaret Thaler Singer and [[Abraham Nievod]], pgs. 176-205. 2004, ISBN 1593850700 , ISBN 978-1593850708
| |
| − | *''The Anatomy of Suicide: Silence of the Heart'', by [[Louis Everstine]], With a Foreword by Margaret Thaler Singer, PhD, 1998, ISBN 0398068038 ISBN 978-0398068035
| |
| − | *''Personality Measurements in the Aged'', In Birren et at., ed. 1963
| |
| | | | |
| − | ===Articles===
| + | In 1975 Singer became involved in the court case against [[Patricia Hearst]], a [[newspaper]] heiress kidnapped by the [[Symbionese Liberation Army]] who was persuaded by her captors to participate in an armed bank robbery. Singer was also brought in to testify in a 1977 hearing for five members of the Reverend [[Sun Myung Moon]]'s [[Unification Church]]. However in 1987 Singer’s expert testimony was not accepted in four cases in which she had been involved after the report of the [[APA taskforce on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control]] (DIMPAC), of which she was chair, was rejected by the ''Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology'' (BSERP) of the [[American Psychological Association]]. From 1990 on, American courts consistently rejected Singer and other "mind-control" theorists, finding that such theories were not part of accepted mainline science.<ref>[http://www.cesnur.org/conferences/BrainWash.htm "Brainwashing": Career of a Myth in the United States and Europe] ''www.cesnur.org''. Retrieved February 7, 2008.</ref> In 1992 Singer sued the APA for "defamation, frauds, aiding and abetting and conspiracy," but lost in 1994. |
| − | * [http://www.rickross.com/reference/apologist/apologist23.html Report of the Task Force on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control (DIMPAC Report)], Margaret Thaler Singer, ''et al.''
| |
| − | *[http://www.ideajournal.com/articles.php?id=12 The "Not Me" Myth: Orwell and the Mind], January 19, 1996, Vol.2, no.2, ''[http://www.ideajournal.com/ Idea Journal]''
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_articles/singer_margaret_undueinfluencewrittendocs.htm Undue Influence and Written Documents: Psychological Aspects], ''[[Cultic Studies Review|Cultic Studies Journal]]'', Volume 10, Number 1 1993
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_articles/singer_margaret_postcult.htm ''Post-Cult After Effects''],
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_articles/singer_margaret_marines.htm How the United States Marine Corps Differs from Cults]
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_articles/singer_margaret_psychotherapy_cults.htm Psychotherapy Cults]
| |
| − | *[http://www.cultfaq.org/coming-out-of-the-cults.html Coming Out of the Cults], ''[[Psychology Today]]'', January, 1979
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_articles/singer_margaret_cultscoersion.htm Cults, Coercion, and Contumely], ''[[Cultic Studies Review|Cultic Studies Journal]]'', ''[[Psychological Manipulation and Society]]'', Vol. 9, No. 2, 1992
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_articles/singer_margaret_thoughtreform.htm Thought Reform Exists: Organized, Programmatic Influence], ''[[Cultic Studies Review|The Cult Observer]]'', Vol.11, No.6 (1994): 3-4
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_products/VT-A925.htm Mistakes Families Make], Cults, Psychological Manipulation: [[Arlington, Virginia]], 1992
| |
| − | *[http://www.factnet.org/coercivemindcontrol.html Coercive Mind Control Tactics]
| |
| − | *[http://www.factnet.org/Margaret_Thaler_Singer/Thought_Reform_Programs_and_the_Production_of_Psychiatric_Casualties.html Thought Reform Programs and the Production of Psychiatric Casualties], by Margaret Thaler Singer, Ph. D., and [[Richard Ofshe]], Ph. D., ''[[Psychiatric Annals]]'', 20:4, April, 1990
| |
| | | | |
| − | ===Presentations=== | + | ==Criticism== |
| − | ;Conferences
| + | In the early 1980s, various U.S. [[mental health]] professionals, including Singer, became controversial due to their involvement as expert witnesses in [[court]] cases against [[new religious movement]]s. In their testimonies, Singer and the others stated that anti-cult theories of [[brainwashing]], mind control, or [[coercion|coercive]] [[persuasion]] were generally accepted concepts within the scientific community. In 1983, the [[American Psychological Association]] (APA) asked Singer to chair a task force (DIMPAC) to investigate whether "brainwashing" or coercive persuasion did indeed play a role in recruitment by such movements. |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/conference/2000_Apr/2000_cultsmillennium_speakers.htm Featured Speaker], ''2000: Cults and the New Millennium'', "Getting Help Program"
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_articles/event_presenters_1997_may.htm Presenter], ''Biographies of all Psychological Manipulation: The Abuse of Women Conference'', "Keynote Address- Psychological Manipulation: How it Works and Why Women are Vulnerable," 1997
| |
| − | ;Media
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_products/VT-PE.htm "Cults: Saying No Under Pressure"], [[American Family Foundation]], InService Videotape Network of the National Association of Secondary School Principals, Instructivision Inc., Narrated by [[Charlton Heston]]
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_products/VT-ATCRT.htm "After the Cult: Recovering Together"], [[American Family Foundation]]
| |
| − | *["Mind Manipulation, Cults and Domestic Violence"], Cults, Psychological Manipulation: The Abuse of Women, 1997, Dr. Margaret Singer, Dr. Janja Lalich, Evelyn Ortner
| |
| | | | |
| | + | Before the task force had submitted its final report, however, the APA submitted an [[amicus curiae]] [[brief (law)|brief]] in the ongoing case ''David Molko and Tracy Leal v. Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, et al.'' The brief characterized the theory of brainwashing as not scientifically proven, stating that "[t]he methodology of Drs. Singer and Benson has been repudiated by the scientific community," that the hypotheses advanced by Singer were "little more than uninformed speculation, based on skewed data," and that "[t]he coercive persuasion theory…is not a meaningful scientific concept."<ref>[http://www.cesnur.org/testi/molko_brief.htm ''David Molko and Tracy Leal v. Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, et al.''] CESNUR Center for Studies on New Religions. Retrieved February 7, 2008.</ref> The APA subsequently withdrew its signature from the brief, based on procedural not substantive concerns. Eventually, the APA rejected the DIMPAC task force's report due to insufficient evidence. |
| | | | |
| − | ==References ==
| + | Other critics of Singer's theories claim that her prestige was fostered in an environment of [[prejudice]] and fear, and that she sought to capitalize and profit on the cult craze of the 1960s and 1970s. In her 2003 obituary, ''[[The New York Times]]'' reported Singer continually battled threats made against her by members of various organizations, angered by her attacks against them. |
| − | <div class="references-small">
| |
| − | <references />
| |
| − | </div>
| |
| | | | |
| | + | ==Legacy== |
| | + | Margaret Singer was a well-known proponent of the idea that [[New Religious Movement]]s, or "[[cult]]s" as she considered them, used [[coercive persuasion]] or "[[brainwashing]]" to recruit and train members. Her research garnered the attention of respected psychological institutions and high-profile prosecutors. She also served as a constructive member of the Board of Directors of Family Process, a board member of the Kaiser Foundation Research Institute Review Board and a member of President [[Gerald Ford]]’s Biomedical Research Panel. The winner of the [[Hofheimer Prize]] and the Dean Award from the [[American College of Psychiatrists]], Margaret Singer was known for her calm, authoritative, and unshakable personality. |
| | | | |
| − | ==External links== | + | Often conducting research, therapeutic sessions, and legal business from the kitchen of her home or at a local restaurant and bar,<ref>Steve Rubenstein, [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/11/25/BAGAG3A5A11.DTL Margaret Singer - expert on brainwashing] ''San Francisco Chronicle'', November 25, 2003. Retrieved February 7, 2008.</ref> Singer's controversial area of study lead to numerous criticisms, legal rejections, and even personal threats against her. Her single-minded, almost militant, campaign against a wide range of organizations, many of whom have since become recognized as legitimate [[religion]]s, and her advocacy of [[deprogramming]], a process which was later found to use the very techniques of coercive persuasion and [[abduction]] of which she accused the "cults," was finally recognized as neither scholarly nor professional. As noted by the Center for Studies on New Religions, <blockquote>Singer's decline started with the rejection of a report of a commission she had chaired by the American Psychological Association in 1987, and with the ruling in the Fishman case in 1990 excluding her testimony on brainwashing as not part of mainline science. Still lionized by the anti-cult movement and by some media, she was increasingly criticized even by "moderate" anti-cultists, and appeared increasingly irrelevant to the "new" cult wars of the late 1990s.<ref>[http://www.cesnur.org/2003/singer.htm Margaret Singer, Mother of Anti-Cult Brainwashing Theory, Dies in Berkeley] CESNUR. Retrieved February 7, 2008.</ref> </blockquote> |
| | | | |
| − | *[http://www.ideajournal.com/authors.php?id=4 Bio, Idea Journal], Margaret Thaler Singer Ph. D. | + | == Publications== |
| − | *[http://www.factnet.org/board.htm FACTnet past board of directors], brief biographical profile | + | *Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 1963). ''Personality Measurements in the Aged.'' |
| − | * [http://www.cesnur.org/testi/APA_Documents.htm Documents on Brainwashing Controversies and the APA] | + | *Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 1995). ''Preface: Recovery from Cults.'' ISBN 0-393-31321-2 |
| | + | *Singer, Margaret T. (Author, 1995). ''Cults in our Midst.'' ISBN 0-7879-0051-6 |
| | + | *Singer, Margaret T. (Author, 1996). ''Crazy Therapies: What Are They? Do They Work?'' ISBN 0-7879-0278-0 |
| | + | *Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 1998). ''Foreword: The Anatomy of Suicide.'' ISBN 0398068038 |
| | + | *Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 2004). ''Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology: New Age Therapies.'' 176-205. ISBN 1593850700 |
| | | | |
| − | *[http://www.cesnur.org/2003/singer.htm Margaret Singer, Mother of Anti-Cult Brainwashing Theory, Dies in Berkeley], [[Center for Studies on New Religions]], 2003
| + | ==Notes== |
| − | *''[http://www.rickross.com/reference/singer/singer3.html "Professor Margaret Singer dies at 82]: Former UC educator was psychologist, champion of free thought and an expert on cults"'', Alameda Times-Star, November 27, 2003, Katherine Pfrommer, cited in Rick Ross' website
| + | <references/> |
| − | *[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2003/11/25/BAGAG3A5A11.DTL Margaret Singer—expert on brainwashing], San Francisco Chronicle, November 25, 2003
| |
| − | *[http://www.csj.org/infoserv_profile/singer_margaret.htm A Loss for the Family Field: The Death of Margaret T. Singer], ''Family Process'', March 1, 2004, Lyman C. Wynne
| |
| − | *[http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-4232879_ITM The Lancet], 2004, Ivan Oransky
| |
| | | | |
| | + | ==References== |
| | | | |
| | + | *Bromley, David. 2001. "A Tale of Two Theories: Brainwashing and Conversion as Competing Political Narratives" In Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins (ed.), ''Misunderstanding Cults''. ISBN 0802081886 |
| | + | *Bromley, David. 2002. ''Cults, Religion and Violence''. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521668980 |
| | + | *Melton, J. Gordon. 1999. [http://www.cesnur.org/testi/melton.htm Brainwashing and the Cults: The Rise and Fall of a Theory] Center for Studies on New Religions. Retrieved February 7, 2008. |
| | + | *Noblitt, J.R. 2002. ''Cult and Ritual Abuse: Its History, Anthropology, and Recent Discovery in Contemporary America''. Praeger Paperback. ISBN 0275966658 |
| | + | *Singer, Jerome. 1995. ''Repression and Dissociation: Implications for Personality Theory, Psychopathology, and Health''. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0226761061 |
| | | | |
| | + | ==External Links== |
| | + | All links retrieved November 6, 2022. |
| | | | |
| | + | *[http://www.cesnur.org/testi/APA_Documents.htm Documents on Brainwashing Controversies and the APA] CESNUR |
| | + | *[http://www.ideajournal.com/authors.php?id=4 Margaret Thaler Singer] ''Idea'' Journal |
| | + | *[http://www.cesnur.org/2003/singer.htm Obituary, Margaret Singer] Center for Studies on New Religions, 2003. |
| | | | |
| | {{Credits|Margaret_Singer|151891558|}} | | {{Credits|Margaret_Singer|151891558|}} |
Margaret Thaler Singer (July 29, 1921 – November 23, 2003) was a clinical psychologist. Her main areas of research included schizophrenia and family therapy, but she is best known for her work on cults. Margaret Singer was a well-known proponent of the idea that New Religious Movements (NRM), or "cults" as she considered them, used "brainwashing" to recruit, train, and retain members.
Her research garnered the attention of respected psychological institutions and high-profile prosecutors, and she was called to testify as an expert witness in numerous trials involving deprogramming of members of NRMs. Singer chaired the American Psychological Association's (APA) task force that investigated whether "brainwashing" or coercive persuasion did indeed play a role in recruitment by such movements. Their report was rejected by the APA, and Singer's credibility rapidly declined as the public became better informed about the true nature of deprogramming.
Singer was one of those well-meaning but misguided professionals who came to prominence in the latter part of the twentieth century, at the time when New Religious Movements, including the Unification Church, emerged as a powerful force bringing about a new spiritual awakening in American society. The ignorance regarding such religions on the part of the public, particularly family members of those recruited, rapidly turned to fear with tragedies such as the Jonestown mass suicides of members of Jim Jones' Peoples Temple. To those desperate to save their children, Margaret Singer appeared as a lifeline. Unfortunately, her efforts were misguided, and many suffered at the hands of deprogrammers. Her legacy remains as an example of how even those trained in the study of human nature can be misled by false accusation.
Life
Margaret Singer was born in Denver, Colorado on July 29, 1921. The only child of an Irish Catholic family, Singer’s father worked as the chief operating engineer at the U.S. Mint while her mother worked as a secretary to a federal judge.
An avid cellist, Singer played in the Denver Civic Symphony while attending the University of Denver where she earned her bachelor’s degree in speech, and later, a master’s degree in speech pathology and special education. In 1943, Singer received her doctorate in clinical psychology. She remained in Colorado for the next eight years working in the department of psychiatry at the University of Colorado’s School of Medicine.
In 1953, Singer began studying the effects of brainwashing at the Walter Reed Institute of Research in Washington, D.C. where she interviewed U.S. prisoners of the Korean War who had been coerced into denouncing the United States and embracing communism. While working in Washington, D.C., Singer met and married her spouse of 48 years, Jerome. In 1958 the couple relocated to Berkeley, California where she would become an adjunct professor at UC Berkeley when her husband joined the faculty of the physics department there. Singer would remain at Berkeley until her death in 2003 at the age of 82. She was survived by her husband, two children, and five grandchildren.
Work
Upon her arrival in Berkeley, Singer found the college campus a prime location to study the New Age cult scene of the 1960s and 1970s where organizations such as Hare Krishna sought to recruit university students. Singer claimed there existed similarities between the coercive techniques applied to Korean War prisoners of war and those applied to prospective cult members.
Singer's research also focused heavily on the areas of family therapy and schizophrenia. She conducted research with the National Institute of Mental Health, the United States Air Force, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In addition to UC Berkeley, Singer also served as a visiting lecturer at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, the Washington School of Psychiatry, the department of psychiatry at the University of Rochester school of medicine, the department of psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles, the department of psychiatry at the University of California at San Francisco, and various other institutions. A member of the American Psychosomatic Society, Singer was elected its first female president in 1972.
Singer published numerous articles in the field of cults and "mind control," receiving a number of honors for her work. She developed a theory about how cults recruit and retain members, which she entitled the Theory of Systematic Manipulation of Social and Psychological Influence. Singer's beliefs garnered the attention of lawyers who would use Singer as an expert witness in high-profile cases involving cult practices. Some of the more prominent cases of which Singer's opinion was sought involved the People’s Temple, the mass murder-suicide at Jonestown, Guyana, the Hillside Strangler of Los Angeles, and the Heaven’s Gate cult. Singer also interviewed Charles Manson and his followers.
She was also active with the American Family Foundation, the major anti-cult group in the United States at the time. Singer was an advocate of deprogramming, the process of removing a person thought to be under "mind control" from a religious or other community and influencing him or her to abandon allegiance to the group. Commissioned by concerned relatives, often parents of adult children, the process often involved forcible abduction, holding the person against their will, and subjecting them to various coercive techniques designed to break their faith.
In 1975 Singer became involved in the court case against Patricia Hearst, a newspaper heiress kidnapped by the Symbionese Liberation Army who was persuaded by her captors to participate in an armed bank robbery. Singer was also brought in to testify in a 1977 hearing for five members of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. However in 1987 Singer’s expert testimony was not accepted in four cases in which she had been involved after the report of the APA taskforce on Deceptive and Indirect Techniques of Persuasion and Control (DIMPAC), of which she was chair, was rejected by the Board of Social and Ethical Responsibility for Psychology (BSERP) of the American Psychological Association. From 1990 on, American courts consistently rejected Singer and other "mind-control" theorists, finding that such theories were not part of accepted mainline science.[1] In 1992 Singer sued the APA for "defamation, frauds, aiding and abetting and conspiracy," but lost in 1994.
Criticism
In the early 1980s, various U.S. mental health professionals, including Singer, became controversial due to their involvement as expert witnesses in court cases against new religious movements. In their testimonies, Singer and the others stated that anti-cult theories of brainwashing, mind control, or coercive persuasion were generally accepted concepts within the scientific community. In 1983, the American Psychological Association (APA) asked Singer to chair a task force (DIMPAC) to investigate whether "brainwashing" or coercive persuasion did indeed play a role in recruitment by such movements.
Before the task force had submitted its final report, however, the APA submitted an amicus curiae brief in the ongoing case David Molko and Tracy Leal v. Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, et al. The brief characterized the theory of brainwashing as not scientifically proven, stating that "[t]he methodology of Drs. Singer and Benson has been repudiated by the scientific community," that the hypotheses advanced by Singer were "little more than uninformed speculation, based on skewed data," and that "[t]he coercive persuasion theory…is not a meaningful scientific concept."[2] The APA subsequently withdrew its signature from the brief, based on procedural not substantive concerns. Eventually, the APA rejected the DIMPAC task force's report due to insufficient evidence.
Other critics of Singer's theories claim that her prestige was fostered in an environment of prejudice and fear, and that she sought to capitalize and profit on the cult craze of the 1960s and 1970s. In her 2003 obituary, The New York Times reported Singer continually battled threats made against her by members of various organizations, angered by her attacks against them.
Legacy
Margaret Singer was a well-known proponent of the idea that New Religious Movements, or "cults" as she considered them, used coercive persuasion or "brainwashing" to recruit and train members. Her research garnered the attention of respected psychological institutions and high-profile prosecutors. She also served as a constructive member of the Board of Directors of Family Process, a board member of the Kaiser Foundation Research Institute Review Board and a member of President Gerald Ford’s Biomedical Research Panel. The winner of the Hofheimer Prize and the Dean Award from the American College of Psychiatrists, Margaret Singer was known for her calm, authoritative, and unshakable personality.
Often conducting research, therapeutic sessions, and legal business from the kitchen of her home or at a local restaurant and bar,[3] Singer's controversial area of study lead to numerous criticisms, legal rejections, and even personal threats against her. Her single-minded, almost militant, campaign against a wide range of organizations, many of whom have since become recognized as legitimate religions, and her advocacy of deprogramming, a process which was later found to use the very techniques of coercive persuasion and abduction of which she accused the "cults," was finally recognized as neither scholarly nor professional. As noted by the Center for Studies on New Religions,
Singer's decline started with the rejection of a report of a commission she had chaired by the American Psychological Association in 1987, and with the ruling in the Fishman case in 1990 excluding her testimony on brainwashing as not part of mainline science. Still lionized by the anti-cult movement and by some media, she was increasingly criticized even by "moderate" anti-cultists, and appeared increasingly irrelevant to the "new" cult wars of the late 1990s.[4]
Publications
- Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 1963). Personality Measurements in the Aged.
- Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 1995). Preface: Recovery from Cults. ISBN 0-393-31321-2
- Singer, Margaret T. (Author, 1995). Cults in our Midst. ISBN 0-7879-0051-6
- Singer, Margaret T. (Author, 1996). Crazy Therapies: What Are They? Do They Work? ISBN 0-7879-0278-0
- Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 1998). Foreword: The Anatomy of Suicide. ISBN 0398068038
- Singer, Margaret T. (Contributor, 2004). Science and Pseudoscience in Clinical Psychology: New Age Therapies. 176-205. ISBN 1593850700
Notes
- ↑ "Brainwashing": Career of a Myth in the United States and Europe www.cesnur.org. Retrieved February 7, 2008.
- ↑ David Molko and Tracy Leal v. Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, et al. CESNUR Center for Studies on New Religions. Retrieved February 7, 2008.
- ↑ Steve Rubenstein, Margaret Singer - expert on brainwashing San Francisco Chronicle, November 25, 2003. Retrieved February 7, 2008.
- ↑ Margaret Singer, Mother of Anti-Cult Brainwashing Theory, Dies in Berkeley CESNUR. Retrieved February 7, 2008.
References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- Bromley, David. 2001. "A Tale of Two Theories: Brainwashing and Conversion as Competing Political Narratives" In Benjamin Zablocki and Thomas Robbins (ed.), Misunderstanding Cults. ISBN 0802081886
- Bromley, David. 2002. Cults, Religion and Violence. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521668980
- Melton, J. Gordon. 1999. Brainwashing and the Cults: The Rise and Fall of a Theory Center for Studies on New Religions. Retrieved February 7, 2008.
- Noblitt, J.R. 2002. Cult and Ritual Abuse: Its History, Anthropology, and Recent Discovery in Contemporary America. Praeger Paperback. ISBN 0275966658
- Singer, Jerome. 1995. Repression and Dissociation: Implications for Personality Theory, Psychopathology, and Health. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 0226761061
External Links
All links retrieved November 6, 2022.
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