Invitation to Take Part in a Research Study

I got a note tonight from Colleen Russell, MFT, a therapist and cult counselor in Marin, CA. An associate of hers is conducting research and would very much like to have the participation of former cult members. I hope you will considering taking his short, web-based survey.

"I want to say at the outset that at this point in our research we are simply trying to validate a new measure -- the PBS. (Pathogenic Beliefs Scale...those inaccurate, self-limiting, and self-sabotaging beliefs internalized through throught reform and also formed in childhood). Many, if not most, measures in psychology are usually validated on samples of undergraduate psychology students. My goal for validating the PBS was to generate a wide and diverse sample of respondents: janitors and judges, drug addicts and doctors, students and stock brokers, etc. Toward this end, I felt it would be very helpful to have former cult members in this validation sample.

"Once the scale has been validated, we can begin to assess whether there are different patterns of beliefs in different groups of individuals.

If you are interested in taking part in the survey, please email Colleen Russell,LMFT,CGP for information.