#leon festinger

[calicojack1718]

Unskewing the Polls: Decoding the Deceptive Polling Numbers of Election 2024

All of the polls seem to have Trump leading Biden both nationally and in swing states. How can that be? Does no one remember the debacle of the Trump years? Can their be some systematic error in the polling? Can science explain it? Yes, it can.

SUMMARY: Election 2024 presidential polling has Trump beating Biden nationwide and in swing states. Let’s take a closer look at that polling data and use social trust to decipher some of the more confounding results. Then, we’ll use protests and past voting behavior to predict who will turn out in 2024. The roll of cognitive dissonance and irrevocable actions will be used to analyze who is…

[vonneumannmachine]

La caja de herramientas para jugar en el mundo (I)

Me parece muy apropiado entender el cerebro como una caja de herramientas, una más o menos ordenada amalgama de recetas, atajos, heurísticas, fórmulas variadas, fruto tanto de eones de evolución como de una increíble capacidad de adaptación y aprendizaje cultural. Así, repetimos continuamente patrones conductuales en virtud de su eficacia: repetimos el chiste que vimos que hacía gracia, contamos…

[southernsagestoryteller]

More or Less

Ya know how sometimes a tune comes into your head?  Snatches of a song, a poem, and sometimes something as ridiculous as a commercial?  And they play over and over?  Yeah. I’m fairly sure we all get them – those annoying “ear worms”.  Well, a couple of days ago one came into my head and besides just being bizarre and wondering where in the world it came from, it set me to wondering about…

[boredtechnologist]

The PC port of "BioShock" takes players deep into the underwater city of Rapture, a dystopian vision built on the ideals of objectivism and unchecked scientific progress. Central to the narrative is the character of Atlas, who is later revealed to be Frank Fontaine. Fontaine’s intricate web of deception is a pivotal element of the game, exploring themes of manipulation, trust, and identity. This psychological analysis delves into the deceptive tactics employed by Fontaine and draws upon the insights of famous psychologists to understand the psychological mechanisms at play.

"BioShock" begins with the protagonist, Jack, crashing into the Atlantic Ocean and finding his way to Rapture. Guided by the seemingly benevolent Atlas, Jack embarks on a journey through the city, following Atlas’s instructions to survive and ostensibly to rescue Atlas's family. This narrative setup establishes a relationship of trust and dependency, which is later shattered when Atlas reveals his true identity as Frank Fontaine, a ruthless manipulator. This betrayal is not only a narrative twist but also a profound psychological shock that prompts an examination of deception and manipulation.

The deception employed by Fontaine can be examined through the lens of cognitive dissonance, a theory developed by Leon Festinger. Cognitive dissonance occurs when an individual experiences discomfort due to holding conflicting beliefs or behaviors. Throughout most of the game, players are led to trust Atlas, forming a bond based on mutual goals and empathy. When the truth about Fontaine's identity is revealed, players experience cognitive dissonance, as the trusted guide turns out to be the antagonist. This dissonance heightens the emotional impact of the deception, making the betrayal feel personal and profound.

Fontaine’s manipulation techniques can also be analyzed using Robert Cialdini’s principles of influence, particularly the principles of authority and reciprocity. Fontaine, as Atlas, presents himself as a figure of authority and a savior, which compels players to follow his guidance. He also employs reciprocity by offering help and protection, creating a sense of indebtedness that motivates players to assist him in return. These psychological principles explain how Fontaine effectively manipulates both Jack and the players, demonstrating the power of perceived authority and reciprocation in shaping behavior.

Erik Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development, particularly the concept of trust versus mistrust, provides further insights into the psychological impact of Fontaine’s deception. The early stages of the game build a foundation of trust between Jack and Atlas, akin to the development of trust in early childhood. When this trust is broken, it leads to a crisis similar to the mistrust experienced by infants who are betrayed by their caregivers. This violation of trust forces players to reassess their understanding of the game’s world and their own judgment, highlighting the fragility of trust in human relationships.

"BioShock" and the character of Frank Fontaine offer a rich exploration of psychological themes related to deception, manipulation, and trust. By examining Fontaine's tactics through the theories of Festinger, Cialdini, and Erikson, we gain a deeper understanding of the psychological mechanisms that make his betrayal so impactful. The game challenges players to confront the discomfort of cognitive dissonance, the power of manipulation, and the vulnerability of trust. This analysis not only enhances our appreciation of "BioShock" as a narrative experience but also underscores the intricate interplay of psychological factors that drive human behavior and relationships. Through its complex portrayal of deception, "BioShock" serves as a compelling study of the dark side of human psychology, leaving a lasting impression on players and scholars alike.

[spaceintruderdetector]

When Prophecy Fails: A Social and Psychological Study of a Modern Group That Predicted the Destruction of the World is a classic work of social psychology by Leon Festinger, Henry Riecken, and Stanley Schachter published in 1956, which studied a small UFO religion in Chicago called the Seekers that believed in an imminent apocalypse and its coping mechanisms after the event did not occur. Festinger's theory of cognitive dissonance can account for the psychological consequences of disconfirmed expectations. One of the first published cases of dissonance was reported in this book.

one of my favorite books.

When Prophecy Fails : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

[hermeticphoenix]

Ascended Masters

In mid-1950s, the automatic writing practitioner Dorothy Martin, aka Sister Thedra, received a communication from an entity calling itself Sananda – the “galactic name” of Jesus in the Ascended Master Teachings. After conveying spiritual teachings to Martin and her esoteric group, the Seekers, Sananda “revealed” that a global cataclysm would destroy the Earth in 1954. The enlightened Seekers, would, however, be rescued by a flying saucer and taken to Ananda’s planet.

Many Seekers quit their jobs, gave away their possessions, and waited for a flying saucer that never came to rescue them from a cataclysm that never happened.

This true story was described in the pioneering social psychology work When Prophecy Fails, by Leon Festinger, Henry Riecken, and Stanley Schachter, published in 1956. I re-read this book often and take it as a warning. Like Dorothy Martin, we, as practicing magicians, receive signs and communications from beyond the ordinary. One of our challenges is not falling prey to self-deception.

Why are we in danger of self-deception? It’s tempting to interpret any extraordinary experience as evidence of success at magic. Our subconsciousness reflects back what we give it – the principle that Robert Anton Wilson summarised as “what the thinker thinks, the prover proves.” If we read about Egyptian and Indian deities, our subconsciousness will dress our experiences with these symbols.

Add to this that the astral-mental regions are full of elementals and larvae that can pose as helpful guides to feed off our astral matrix. It is conceivable that the entity moving Dorothy Martin’s pen was one such mischievous elemental.

This deceptive allure is sometimes called “glamour.” Certain authors, like theosophist Alice Bailey, pay much attention to keeping safe of glamour in their writings.

One tactic for dealing with glamour is disregarding all unusual phenomena. In certain teaching orders, the prevalent practice is to invalidate any experience a student might have as “illusion,” “Maya,” “distraction” or some such. This is throwing the baby out with the bathwater. If we wish to study magic, we must study the effects of magic.

So let’s look at some practical ways in which we can address such phenomena. I would recommend, first of all, detached journaling of such phenomena. Then, their analysis with respect of whether they flatter and whether they impose themselves. The soul mirrors are an invaluable tools for their examination, and a good magic hygiene a way to prevent them.

One of my favourite esoteric authors, Paul Foster Case, wrote that the true Voice will never flatter and never command. I understand flattery to mean anything that arouses self-importance, such as suggesting that a person is exceptionally talented, successful, and chosen for a special mission or favour. Flattery may come in form of a messiah complex: a notion that the individual has been chosen to save others. Or, conversely, it may come as a belief that we will be spared something that “ordinary” people are due.

Let’s go back to the story of Dorothy Martin and see how it compares to these suggestions. First, Martin didn’t practice detached journaling, but took every transmission from “Sananda” at face value. She allowed “Sananda” to flatter her as a chosen “channel” of teachings beyond her level of spiritual maturity, and command her to prepare for the rapture on the threat of cataclysm. The Seekers as a group didn’t take their deteriorating familial, social and professional relationships as a warning that something was amiss. Finally, the group was open to any and all influences to the point of exhaustion, rather than consuming information mindfully and cultivating balance.

Developing resilience to glamour is a prerequisite to a sustainable and productive magic practice, and I hope that these musings will at least serve as a reminder of this, just as When Prophecy Fails serves as a reminder to me when I get a bit carried away.

This article is not written by me. I only shared it. To learn more about this article, you can click this link: https://perseusarcaneacademy.com/post…

[pigeonflavouredcake]

Previously in the cult section of my grimoire I referenced Steven Hassan's BITE model. I had no clue until recently that in 2020 he said some nasty shit about us trans babes on Twitter and that made me feel real fukin shitty so I scrambled to change it.

I'm still referencing the BITE model because, I'll admit, it's everywhere. If you research cults everyone you look at is bound to know about it one way or another but before i get into it I threw down the critique on the smarmy boy. That has given me a whole extra page of just criticism and it was worth the pain because i know so much more now.

I'm gonna keep going on the cult page, i'm not done yet. I will be adding some info on Leon Festinger and cognitive dissonance.

[dustedandsocial]

Deciphering Social Dissonance: Ideology, Noise, and Subjectivity, Session 1

Session 2 HERE

During this workshop, we will try to decipher social dissonance and why it happens.

For the philosopher and essayist Sylvia Wynter, deciphering is a practice that tries to answer these questions: What does aesthetics do? What is its function in human life? What, specifically, is its function in our present "form of life"? Deciphering It is not a process of demystification, instead, it tries to understand what mystification does, and how it is complicit in reproducing the privileges of certain subjects through a problematic understanding of autonomy.

Deciphering breaks with disciplinary divisions, and it engages with natural sciences as well as discursive production as a way to get the broadest perspective possible in regard to what we mean to be a human.

Social dissonance takes Leon’s Festigner idea of cognitive dissonance as a starting point. Cognitive describes the tension when somebody has two contradictory sets of cognitions, or when your actions don’t match your beliefs. Social dissonance is, then, a structural cognitive dissonance that emerges from the discrepancy between the values that are shared in liberal Western democracies--such as the belief in individual freedom, democracy, equality, and sustainability--and what we really do, which is to reproduce a system based on inequality, exploitation, unfreedom and the destruction of the planet through extraction. Festinger suggests that we constantly try to reduce the dissonant elements by making justifications and excuses.

What can be the justifications for social dissonance? My answer to this is twofold, one structural and one subjective. The first justification has to do with what Mark Fisher called capitalist realism: as there is no alternative to the capitalist mode of production, we cannot think of an alternative to Western democracy and the liberal idea of the individual. Since there does not seem to be a possibility of another form of life outside the capitalist mode of production, we accept the limited freedoms that are offered to us.

The second justification has to do with conflating the ideas of individuality and selfhood with subjectivity. We tend to think that what we understand by individual freedom is already subjective agency.

During this workshop, we will look at current research made in neuroscience such as predictive processing (PP) in relation to discussions around social synthesis, ideology, mental state of noise, and cultural hegemony. By doing this, we will attempt to decipher the function of social dissonance in the current form of life.

About the Author: Mattin is an artist, musician, and theorist working conceptually with noise and improvisation. Through his practice and writing, he explores performative forms of estrangement as a way to deal with structural alienation. Mattin has exhibited and toured worldwide. He has performed in festivals such as Performa (NYC), No Fun (NYC), Club Transmediale (Berlin), Arika (Glasgow) and lectured and taught in institutions such as Dutch Art Institute, Cal Arts, Bard College, Paris VIII, Princeton University and Goldsmiths College. In 2017 he completed a PhD at the University of the Basque Country under the supervision of the philosopher Ray Brassier. Along with Anthony Iles, he edited the book Noise & Capitalism (Kritika/Arteleku 2009). In 2012 CAC Brétigny and Tuamaturgia published Unconsitituted Praxis, a book collecting his writing plus interviews and reviews from performances. Anthony Iles and Mattin are currently in the final stages of editing the volume Abolishing Capitalist Totality: What is To Be Done Under Real Subsumption? (Archive Books). Urbanomic published last year his book Social Dissonance. Mattin is part of the bands Billy Bao and Regler and has over 100 releases on different labels worldwide. He is currently co-hosting with Miguel Prado the podcast Social Discipline. Prado and Mattin are also part of Noise Research Union with Cecile Malaspine, Sonia de Jager, Martina Raponi, and Inigo Wilkins. Mattin took part in 2017 in documenta14 in Athens and Kassel.

------

This lecture covers the same ground as the book he released last year, Social Dissonance. It's like $13 via amazon on paperback and kindle, but also might be available on libgen, who could say.

[toqge]

O TERRORISMO DA SAÚDE MENTAL NA “TERRA PLANA”

por Geórgia Lyma

Psicóloga\Neuropsicóloga\Educadora Física\ Especialista em Educação, Qualidade de Vida e Dança.

Dissonância Cognitiva e a Sociedade Digital: Reflexões sobre Influência, Identidade e Conformidade

Estamos imersos em um mundo globalizado, onde somos constantemente inundados por uma avalanche de informações, que moldam nossa percepção da realidade. No entanto, nosso cérebro possui limitações para processar todas essas informações de forma coerente, o que pode resultar em conflitos cognitivos ao tentar reconciliar crenças e experiências.

A dissonância cognitiva surge quando percebemos uma discrepância entre nossas crenças e nossas ações, gerando um desconforto psicológico que nos leva a justificar ou racionalizar nossas escolhas, mesmo que contradigam o que sabemos ser verdadeiro. Esse fenômeno, identificado por Leon Festinger na década de 1950, demonstra como tendemos a buscar consistência em nossas convicções, mesmo que isso signifique distorcer a realidade.

O lobo frontal do cérebro, responsável pelo pensamento abstrato e planejamento, desempenha um papel crucial na elaboração de nossas decisões e na forma como interpretamos o mundo ao nosso redor. No entanto, quando confrontados com informações conflitantes, tendemos a recorrer a mecanismos de defesa para preservar nossa integridade psicológica.

Um exemplo clássico desse fenômeno ocorreu na década de 1950, quando um grupo liderado por Dorothy Martin acreditava em profecias de desastres iminentes que não se concretizaram. Em vez de confrontar a falha de suas crenças, o grupo reforçou sua fé, reinterpretando os eventos para justificar suas convicções.

Nos tempos modernos, essa dissonância cognitiva é amplificada pela influência das mídias sociais e das narrativas extremistas que permeiam o ambiente político e religioso. O compartilhamento seletivo de informações e a formação de bolhas de filtro reforçam nossas crenças preexistentes, criando uma realidade virtual que pode se distanciar cada vez mais da verdade objetiva.

Essa manipulação da realidade digital tem consequências profundas para nossa saúde mental e para a sociedade como um todo. Ao nos tornarmos cada vez mais dependentes dos algoritmos que moldam nossas percepções, corremos o risco de nos tornarmos seres alienados, incapazes de distinguir entre o que é real e o que é fabricado.

É crucial que reflitamos sobre o impacto das mídias sociais e das narrativas extremistas em nossa vida cotidiana. Devemos questionar as motivações por trás das informações que consumimos e buscar fontes diversas para ampliar nossa compreensão do mundo. Somente assim poderemos evitar cair na armadilha da dissonância cognitiva e preservar nossa capacidade de pensar criticamente e agir de forma autêntica.

A sociedade digital nos apresenta desafios sem precedentes, mas também oportunidades para redefinir nossa relação com a informação e com o mundo ao nosso redor. É hora de assumirmos o controle de nossas mentes e nossas escolhas, antes que seja tarde demais.

#dissonanciacognitiva

#saudemental

#psicologia

#educacao

[elcitigre2021]

A Dissonância Cognitiva ajuda a explicar por que odiamos ouvir a verdade...

A maioria das pessoas diz "sim" quando perguntadas se querem ouvir a verdade. De fato, 88% dos funcionários dizem que gostariam de ouvir a verdade se seu desempenho no trabalho fosse ruim. E, no entanto, quantas pessoas você conhece que, depois de se escravizar em um grande projeto, ficam gratas quando o chefe diz: "Aquele relatório que você escreveu era ilógico, mal escrito, duas horas atrasado e cheio de erros de digitação"? Eu testemunhei adultos que insistem que podem lidar com a verdade chorar, reclamar e até mesmo socar as paredes ao ouvir a verdade assim.

A verdade soa bem na teoria, especialmente se for a verdade com a qual concordamos ou que nos posiciona sob uma luz favorável. É quando ouvimos uma verdade que não é tão agradável que começamos a resistir.

Recentemente, realizei um estudo com 27.048 executivos, gerentes e funcionários chamado " Os riscos de ignorar o feedback dos funcionários ". Uma das grandes descobertas do estudo é que pouquíssimos líderes incentivam ou estão abertos a ouvir sugestões de melhoria de seus funcionários.

Por exemplo, apenas 24% das pessoas dizem que seu líder "Sempre" incentiva e reconhece sugestões de melhoria, enquanto 16% dizem que seu líder "Nunca" o faz. Esses números se tornam especialmente problemáticos quando você também considera que:

62% dos funcionários que dizem que seu líder sempre incentiva e reconhece sugestões de melhoria recomendarão fortemente sua empresa como uma ótima organização para se trabalhar. Por outro lado, apenas 5% dos funcionários que dizem que seu líder nunca incentiva e reconhece sugestões de melhoria recomendarão fortemente sua empresa como uma ótima organização para se trabalhar. Muitos funcionários têm ótimas ideias, e a correlação entre os líderes que ouvem as sugestões dos funcionários para melhoria e o engajamento dos funcionários é forte. E, no entanto, muito poucos líderes incentivam ou reconhecem as sugestões de melhoria dos funcionários.

Por que detestamos ouvir a verdade, especialmente se envolve ouvir algo que precisamos melhorar? Um conceito chamado dissonância cognitiva nos dá uma resposta. O estado de dissonância cognitiva ocorre quando alguém mantém duas crenças (ou atitudes ou opiniões) psicologicamente inconsistentes que criam uma tensão mental desagradável.

A dissonância cognitiva recebeu reconhecimento científico pela primeira vez em meados da década de 1950, quando o psicólogo social Leon Festinger e dois de seus colegas conseguiram entrar disfarçados em um pequeno culto apocalíptico chamado Seekers. O grupo era liderado por uma dona de casa de Chicago, Dorothy Martin, que afirmava ter a capacidade de canalizar seres superiores do planeta Clarion.

Essa autoridade alienígena supostamente avisou Martin e seus seguidores de um grande dilúvio que destruiria a Terra em 21 de dezembro de 1954. A profecia afirmava que apenas os verdadeiros crentes seriam poupados. Esta foi uma boa notícia para os Seekers que receberam a promessa de transporte seguro para outro planeta. Martin canalizou instruções claras sobre como o grupo deveria se preparar para a coleta via disco voador à meia-noite de 17 de dezembro, e o grupo entrou em ação, desistindo de suas casas, deixando seus empregos, liquidando suas economias e até se divorciando de cônjuges descrentes.

O grupo de pesquisadores de Festinger não acreditava realmente que o mundo acabaria. Eles falsificaram sua crença para que pudessem se juntar ao grupo e observar o impacto da profecia fracassada na fé dos crentes. Quando o mundo não acabasse, os Seekers reduziriam a dissonância cognitiva dizendo: "Opa, que pena, acho que foi muito estúpido da minha parte", ou inventariam algum tipo de racionalização?

Na noite designada de 17 de dezembro, o grupo se reuniu em ansiosa expectativa. Quando um disco voador não apareceu à meia-noite, Festinger observou que os membros do grupo pareciam nervosos. Às 12h10, eles pareciam chocados. Às 2 da manhã, a preocupação e a ansiedade prevaleciam enquanto as pessoas soluçavam e choravam. A dissonância cognitiva pode ser dolorosa.

Muito havia sido sacrificado tanto pessoal quanto profissionalmente, e alguns no grupo começaram a se perguntar abertamente se os Clarions os haviam abandonado. À medida que mais tempo se passava sem um disco à vista, outros no grupo começaram a questionar a validade da profecia. Então, às 4h45, Martin resolveu a dissonância cognitiva do grupo quando ela foi presenteada com outra "profecia". A mensagem dizia que o mundo seria poupado porque os Seekers “tinham espalhado tanta luz que Deus salvou o mundo da destruição”.

Festinger teve sua resposta. A dissonância cognitiva desapareceu quando os Seekers racionalizaram que suas ações não foram em vão e sua profecia não estava errada. O grupo anteriormente tímido com a mídia reduziu ainda mais sua dissonância cognitiva pulando em uma campanha urgente na mídia, alertando a imprensa, distribuindo panfletos e indo às ruas para espalhar a mensagem de que foi apenas por causa dos sacrifícios e da fé de seu pequeno grupo que a Terra ainda existiria na manhã de 21 de dezembro.

Os Seekers podem parecer uma situação extrema, mas a dissonância cognitiva ocorre em todos os tipos de situações como forma de diminuir a tensão psicológica e reduzir a ansiedade quando as pessoas são confrontadas com feedback ou evidências que contradizem uma crença, atitude ou opinião existente. Se você já esteve em uma conversa com alguém que simplesmente não conseguia, ou não queria, ouvir a verdade, não importa de quantas maneiras você tentasse explicá-la, ou que reagiu tão mal à verdade que você se arrependeu de dizer qualquer coisa em tudo, você provavelmente já testemunhou alguém que estava experimentando dissonância cognitiva.

Na conclusão de Walden, Henry David Thoreau resume as importantes lições que aprendeu durante seus dois anos de vida simples. Ele escreve: "Mais do que amor, do que dinheiro, do que fama, dá-me a verdade. Sentei-me a uma mesa onde havia comida rica e vinho em abundância, e atendimento obsequioso, mas a sinceridade e a verdade não eram; conselho inóspito." Eu amo Thoreau, mas tenho que me perguntar se ele está falando sobre o tipo de verdade que parece um soco no estômago quando você as ouve. Porque apesar de a maioria das pessoas dizer que quer ouvir a verdade, eu acho que se tivesse que escolher entre uma dura verdade e amor ou dinheiro e fama, a maioria escolheria o último.

O velho clichê é "a verdade dói" e não "a verdade é como um cobertor felpudo que é bom de aconchegar" por um motivo. O cérebro humano não gosta de receber informações que ameacem nossa auto-estima, destruam nossas crenças preexistentes, tornem nossas vidas diárias mais difíceis ou ameacem nosso status. Admitir que estamos errados sobre algo, ou mesmo parcialmente culpados, não é fácil, mesmo quando é para nosso próprio bem. Quando a verdade dói, queremos nos proteger da dor e, assim, encontramos uma maneira de desligar, parar de ouvir ou resistir. E nem sempre estamos cientes de que isso está acontecendo.

Mark Murphy é o fundador da Leadership IQ e autor de Truth At Work: The Science Of Delivering Tough Messages .

Obs: Na psicologia, a dissonância cognitiva é o estresse ou desconforto mental experimentado por um individuo que mantém duas ou mais crenças, ideias ou valores contraditórios ao mesmo tempo, realiza uma ação que é contraditória a uma ou mais crenças, ideias ou valores, ou é confrontado por novas informações que entram em conflito com crenças, ideias ou valores existentes.

A teoria da dissonancia cognitiva de Leon Festinger se concentra em como os humanos lutam pela consistencia interna. Um individuo que experimenta inconsistencia (dissonância) tende a ficar

psicologicamente desconfortável e é motivado a tentar reduzir essa dissonância - bem como evitar ativamente situações e informações que possam aumentá-la. O Conforto que surge ao acreditar (ou afirmar) que a verdade não existe.

"As coisas raramente são como parecem... Os centros de poder vendem suas verdades e os que as questionam, são conduzidos, à força por métodos como a coação, a estados cognitivos dissonantes. Por exemplo: o catolicismo e o protestantismo "vendeu" a fé do perdão e da irmandade, mas gerou guerras infinitas contra a humanidade. Seus fiéis assassinaram impiedosamente seus inimigos, pois estavam em dissonancia cognitiva. "Eles precisavam estar certos e para tal, matavam". A dissonancia é mais poderosa quando se trata de nossa autoimagem. Sentimentos de tolice, imoralidade e assim por diante

(incluindo projeções internas durante a tomada de decisões) são dissonância em ação. Se uma ação foi concluida e não pode ser desfeita, então a dissonância após o fato, nos obriga a mudar nossas crenças. Se as crenças são movidas, então a dissonância aparece durante a tomada de decisão, forçando-nos a realizar ações que não teriamos feito antes.

[calicojack1718]

The Pernicious Role of Cognitive Dissonance in our Social Intercourse

Cognitive dissonance helps survive mental crises but it also helps us maintain erroneous beliefs like racial enmity that then respond to racist dog whistles and cause otherwise "decent" white people to vote Republican.

You’re Endorsing Who? Lately, I’ve been a studying more and more on the role that cognitive dissonance plays in maintaining some of our worst social interactions, namely racism and sexism. The notion that more than half of white America voted for Trump just sticks in my craw. Knowing that just over half of white women voted for Trump just seems un-fucking-believable to me. That he gained voters…

[usunezukoinezu]

Mind Control 101

by Jane - 08 July 2009

"Would you want to know if you were part of an age old mind control technique called "thought reform"? As a former student of Drunvalo/Jim Self/New Age kerappa, I would like to provide you with an opportunity to take a closer look at what is really offered!

Consider the following and come to your own conclusion:

"Are the leader's philosophies, information and viewpoints

* dramatically different than those you formerly held?

* bring you closer to or separate you from friends and family?

* Make you believe things you didn't think were possible?"

"Do the techniques you practice ask you to suspend your personal judgment?"

"Do the techniques your being taught teach you to control your thoughts or emotions?"

"Have your sleep patterns been interrupted or changed?"

(By design emotion and though control techniques "automatically" program you to think or to feel a certain way.)

Does the leader have special information that no one else can "see" or "hear"?

Does the leader predict the failure those who leave who are not privy to his knowledge?

Personalization: Burns calls this distortion "the mother of guilt." A primary weapon of mind control is training members to believe that everything bad that happens is their fault. The guilt that accompanies this sort of personalizing is crippling and controlling. You are out of the cult now, so it is important only to take responsibility for what is yours.

What was your initial reaction to or feeling about the leader or group?

What was going on in your life at the time you joined the group or met the person who became your abusive partner?

What did the group or leader promise you? Did you ever get it?

What didn't they tell you that might have influenced you not to join had you known?

Why did the group or leader want you?

Does the leader use dissociative techniques like meditation, chanting, building energy fields etc?

Do the rules change when you get to a different level? What started out as a predictable and secure environment gradually evolved into confusion and chaos. The rules they thought they could count on started changing. Soon they entered the crazy place of not knowing the rules, which brought on waves of anxiety. No Leader uses mind manipulating practices like these without being very aware of exactly what they are doing to you. Before these techniques cause you additional harm I hope you'll take the time to check in with your own awareness. Then you may have a "real awakening."

Another gradual change in their cult environment involved the persistent push for a greater commitment. It always had to be more, and soon the members felt overwhelmed and wondered if they could ever make it. Could they ever be pure enough? Could they ever reach enlightenment? Their leaders were the only proof that these standards were achievable.

Practices like his are widespread throughout new age centers like the Berkley Psychic Institute and other new age circuits and spiritual circles.

Cult leaders use various techniques to tighten their hold on the group.

COGNITIVE DISSONANCE Leon Festinger is a psychologist who studied groups that predicted the end of the world. He found that most members became stronger than ever when the prophecy failed. His investigation revealed that members had to find a way to cope psychologically with the failure. They needed to maintain order and meaning in their life. They needed to think they were acting according to their self-image and values. Festinger described this contradiction, which they had to overcome as what has become known as the "COGNITIVE DISSONANCE THEORY."

The three components he described are:

"CONTROL OF BEHAVIOUR" - "CONTROL OF THOUGHTS" - "CONTROL OF EMOTIONS"

Each component has a powerful effect on the other two: CHANGE ONE AND THE OTHERS WILL TEND TO FOLLOW. When all three change the individual undergoes a complete change. Festinger summarized the basic principle:

"If you change a person's behaviour, his thoughts and feelings will change to minimize the dissonance."

When there is a conflict between thoughts, feelings or behaviour, then those in conflict will change to minimize the contradiction. This is because a person can only tolerate a certain amount of discrepancy between these components which make up his identity. In cults this dissonance is created to exploit and control them.

By controlling the information one receives you can control and restrict the individual's ability to think for himself. You limit what he is able to think about.

BEHAVIOUR CONTROL - The control of an individual's physical reality.

This can include control of where he lives, what he eats, his clothing, sleep, job, rituals etc. This is why most cults have a stringent schedule for members. There is always something to do in destructive cults. Each cult has its own distinctive set of behaviours that bind it together. This control is so powerful that the cult member will actually participate in their own punishment and come to believe he actually deserves it! No one can command a person's thoughts but IF YOU CAN CONTROL BEHAVIOUR THEN HEARTS AND MINDS WILL FOLLOW.

THOUGHT CONTROL - The control of an individual's thought processes The indoctrination of members so thoroughly that they will manipulate their own thought processes. The ideology is internalized as "the truth". Incoming information is filtered through the beliefs, which also regulates how this information is thought about.

The cult has it's own language which further regulates how a person thinks. This puts a great barrier between cult members and outsiders.

Another form of control is "thought stopping" techniques. This can take many forms: chanting, meditating, singing, humming, tongues (some even pay money to learn it), concentrated praying, etc. The use of these techniques short-circuits the persons' ability to test reality. The person can only think positive thoughts about the group. If there is a problem the member assumes responsibility and works harder.

EMOTIONAL CONTROL - The control of the individuals emotional life

This manipulates a person's range of feelings. Guilt and fear are used to keep control. Cult members cannot see the control by guilt and like other abuse victims are conditioned to blame themselves when things are wrong, even grateful when a leader points our their transgressions.

Fear is used to manipulate two ways. The first is to create an outside enemy (we vs them) who is persecuting you. The second is the fear of punishment by the leaders if you are not "good enough." Being "good enough" is following the ideology perfectly. The most powerful emotional control is phobia indoctrination. This can give the person a panic reaction at the very thought of leaving the group. It is almost impossible to conceive that there is any life outside the group. There is no physical gun held to their heads but the psychological gun is just as if not more powerful.

And then there is:

INFORMATION CONTROL - The control of the individuals information sources

Deny a person the information needed to make a sound judgment and he will be incapable of doing so. People are trapped in cults because they are denied both the access to the critical information they need to assess their situation. The psychological chains on their minds are just as powerful as if they were locked away physically from society. So strong is this psychological process they also lack the properly functioning internal mechanism to process any critical information placed in front of them.

THE EIGHT MARKS OF MIND CONTROL TOTALISM - ALL OR NOTHING

Mind Control is a PROCESS of eradicating former beliefs and instituting new beliefs in their place through the use of COERCIVE persuasion. It is a PROCESS, which is designed to break a person's independence and individuality and replace it with the ideology clone. The Chinese called this process "thought reform" which was poorly translated into English as "brain-washing".

BRAINWASHING

Brainwashing is now considered to be a different process to thought reform or mind control. In brainwashing the victim knows who is the enemy. An example is American Patty Hearst who was kidnapped by a terrorist group. Through physical abuse she finally became a member of the group and took part in terrorist activities and bank robberies.

THOUGHT CONTROL

Thought control is more subtle. The victim doesn't know who is the enemy because the enemy seems like their best friend who only has their best interests at heart.

Cults practice a more refined form of thought control than that used by the Chinese. Leading psychologist, Dr Margaret Singer, said cults do it better than the Chinese because it is easier to get people to do what you want through manipulating them with guilt and anxiety. During this process the prospective recruit is re-educated and will abandon the precepts he has learnt from life for the "truth" or "enlightenment" offered by the group. In some cults this is done over a long period of time; Other cults can bring about this change within 48 hours. Whichever way the process takes place the results are the same."

[gikbvfg]

1957 Leon Festinger

[protected-and-loved-by-castiel]

𝑊ℎ𝑦 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑠ℎ𝑜𝑢𝑙𝑑 𝑐ℎ𝑎𝑙𝑙𝑒𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝐵𝑒𝑙𝑖𝑒𝑓 𝑎𝑛𝑑 ℎ𝑜𝑤 𝑡𝑜 𝑑𝑜 𝑖𝑡: We all have beliefs that shape our perception of ourselves and the world around us. Some of these beliefs are based on facts and evidence, while others are based on personal experiences, emotions, or preferences.

Sometimes, we encounter new information that contradicts our existing beliefs. How do we react to such situations?

According to the theory of cognitive dissonance, proposed by social psychologist Leon Festinger, we experience a state of mental discomfort when we hold two conflicting beliefs or when our actions are inconsistent with our beliefs. For example, if you believe that smoking is harmful to your health, but you still smoke, you may feel uneasy about your behavior. To reduce this discomfort, you may try to rationalize your smoking by saying that it helps you cope with stress or that you will quit soon.

However, rationalizing or ignoring the new information is not always the best way to deal with cognitive dissonance. In fact, it can prevent us from learning new things, growing as a person, and changing our behavior for the better.

Therefore, it is important to challenge our own beliefs and be open-minded to other perspectives and ideas.

Here are some tips on how to challenge your beliefs effectively:

༺ 𝐁𝐞 𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧-𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐝: Don’t dismiss new information or opinions just because they don’t fit your existing beliefs. Instead, try to understand where they are coming from and what evidence they are based on. You may find some valid points or insights that can enrich your knowledge and worldview.

༺ 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐁𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐟 𝐨𝐧 𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞: Don’t rely on assumptions, biases, or emotions to form your beliefs. Instead, seek out reliable sources of information and data that can support or challenge your beliefs. Be willing to revise your beliefs if you find new evidence that contradicts them.

༺ 𝐁𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐟𝐬: Don’t cling to your beliefs just because they are familiar or comfortable. Instead, be flexible and adaptable to changing circumstances and situations. Remember that changing your beliefs does not mean that you are weak or wrong. It means that you are intelligent and curious.

༺ 𝐐𝐮𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐜𝐞𝐬: Don’t accept everything you read or hear as the truth. Instead, evaluate the credibility and accuracy of your sources of information. Consider the motives and biases of the authors or speakers. Look for multiple sources that can confirm or refute the information.

By challenging your beliefs, you can improve your critical thinking skills, broaden your horizons, and enhance your personal growth. You can also avoid falling prey to false or misleading information that can harm you or others. Remember that intelligence is not knowing everything, it’s the ability to challenge everything you know.

༄𝚆𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊𝚛𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚘𝚞𝚐𝚑𝚝𝚜 𝚊𝚋𝚘𝚞𝚝 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚘𝚙𝚒𝚌? 𝙿𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚎 𝚕𝚎𝚝 𝚖𝚎 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚒𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜.

𝐿𝑒𝑛𝑎 𝐾𝑟𝑎𝑣𝑒𝑡𝑠

𝑩𝒚 𝑲𝒏𝒐𝒘𝒍𝒆𝒅𝒈𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝑷𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓

[mapoyaj]

🌟 from topnotcher to imposter

Even after nine years, I still feel overwhelmed by being a topnotcher. I often find it hard to say that I was a topnotcher. The experience was actually surreal, as I usually struggle with imposter syndrome. While I already had this significant achievement, I constantly battled with the belief that I was not good enough. It has been a recurring theme; I have always been consumed by how others might perceive me.

The Imposter Phenomenon was first described by Dr. Pauline Clance and Dr. Suzanne Imes. It suggests that individuals with imposter syndrome often attribute their success to external rather than internal factors. This leads to chronic self-doubt and a persistent fear of being exposed as a "fraud." In my experience, the Imposter syndrome has manifested in underestimating my achievements and feeling anxious about not meeting perceived expectations.

Another theory that explains what I feel is the cognitive dissonance theory by Leon Festinger, as my experience has always been an inner conflict. This theory illustrates that holding contradictory beliefs often causes psychological discomfort. For me, recognizing an achievement like being a topnotcher clashes with my internal narrative of inadequacy, of not being good enough.

Understanding these concepts, I recognize that I further need to reframe my thoughts. I needed to embrace my achievements as a reflection of my capabilities, not just an external factor like luck. This is the first step in overcoming imposter syndrome.