WE ALL get persuaded on occasion, perhaps to buy something that we either do or don't need - the 'right' kind of advertising obviously does pay. At least we know where to get hold of something should the inspiration or need arise. Ever wonder where the inspiration or 'need' comes from? Does it necessarily benefit you, apart from that buzz and the hole in your pocket.
RESEARCH shows how people in groups tend to be rather more willing to take risks. That doesn't mean that everyone takes more risks, or even feels like it. It is simply that there is a way of showing a reasonable statistical difference between one state of affairs (making a decision on one's own), and facing the same decision with a group of others people.
YOU MIGHT be surprised how much that appears in our newspapers is simply a press release or write-up about someone's research, which may or may not be applicable to normal daily life. It could, by a small stretch of the imagination, be designed to influence you to a way of thinking.
DID YOU know that behaviour follows thought? Whose thoughts - what you read, what someone whom you trust tells you, what everyone else in the workplace thinks, what your partner thinks? This may sound like empty rhetoric and that is for you to decide. But would you want constant party political broadcasts, rousing marches, football crowds?
DO YOU want sometimes to flop in front of the tv and let it all happen around you? It lifts you out of your everyday life, the daily struggle to work when you don't feel like it, the chores, getting the car fixed. It's like a holiday, and we all need a breather. You're happy to let the show go on and that might just be when your defences are down (hence all those ads?).
FINE - because you know there's advertising. But what if you're uneasy about something, on the tv/ off the tv, what your mate says, what your boss says? Why do you think there is emphasis today on being assertive, standing up for yourself, getting advice because you don't fit a particular niche? Indeed it could be good for you. It could also be good for the people who are paid to promote ideas via books, seminars, group meetings to foster a feeling of support, and so on.
EVERYONE has to earn a living? Everyone can do their own thing? It's free and it's helpful? Could there be a hidden agenda, getting your mates involved, giving a donation, getting you to buy books, encouraging you to feel a need to seek help or comfort - at financial or human cost? We are all human: you may feel OK with yourself or at least you get by. You can build on that by yourself or with friends you trust.
BE AWARE that some people may not be what they seem. Some may simply want you to believe what they believe, or they say what you might want to hear. Something to watch out for would be a double-standard (which can be deliberate or not) where the stated objective may be perhaps an ideal to follow, but the intent may be raising money or having a form of control over others.
AS A GUIDE, if you are in a relationship or a group and you feel like questioning something or changing your mind but you meet opposition, perhaps it is time to examine things further. There is a natural amount of give-and-take in many situations. We all have our various likes and dislikes, our comfort zones and our discomforts.
KEEP LOOKING UNTIL YOU FIND WHAT YOU NEED - Everyone is different
Topaz Postline do not necessarily endorse all Links and information appearing on this Site.
The point behind much of our work is that - People should be free to make their own choices!
'Conned: Scams, Frauds & Swindles' by James Morton & Hilary Bateson
'The Con Artist Handbook, the Secrets of Hustles & Scams' by Joel Levy
'The Art of the Steal - How to Protect Yourself & your Business' by Frank W Abagnale
'The Art of Deception' by Kevin D Mitnick & William L Simon
'More Scams from the Great Beyond' by Peter Huston
'The Sting - True Stories of the World's greatest Conmen' by Nigel Blundell
'The Tourist Trap - when Holiday turns to Nightmare' by Patrick Blackden'The Book of Tells' by Peter Collett
'The Call of the Weird - Travels in American Subcultures' by Louis Theroux
'The Dilbert Principle' by Scott Adams
'A Mind of its Own - How your Brain Distorts & Deceives' by Cordelia Fine
'The Psychology of Self-Deception' by Daniel Goleman
'Tricks of the Mind' by Derren Brown
'Mark Wilson's Complete Course in Magic''Decoding Advertisements - Ideology & Meaning in Advertising' by Judith Williamson
'Emotional Design - Why we love (or hate) everyday things' by Donald A Norman
'Stack & Sway - the new Science of Jury Consulting' by Neil J Kressel & Dorit F Kressel
'Techniques of Persuasion' by J.A.C. Brown
'We Know What You Want - How they change your Mind' by Martin Howard
'The Want Makers' by Eric Clark'The Sociopath Next Door' by Martha Stout
'Without Conscience - the Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among us' by Robert D Hare
'Erased - Missing Women, Murdered Wives' by Marilee Strong
Some people may genuinely believe in what they are telling you (top of Page)
Logical Fallacies - errors of reasoning or argument -
use a Search Engine or www.logicalfallacies.info/ which categorises fallacies of relevance, ambiguity, or presumption
Social Engineering for strategies from the computer environment, and used more generally,
to gain information or to manipulate - often via 'social compliance'
Ponerology - wickedness or evil Psychohistory (more information below) Nidotherapy - changing someone's environment rather than trying to change them
Dissing has become a part of life, whether that means discounting someone, disrespecting, discrediting,
disregarding, dismissing; or being rude or unsupportive. Link to Dissing, Splits, Divides
Scapegoating, Abuse & One-Upmanship article HERE One-upmanship: The art of maintaining a psychological advantage
GROUPS in general, including family relationships or work places, even interaction with an individual, can have a very strong effect, and it can be difficult to see things for what they are, and to get help and understanding.
Management or other techniques may include the concept of 'winning hearts & minds': To get people to change how they behave, you first change how they think about something, perhaps by gaining their trust or dependence. Coercive behaviour does not have to be obtrusive or jarring. It can be subtle or desirable, or at worst seem harmless - which makes it harder to see or get others to see.
CULT-RELATED Links are provided as a possible starting point
Please bear in mind that people working in this field may have different opinions and approaches, so just take on board what is useful:
http://www.freedomofmind.comSteven Hassan's website, author of 'Combatting Cult Mind Control: Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults" (1988) and 'Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves' (2000).
'Cults and Families' by Doni Whitsett & Stephen A Kent: overview of cult-related issues: families in cults, parental roles, impact cult leaders have on families, destruction of family intimacy, child abuse, impact on cognitive, psychological and moral development, health issues. Download from http://www.arts.ualberta.ca/~skent/cults.html
'Cults, Secret Sects & Radical Religions' by Robert Schroeder
'Cultwise' website http://cultwise.blogspot.com Groups, Cults, Indoctrination, Exiting click HERE
'Misunderstanding Cults' by Benjamin Zablocki & Thomas Robbins Out of Character Behaviour website http://toukanalia.blogspot.com
'Pointed Observations' by Kevin R D Shepherd
'Recovery from Cults' by Michael D Longone
'Snapping' by Flo Conway & Jim Siegelman
'The Complex' by John Duignan
'The Cult Files' by Chris Mikul
'The Secret World of Cults' by Jean Ritchie
'Prophets, Cults & Madness' by Anthony Stevens, John Price
'Feet of Clay' by Anthony Storr (about Gurus - including Freud and Jung)
'Making Minds and Madness' by Mikkel Borch-Jacobsen
Social Engineering - strategies from the computer environment, and used generally,
to gain information or to manipulate - often via 'social compliance'
BBC Website at www.bbc.co.uk/headroom
‘Unwind Your Mind’ (may need Java & Flash)
or click top left of their Site for Text Only.
Contacts for Help & LINKS
Myth Buster section explains some common Mental Health ‘myths’ or misunderstandings
IF YOU FIND ANY SITUATION BECOMING TOO HARD TO HANDLE
THERE IS NOTHING TO BE ASHAMED OF IN ADMITTING TO YOURSELF OR OTHERS
THAT YOU MAY NEED TO LEAVE IT, OR THAT YOU NEED SOME SUPPORT
Those wishing to explore the possibility of Middle-Ground in their own situation may arrange to communicate with other parties involved, for a fixed period via the postal address
Mid-Ground
BM TOPAZ
London
WC1N 3XX
TopazLine remains impartial, and only sees contents of communications by request We would ask participants to pay the costs of forwarding mail
Send a stamped addressed envelope for further information or visit www.concil.org.uk
A Singular Yarn - A tale with a difference about ritual abuse, Written for
- those who wonder whether ritual abuse is ever real
- some who wonder if their therapist really helps
