Aronson, E., Wilson, T., & Akert, R. (2007). Social Psychology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson.

1. Author’s thesis: This textbook is the standard textbook in social psychology classes. There is no one specific thesis, but the goal is to explain people in social groups. This is absolutely necessary in understanding the dynamics of NRMs. Issues tackled in the textbook are conformity and influence in social groups.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Not a matter of agreement or disagreement in this instance, but the power of conformity and influence in social groups will help me in stating the importance of such groups on the individual.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: By showing the mechanisms underlying such groups and the power that they possess, it will be easier to demonstrate certain specific theories of social influence.

Capps, Donald. (1968). Orestes brown: The psychology of religious affiliation. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 7, 197-209.

1. Author’s thesis: A combination of social factors and personal characteristics are what influenced Orestes Brown to seek religious affiliation. The emphasis being on the interaction of these two aspects.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: This is a more holistic view of why people (in this case, only the case study) affiliate to religious institutions. The author makes a convincing case, therefore, I agree.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: Although my main objective is to prove the power of social influence and how all of us can be persuaded into such groups, it is my responsibility to understand that “personality factors” affect the propensity to join such groups and will have a markedly effect on those who join. I will use the case study to support this point.

Dein, S., and Barlow, H. (1999). Why do people join the Hare Krishna movement? Deprivation theory revisited. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 2, 75-84.

1. Author’s thesis: The author explores the theory of deprivation as a main reason of why people join such groups by using the Hare Krishna movement.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: The theory of deprivation is one of the theories that I want to explore in my research, but in conjunction with other one as well. In terms of agreement or disagreement, it must be stated that I “agree” with the authors’ findings and conclusions.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: At the heart of this journal article, lies the basic question of my research. Why do people join NRMs? The theory of deprivation is one of the reasons why people join, or at least one that I find to be relevant.

Festinger, L., Riecken, H., & Schachter, S. (1956). When Prophecy Fails. New York, NY: Harper Torchbooks.

1. Author’s thesis: The authors wanted to explore why proselytizing occurs after disconfirmation and listed three instances when this can happen: conviction, commitment, and most vitally social support when disconfirmation occurs.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Social support is of utmost important when trying to hold on to one’s convictions – even after an unexpected occurrence, such as disconfirmation. Festinger et al. were very careful in delineating the conditions under which these things and occur and were successful in supporting their points through case studies. Their argument was sound and persuasive.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: The book does not attempt to explain why people join, but rather why people hold on to the convictions that they initially have, even after many obstacles. Undoubtedly, questionable NRM’s members face this problem and the theory presented here will aid in explaining why they remain loyal to it, without relying on past explanations, such as mind control or “brainwashing.”

Galanter, Marc (1999). Cults: Faith, Healing, and Coercion. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

1. Author’s thesis: Galanter explores the typical reasons why people join cults and adopts the typical social psychologist’s position, a negative one. The individual is in search for the groups, or rather, deindividuation must occur for such an individual to join such groups.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Disagree with most of Galanter’s view on why people join and his approach on the subject. Although, his book is the most comprehensive guide on cults that I have read so far, he treats it as a negative entity, which manipulates individuals. I will not refute many of his points on how people join, but will definitely be very critical of the approach which he takes when describing them

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: Cohesion, interruption of schema, amalgamation/enmeshment of the self within the group are all issues that Galanter focuses on and will serve in enriching my argument, but the logistics of his research take an unsuitable approach.

Horgan, John (2005). The Psychology of Terrorism. New York, NY: Routledge.

1. Author’s thesis: A three-piece model in which “normal” individuals can become involved in the world of terrorism.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Horgan refutes the common misperception of people having a propensity to join “terrorist groups’ or them possessing certain innate personality traits which make them more prone to it. This is in the vein of my thesis and would like to explore it further.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: Once again, the power of social influence is reiterated in the work of Horgan. By deconstructing the ideas that people might have of a “terrorist personality” and through case studies of terrorists, he shows that even the most normal individuals can become enamored with such dangerous ideals. His approach is that of interaction effects, not main effects, something that I will heavily emphasize.

Paloutzian, R., Richardson, J., and Ramdo, L. (1999). Religious conversion and personality change. Journal of Personality 63, 1047 – 1079.

1. Author’s thesis: Personality changes occur throughout a conversion and there is hard data that can be provided to support such a claim.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Unsure of my stance on such a one-dimensional field of psychology. It seems like personality psychologists are only concerned with personality traits and ignore the obvious social group influence. By default, I would have to state my disagreement.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: In the beginning phase of my paper, I want to introduce why taking the “personality” psychology aspect in explaining something as complex as why people join NRMs is inappropriate. This journal article will serve this purpose, being that many questions were left unanswered and could not be detracting from merely studying “personality.”

Shaffer, B., and Hastings, B. (2007). Authoritarianism and religious identification: Response to threats on religious beliefs. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 2, 151-158.

1. Author’s thesis: Psychometric scale was developed by author which could measure authoritarianism and how it pertains to religious fundamentalism. Results showed positive correlation between these two variables.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Disagree. It is difficult to contest that one characteristic predisposes individuals to religious fundamentalism. Personality Psychology is too-narrow-minded in its focus and misses the entire point. Scales can be used to help determine which individuals are “prone” to joining such groups only after social situations have been reviewed.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: I will use this journal article to enlighten and show the reader how, even with statistical proof, such a limited perspective can be achieved. Once again, the holistic approach will be emphasized.

Ulman, C. (1982). Cognitive and emotional antecedents of religious conversion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 43, 183-192.

1. Author’s thesis: A healthy combination of social situations along with personality traits (and the subsequent changes) aid greatly in religious conversion.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Most certainly agree with the author’s point of view. More importantly though, his approach towards the subject of religious conversion is important, given that he combined personality psychology and social psychology. On the other hand, greater importance should have been placed on the situational aspect.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: A model to emulate and praise as I begin writing about how we should study people that join NRMs.

Zimbardo, Philip (2007). The Lucifer Effect: Understanding How Good People Turn Evil. New York, NY: Random House.

1. Author’s thesis: Attributional references are grossly overestimated; situational attributions are the ones that count the most. Zimbardo draws upon the Stanford Prison Experiment and talks about Abu Ghraib and how seemingly “normal” people can perform the most atrocious acts.

Agree or disagree, state reasons why/why not: Agree with the overall thesis of the work. Situational attributions are the ones to take into account, but should not be limited to only actions that emanate from the dark side of humankind.

How will this aid in the development of my thesis: I will be using this book substantially as it offers one of the most exceptional cases of situational power, instead of attributional one. On the other hand, it is useful to note that Zimbardo talks about deindividuation and about the negative aspects when one becomes part of the group, without realizing that the group can serve the individual in a positive manner.