2016 Volume 20 Issue 1 Pages 62-80
The purpose of this study was to explore former cult-members' changes in cognition toward relationships with their families, psychological problems of themselves and relationships with their community by comparison of prerecruitment and post-withdrawal from the cult. The interview of 9 former members of Cult A was analyzed qualitatively by making use of KJ method. It was clarified that their contextual situations before recruitment had consisted of, first, malfunction of family system, unsatisfied relationships with their parents and dissatisfaction at the conflicts between family members, especially between parents, concerning family relationships, second, low self-esteem and feelmg isolated and helpless within their families due to an inability to communicate true feelings concerning psychological problems of themselves, lastly, actual difficulties in their community, positive images of society and high affinity with religious themes concerning community relationships. It was suggested that these contexts were the factors of cultmembers' vulnerabilities to cult involvement. It was observed that they had, recognized that their family relationships had improved after exiting the cult, gained a new understanding of family relationships before recruitment and changed negative feelings toward family members, and also, gained more stability of themselves under the influence of bidirectional relations with their family, and started feeling fulfillment in reconsidering relationships with significant others and finding their place in their community. It was suggested that they were able to cope with the stress of confronting both cult problems and their problems before recruitment.
