The Mental Health of Jehovah's Witnesses

The Mental Health of Jehovah's Witnesses

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

The British Journal of Psychiatry

Volume 126 Issue 6

John Spencer

Affiliation: Heathcote Hospital, Applecross 6153, Western Australia

Summary

The function of religion in human society is complex. The part played by religion in psychiatric disorders is even more obscure. Previous literature and theories are divided into two groups: one school believes that intense religiosity is a symptom-complex indicative of psychiatric disorder, while the opposing view is that religious belief in some way acts as a defence mechanism protecting the individual and his psyche.

The present study of 50 Jehovah's Witnesses admitted to the Mental Health Service facilities of Western Australia suggests that members of this section of the community are more likely to be admitted to a psychiatric hospital than the general population. Furthermore, followers of the sect are three times more likely to be diagnosed as suffering from schizophrenia and nearly four times more likely from paranoid schizophrenia than the rest of the population at risk.

These findings suggest that being a member of the Jehovah's Witnesses faith may be a risk factor predisposing to a schizophrenic illness. Further studies would be interesting in investigating whether pre-psychotic people are more likely to join the sect than normal people and what part (if any) membership has in bringing about such a breakdown.

References

Boison, A. (1952) Exploration of the Inner World. New York: Hauber.Google Scholar

Clark, E. T. (1929) The Psychology of Religious Awakening. New York: Macmillan.Google Scholar

Fenichel, O. (1946) The Psychoanalytical Theory of Neurosis. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul.Google Scholar

Freud, S. (1913) Totem and Taboo. London: Kegan Paul.Google Scholar

Fromm, E. (1960) Psychoanalysis and Religion. New York: Holt Rinehart & Winston Inc.Google Scholar

Graff, R. W. & Ladd, C. E. (1970) POI Correlates of a Religious Commitment Inventory. Southern Illinois University Press.Google Scholar

Jung, C. G. (1933) Modern Man in Search of a Soul. New York: Harcourt and Brace & Co.Google Scholar

Kraus, J. (1969) Some social factors and rates of psychiatric hospital admissions of immigrants in New South Wales. Medical Journal of Australia, ii, 17.Google Scholar

Lane, M. (1968) Journal of Social Psychology, 75, 261–8.Google Scholar

Lloyd, J. H. (1973) Religion and insanity. Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry, 7, 193.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed

Northridge (1968) Psychiatry in Pastoral Practice. Google Scholar

Plymouth (1972) Moorhaven Hospital Diagnostic Index. Personal communication.Google Scholar

Roberts, F. J. (1965) British Journal of Social Psychology, 4, 185–7.Google Scholar

Sargant, W. (1957) Battle for the Mind. London: Heinemann (reprinted in Pan Books, 1970).Google Scholar

West Australian Government, Department of Statistics, Perth (1973).Google Scholar

Also of relevance:Google Scholar

Allport, G. W. & MacMillan, (1959) The Individual and his Religion. Google Scholar

Haekema, A. A. (1963) The Four Major Cults. Google Scholar

https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/the-british-journal-of-psychiatry/article/abs/mental-health-of-jehovahs-witnesses/C3C3B14DA9C1DA3D9A699E2D1F5CAC34

ICSA Annual Conference Workshops: Working with Born and Raised-in Former Cult Members (for mental health professionals)

ICSA Annual Conference Workshops: Working with Born and Raised-in Former Cult Members (for mental health professionals)

Jackie Johnson, DSW, LCSW-R
Sunday, June 26, 2022

Working with born and raised-in former cult members presents significant and unique issues in terms of recovery work when compared to former members who joined cults as independent and autonomous adults. This talk goes into depth about the numerous and specific challenges that former cult members who were either born into or raised in the group face when doing recovery work. The talk addresses and supports mental health professionals who specialize in recovery work or those who want to learn more about working with born and raised-in former cult members.

Jackie Johnson, DSW, LCSW-R, is a licensed clinical social worker with a certification in forensic social work. She obtained her master’s degree from Columbia University and her doctoral degree from the University of Tennessee. Dr. Johnson is a SGA survivor, having spent 43 years with Jehovah’s Witnesses. In her private practice, Dr. Johnson focuses on assisting indoctrinated individuals find freedom from cultic and other high-demand groups and process the trauma they experienced while being involved in systems of control or coercive groups and relationships. Her research interests include the epistemology of women and how cultic, coercive, and misogynistic experiences influence the cognitive development of women. Dr. Johnson can be reached at drjackie@drjacquelinejohnson.com. You can learn more about Dr. Johnson at her website, www.drjacquelinejohnson.com.

​Conference Information
Agenda
Conference Registration

Clinical Strategies for Becoming a Master Psychotherapist

Science Direct 

Practical Resources for the Mental Health Professional

2006, Pages 1-10

1 - The Art and Science of Psychotherapy

William O'Donohue

Janet Cummings

https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-012088416-2/50001-3

Publisher Summary

Psychotherapy is both an art and a science. Understanding the contribution of both these elements and achieving a proper balance in actual episodes of therapy is essential to optimize therapeutic success. As behavioral health professionals have often emphasized one aspect and neglected the other, this chapter aims to readdress this imbalance. A key task in therapy is creating and maintaining an optimal therapeutic relationship, which has to involve elements such as empathy, positive regard, and instilling hope. The relationship must also involve persistence in moving the client to explore areas they do not want to; giving honest, useful, but perhaps unwanted feedback; drawing clear boundaries (particularly with certain clients such as those with borderline personality disorder); and tough love, which necessitates the art of establishing and maintaining a therapeutic relationship. Another common mistake is to view psychotherapy as entirely an art. This view misses the point that there are causal relations in therapy that science is best at discovering. As all measurements contain error, knowing the scientific literature about the validity and limitations of the validity of psychological assessments is also essential knowledge in psychotherapy. Additionally, only testing can ensure that the intervention is safe. Finally, the advantage of scientific knowledge is that it has a large and known generalizability, which can be used to find out about what constitutes good therapy and teach others to implement this knowledge.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/B9780120884162500013

Cult Recovery and Trauma

ICSA Annual Conference: Cult Recovery and Trauma

Laura Chandler

Friday, June 24th

1:00 PM-1:50 PM

Register

This presentation will be for mental health professionals to recognize the signs and symptoms of a client currently being in a cult or a dangerous group. The presentation will consist of skills that the provider can use in order to help a person that is currently in a cult or is currently experiencing distress from past experience. It is important to note that a cult or a dangerous group may or may not have anything to do with religion. Also, a cult has nothing to do with the type of religion a person or a group of people practice. The signs that someone may be in a dangerous cult is if the person experiences a lot of stress from this group by trying to meet the group's expectations. Is this group very controlling? Does the group tell the individual who they can or can't date or be friends with? Where they can or can't live? Does the individual experience financial distress due to giving the group large sums of money? Is the individual being isolated from friends and family outside of the group? Does the individual spend a lot of time recruiting new members? Does the individual have an unusual fear of the outside world? The presentation will consist of skills that the therapist can utilize with the individual such as CBT that can help the individual to challenge black and white thinking related to the cult. Also, the therapists will learn coping skills to teach to the individual to heal from the trauma such as relaxation skills and positive memories.

Owner/Director

Eagles Counseling, LLC

I am a Licensed Professional Counselor in Pennsylvania. I am a Certified Clinical Trauma Professional and Certified Specialist in Anger Management. I graduated from Immaculata University with my Master's Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling in 2017. I am the owner and director of Eagles Counseling, LLC. I have been working as a therapist since 2018. Prior to being a therapist, I was working as a mental health case manager at various locations in Pennsylvania from 2007-2018. I am also in recovery from being in a religious cult. I was a member of a religious cult from 2002-2006.

Register

CultNEWS101 Articles: 1/18/2022 (Research Participation Request, QAnon, Extremist, Mata Amritanandamayi, 3HO, Yogi Bhajan, Kundalini Yoga, Religious Fraud, Mental Illness, New Book)

Research Participation Request, QAnon, Extremist, Mata Amritanandamayi, 3HO, Yogi Bhajan, Kundalini Yoga, Religious Fraud, Mental Illness, New Book

Research Participation Request: "The Relationship Between Reproductive Coercion, Psychologically Abusive Environments, and the Extent of Group Identity in a Sample of Those who Have Left Cultic Groups"

Researcher: Ashlen Hilliard, University of Salford, Master's in the Psychology of Coercive Control Program

Did you experience a lack of reproductive choice while in a cultic group? Was your sexual health and well-being affected by the cult? Do you feel that the cultic group used your reproductive health as a means of control?

You are invited to participate in this research project on the relationship between reproductive coercion, psychologically abusive environments, and the extent of group identity in a sample of those who have left cultic groups.

You are eligible to participate if you are an individual 18 and older who self-identifies as someone who has been in a cult or destructive group which you have subsequently left. You identified as a female while you were in a cult or destructive group setting, and you experienced reproductive coercion at that time, which has been defined as: "A behavior that interferes with the autonomous decision-making of a woman with regard to reproductive health. It may take the form of birth control sabotage, pregnancy coercion, or controlling the outcome of a pregnancy" (Grace and Anderson, 2018, p. 371).

Please do not feel pressured or obligated to complete this questionnaire if you may have met me or be aware of my role with the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA).

If you have any further questions or would like any additional information, please feel free to email researcher Ashlen Hilliard at A.J.Hilliard@edu.salford.ac.uk .

Link to survey: https://salford.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/reproductivecoercion

Wired: The Next Wave of Extremist Cults Will Make QAnon Look Tame

"Cult-like extremist movements appear to provide an antidote to the potent mixture of isolation, uncertainty, changing narratives, and fear we have experienced during the pandemic by offering a skewed form of safety, stability, and certainty, along with a cohort of people who are just like us, who believe us and believe in us. As the activist David Sullivan—a man who devoted his life to infiltrating cults in order to extricate loved ones from their grip—pointed out, no one ever joins a cult: They join a community of people who see them. In 2022, this appeal of cults will only grow, and those that arise next year will make QAnon seem like the good old days."

Mata Amritanandamayi Collection

Press Herald: Bath musician opens up about 'cult' experience in new memoir

" ... Someday finally arrived when Blachly, who uses the name Peter Alexander in his musical performances, wrote about his experiences in a 308-page memoir self-published last year.

Now 72 and with many of the people who were part of his previous life no longer living, Blachly felt more freedom to write the memoir than he would have otherwise. The pandemic gave him the time to finish a writing project that began many years ago, and living in an old house with an expansive view of the river gave him the space to think and a place to ponder.

His book, called "The Inner Circle, Book One: My Seventeen Years in the Cult of the American Sikhs," which is available at Gulf of Maine Books in Brunswick, tells the story of his journey as a popular musician in a nationally touring rock band during the Vietnam War and Woodstock era to becoming a close confidant and musical liaison to Yogi Bhajan, a kundalini yoga guru and spiritual leader of the 3HO Foundation.

The organization's name stands for Healthy, Happy and Holy and remains an active nonprofit dedicated "to living a life that uplifts and inspires," according to its website. Although it claims to follow the tenets of Sikhism, a religion that originated in India in the 15th century with more than 25 million followers worldwide, it has been criticized for misrepresenting the religion and denounced by traditional practitioners. A spokesperson for 3HO declined to respond to a reporter's questions for this story. A spokesperson for the Sikh Coalition, a New York-based Sikh-American advocacy group, declined to comment on 3HO.

The organization formed in 1969 and Blachly joined in 1970 at age 20, because he was interested in yoga and a healthier lifestyle. He became deeply involved out of a genuine desire for spiritual understanding and personal peace, he said, and a love of music. As a musician, he achieved respected status in the movement, traveling among Sikh communities in the United States and India while learning to play the sitar, mastering tabla (or Indian hand drum), speaking Punjabi and performing at holy shrines across India, including the Golden Temple in Amritsar.

After Yogi Bhajan died in 2004, many of his followers accused him of rape and sexual misconduct. In his book, Blachly, who has two daughters from an arranged marriage through his association with the spiritual leader, accuses him of manipulation, control and financial malfeasance."

New Book: FIGHTING FOR JUSTICE, Religious Fraud, Mental Illness, and the Collapse of Law & Order

"Victims of abuse often feel very alone, helpless, and hopeless.

Author Paulette J. Buchanan takes the reader through her lifetime of abuse at the hands of her four older brothers. She describes their continuation of abuse into their adult years, in part carried out by their weaponization of the court system to file meritless, harassing lawsuits against her, her husband, and against others. Buchanan details the arduous fight in which she and her husband have been forced to engage in order to finally secure long overdue judgments against these brothers."

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

CultEducationEvents.com

CultMediation.com   

Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.

CultNEWS101.com news, links, resources.

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Cults101.org resources about cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations and related topics.

Selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not mean that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly agree with the content. We provide information from many points of view in order to promote dialogue.

Please forward articles that you think we should add to cultintervention@gmail.com.

ICSA Monthly Mental Health Educational Series - 2021-2022

October 3, 2021 @ 3:00PM — December 19, 2021 @ 12:00PM Eastern Time (US & Canada)

Register

This overview presentation will introduce our monthly series of educational programs for our mental health community. Each month will feature a different clinician discussing some aspect of clinical work. Each presentation will serve as a stimulus for discussing clinical issues, which will take place during the following hour.

This series will occur as zoom meetings, which will allow attendees the ability to turn on/off their camera as well as on/off their mic to ask questions as they feel comfortable. The first half-hour of each presentation will be recorded and available on the ICSA YouTube Channel. The discussion portion will not be recorded.

To receive CE credits: You must be logged in during the live session to receive CE credit. Please check with your licensing board to see if you are eligible for CE credit. You will be asked to fill out a short anonymous survey after the program.

International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA) has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 6893. ICSA is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.

CultNEWS101 Articles: 10/19/2020

Astrology, Video, Nigeria, Mental Health, Covid-19, Orthodox Jewish Community, Legal, Conspiracy Theories, QAnon

Cults in the Occulture: #9: Astrology

"Astrology by most accounts is the queen of the occult arts of divination that include Tarot, Kabbalah, and reading tea leaves. I [Joseph Szimhart] first seriously explored astrology in the late 1970s, getting my first professional reading of my horoscope from Alan Oken at his Voice of the Turtle gift shop in Santa Fe NM. I needed to know my rising sign, moon and sun signs to apply for entry into the Keeper of the Flame fraternity of a large Theosophy-based sect run then by Elizabeth Prophet. Astrologers seek precise information about birth time and place to better "read" your star chart or horoscope. After I defected from  Prophet's cult in 1980, I learned how to cast a horoscope using an ephemeris, then got a good idea how to do a reading from professionAl astrologers I knew. One old astrologer told me she only had to glance at a person's chart to do a reading. "It is all intuitive," she said. After two years of research I found that astrology is horrible as a predictive tool and totally unreliable reference as to a person's character. Astrologers who know how to read a chart with its thousands of relational aspects can easily get most customers to agree with a reading. It comes down to an influence game. Astrology can effect national decisions. I point to how in 1948 the New Indian government had to consult an astrologer for the auspicious moment when to sign their declarations of independence from Great Britain. After Ronald Reagan was shot in 1981, his wife Nancy consulted a celebrity astrology to name dates and times when the president could safely travel, thus causing havoc and unnecessary delays among White House staff decisions. Time Magazine had a cover feature in 1988 about "Astrology in the White House." I mention that fundamentalist Christians have published books against astrology saying it is deceptive and is a tool of the devil. Skeptics have proven that astrology has no basis in reality, though it remains a popular psychological and cultural means for self reflection among young adults with a resurgence of interest since 2014. I warn that astrology can be easily overvalued and cause harm in relationships as well as decision- making."

CNN: Chained and locked up, why some Nigerians turn to religion first to treat the mentally ill

"When Alvan Godwin suffered a psychotic episode linked to schizophrenia in November 2018, his parents took him to church for prayers. His mother was of the opinion that his illness was a 'spiritual attack' linked to evil spirits.

"My mum thought it was something spiritual from her side of the family. So they took me for prayers with the hope that I'd be cured of whatever was wrong," he told CNN.

"My aunt advised my dad that they should take me to camp for prayers against evil spirits. I remember I was laying down on the ground and people were all over me praying. I didn't want to react but the prayer wasn't working," Godwin said.

He added that when they realized on the way back home from camp that the expected healing didn't happen, they brought in another pastor to pray for him at home.

In parts of Nigeria, it is common to attribute mental illness to supernatural factors such as witchcraft or repercussion for sins against God, according to a report in the Integrative Journal of Global Health.

As a result, people with perceived symptoms of disorders are believed to be possessed or in need of unorthodox healing from traditional healing centers, and at Christian and Islamic faith-based facilities.

At the time Godwin was 18 and he recalls being overwhelmed with fear, hearing voices and crying in distress.

"I felt irritation all over my body. The sound of the fan in the room made me paranoid, I felt like it was rolling too fast and it would cut off and kill me. There were so many confusing voices talking to me in my head," he said.

Godwin's family doctor eventually referred him to a specialist after hearing about his symptoms, "that's when we went to the psychiatric hospital," he said.

In his case, he was later diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia and placed on drugs. "I was so relieved to know what was going on with me. My parents too were relieved knowing it was nothing spiritual," he said."

CNN: Protester Harold 'Heshy' Tischler taken into custody for inciting a riot during Orthodox Jewish protests against New York's Covid-19 restrictions

"Outspoken protester Harold "Heshy" Tischler was taken into custody Sunday evening in connection with an alleged assault during protests against new anti-coronavirus restrictions in an Orthodox Jewish area of Brooklyn, New York police say.

Some members of the Orthodox Jewish community protested in the Borough Park neighborhood for multiple nights last week in response to the measures, which limit gatherings in houses of worship in areas identified as Covid-19 clusters.

Jewish Insider reporter Jacob Kornbluh claimed on a verified Twitter account that during protests Wednesday night he was brutally assaulted after Tischler "recognized me and ordered the crowd to chase me down the street."

Confirming Tischler's detention Sunday, a New York City Police Department spokesman said that charges of inciting a riot and unlawful imprisonment in connection with the incident surrounding Kornbluh are pending.

"The New York City Police Department Warrant Squad has taken Harold 'Heshy' Tischler into custody. He will be charged with inciting to riot and unlawful imprisonment in connection with an assault of a journalist that took place on October 7, 2020 in Brooklyn," the department said on Twitter."

The Guardian: The QAnon orphans: people who have lost loved ones to conspiracy theories

" ... "Inasmuch as QAnon has been likened to an online cult, it's possible that evidence about who tends to join cults – people who feel lonely or are struggling with symptoms of anxiety and depression and are searching for emotional connection and group affiliation – might apply to some who get immersed into the online world of QAnon," Pierre said.

This analysis has resonance for Crystal Wade, 35, who met her best friend, Denise, in beauty school. After Crystal moved to another state, she and Denise kept in touch digitally and regularly had hours-long phone conversations.

"We used to talk about everything," said Crystal. "If I was upset, she was the first person I'd call, and she'd bring me back down to earth. She made me feel grounded."

In April 2020, Denise began seeing a new boyfriend, whom Crystal never met. Denise was concerned about his social media postings, however, and seemed embarrassed about how incoherent he was online. She shared her boyfriend's accounts with Crystal.

"There were no periods in his sentences," Crystal said. "It went from gods, to demons, to Katy Perry."

He was posting QAnon conspiracy theories, and to Crystal's disappointment, her friend seemed to believe parts of it. QAnon's allegations are often based in a smattering of truth, such as Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking activities and the entertainment industry's struggle with widespread sexual abuse and harassment. But in the conspiracy world, there are no coincidences, and everything is interconnected to a farcical degree. "He was taking it to another level," said Crystal. "Hidden messages in music videos, illuminati symbolism, celebrities abusing kids to have eternal youth."

Denise's relationship lasted only two months, and from what Crystal heard about it, it seemed very volatile and at times hostile – and the conversations she had with her best friend turned increasingly towards the subject of the occult. "She'd say it wasn't his fault he was being such a terrible person to her, he's suffering because he's being possessed by demonic forces," said Crystal.

Denise had been interested in new age spirituality and was not particularly religious, but the boyfriend seemed to influence her towards an apocalyptic version of Christianity. Denise soon threw away her tarot cards, believing they were "inviting demons" into her house, and began frequently posting Bible verses on social media.

"I would never judge a friend for being religious," said Crystal, "but it was overnight and didn't seem organic at all."

Crystal tried to handle the situation delicately, reasoning that her friend was going through a traumatic time. After the relationship ended, however, Denise began to talk about "Pizzagate", a conspiracy theory that served as the precursor to QAnon.

Crystal froze once Denise mentioned it; she had, until then, not yet realized how deep her best friend had fallen into conspiracy thinking. "My stomach dropped," she said. "I felt sick."

In 2016, the Pizzagate conspiracy theory falsely alleged that Hillary Clinton and other prominent figures in the Democratic party were trafficking children, and that victims were being held at Comet Ping Pong, a pizzeria in Washington DC. In 2020, alongside a deluge of Covid-19 misinformation, Pizzagate has experienced a resurgence.

Denise began to send Crystal videos. One of them, titled "PedoGate 2020", opens with a chilling piano theme. A soft-voiced narrator then claims that a hidden message in a photograph of Barack Obama and Anthony Bourdain is linked to trafficking children. It also makes bizarre and seemingly-unconnected allegations tying together Instagram hashtags, Comet Ping Pong owner James Alefantis, and internet personality Bhad Bhabie."

News, Education, Intervention, Recovery

CultEducationEvents.com

CultMediation.com   

Intervention101.com to help families and friends understand and effectively respond to the complexity of a loved one's cult involvement.

CultRecovery101.com assists group members and their families make the sometimes difficult transition from coercion to renewed individual choice.

CultNEWS101.com news, links, resources.

Facebook

Flipboard

Twitter

Instagram

Cults101.org resources about cults, cultic groups, abusive relationships, movements, religions, political organizations and related topics.

Selection of articles for CultNEWS101 does not mean that Patrick Ryan or Joseph Kelly agree with the content. We provide information from many points of view in order to promote dialogue.

Please forward articles that you think we should add to CultNEWS101.com.