Topics Started by paranoia agent

1
On shunning
by paranoia agent in
1. watchtower
2. beliefs
this book titled extreme, written by two psychologists, with a section on ostracism.. i've been having troubles adding these to see, and the best i can do is provide the links.

http://imageshack.com/a/img538/5893/fnqoq5.jpg.

http://imageshack.com/a/img661/5378/coj7kq.jpg.
Ozy the ex jw
by paranoia agent in
1. jw
2. experiences
explains how he left the jws.. https://youtu.be/r9w4ojgfllk .

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2
Book reviews by Steve Hassan
by paranoia agent in
1. watchtower
2. beliefs
i have a small blog space which i do really short book reviews that i have read.. the latest entry are books by ex-cult councilor steven hassan.. http://psychbookreviews.blogspot.com.au/2015/03/combatting-cult-mind-control-ccmc.html.
4
FEAR
by paranoia agent in
1. jw
2. experiences
watch, wath it all.. .

http://youtu.be/o-vlhnpwju0.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-vlhnpwju0.
10
To understand cults we need to start understanding ourselves
by paranoia agent in
1. watchtower
2. bible
there are books out there that talk about why it is so difficult to convince someone that they are wrong.

hassan and singer specifically address destructive cults.

hassan refers to cult members under mind control and singer under thought reform.
18
A mormon pm's me
by paranoia agent in
1. watchtower
2. bible
just read your thread about oblivion to oblivion, watched the video you posted and wondered if you'd be willing to let me send you some videos on the book of mormon.

as you may know, i'm lds and i believe there's substantial evidence for the historicity of the book.

but i'm also aware there's evidence and proof.
5
From oblivion to oblivion
by paranoia agent in
1. watchtower
2. bible
we all are on our separate journeys, some of us are undecided, some unconvinced, others no longer believe in the cult but now in another religion, or lost complete belief in deities.. i don't know how beneficial these atheists threads are to new comers, perhaps it would be more difficult to accept certain information, for example scientific methods and understandings rather than different interpretations of the bible, this was the case with me at the start of my journey from leaving this jw cult.. when i left i bought many bibles, some expensive interlinears and commentaries, today my reading material mainly consist of science and social political issues, how i have changed.

i am happy that i will die knowing i won't have all the answers, i know none of you will even if you believe in invisible parents.

my views changed so much that not only do i no longer believe in deities but also the hate i have towards a fiction god of pure evil that many claim to be good.. but one thing i do know, is that it's too much for me to believe in a book who we don't know the authors, that has inconsistencies and errors, and that somehow didn't speak bad about roman authority at the time ****yink*** ***yink****.. remember what jesus said, pay to caesar what belongs to caesar?
11
I have a live one lol
by paranoia agent in
1. watchtower
2. beliefs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cov9xvrq1p8.

check the comment section for jw raiden25256666 posts, he just called me an idiot lol.
29
Child indoctrination explained by transactional analysis
by paranoia agent in
1. watchtower
2. beliefs
the purpose of psychology is to explain and help others to change, if suffering from depression or anxiety or we just want to understand the other or improve ourselves there are different types of psychological therapies to help us.

we are aware that psychologists have the know-how, just has mechanics know cars and astronauts know space shuttles and psychics, but we know they know a lot but we know very little possibly because its too complicated, it doesn't make rational sense, we don't have enought time or just like my diploma in accounting if its not put to good use it will turn into a vague memory.. look at my previous thread in cognitive dissonance, it sounds alien to many, it sure sounds to those that i explained it to, that is because its not something we normally hear about so explaining it to others these words and their context also requires a connotation from the listener for cognitive dissonance to make any sense.. my very first assignment was on cognitive dissonance in a paper titled media illiteracy or cognitive dissonance which discussed statistical discrepancies between what people said regarding their preferred news media output -tv or newspapers- and the actual sales/view/quality figures of those two media outlets, in the usa during the 70's and 80's.

it turns out that people lied about tv news medium being higher quality than newspapers because the quality is lower than newspapers (local news recorded in many states), the truth is that nobody wants to admit (during the questionnaires for this empirical data) that watching news on tv is easier and lazier than reading.
20
How to influence those under psychological coercion
by paranoia agent in
1. jw
2. experiences
hi, i am completing a degree in psychology, while doing so a subject on social psychology has some interesting subjects on persuasion and change techniques.

so while not all circumstances are different doing so in this manner is the most efficient way:.

1. do not allow the argument to become heated, studies have showed that people tend to use less of the left side of the brain (left side is where all rational and logical cognitions take place, right hemisphere of the brain is all emotion).. 2. don't be a hypocrite, if they get angry and upset they subconsciently expect you to do the same to prove themselves that what they are doing is correct, speak calmly with a monotone voice and try to calm the other person down.. 3. build rapport, rapport can only come from genuine empathy so do not pretend or they will see right through you.