I agree with your assement. They blindly hanging onto the teachings is not suprizing if you are a physical person. People do the same in all walks of life from law to history. Teachings and rules to a physical person is the anchor of security and when it is question the person will do everything to defend it up to killing someone physcially or spiritually.
The spiritual person understand and trust in the invisible they understand the key to the real life is faith and trust in God and that letting go of the physical life of control and letting God take control of their spiritual life is true security and happiness They understand that a God of love cannot do injustice and that He cannot forget one hair of a child of God head.
Most of Jehovah's Witnesses have only the physical part of Christ teaching that is why when they get it or find out the truth of the orgainzation is false it completely devastate them. All there security is removed and they cannot find another organzation with black and white rules and thus, they feel their is no other place to go. Truth to them is physical not spiritual they believe because of doctrine they are spiritual people.
Most if not all have never had God spirit or do they know it exist accept in theroy of doctrinal teachings. Without the spirit of God there is no understanding of God. There is no understanding freedom, freedom is a word in doctrine not a reality to them. So they are most of all put in a position to be enslaved to an the org. Why? Because God spirit is a comforter it acts as a teacher and a leader and resure what we have is real. It makes the invisible life as real as the physical that is why the apostle could give up this life and not fear death. The spirit filled life they lead was given to them at pentcost and it exist in them until their death.
No one could taste and see the heavenly life and walk away from it, that life is far more compelling then physical life. Can you imagine millions of people talking and arguing over something they cannot understand or have never experience. And then labeling other that have apostates. Christ warned us their was only one sin that could not be forgiven and that was working against the Holy Spirit that Holy Spirit dwells in one place today on earth and that is in his God's children. And that is why a person could be judge unworthy of life for treating one of the least of these my brother as mundane. To trample on the physical temple of the Jews was consider an offence worthy of death. To trample on God spiritual temple is unforgivable offence.
Perhaps that is why Christ could say Father forgive them they know not what they do. Witnesses have no idea what being born again is or where the spirit goes and where it comes from only in doctrine. All the actions of the org proves it is a physical nation of people nothing more that is why forgivness is a weakness to them and laws and rules are superior and why they fear being wrong.