Introduction to the High Demand Group Concept (QF: The View from Here)

This series of posts results includes excerpts from information shared with a journalist in August of 2015 who had questions about the Quiverfull Movement as it related to the Duggar Family.

Find the Index of all posts HERE.

Find the previous post HERE.

Question:

How are women controlled by the inherent patriarchy of QF?

Response Part One:

As is the case in high demand ideological groups, both leadership and members convey control subtly through informal, social means. In many ways, people become “self-programmed.” All groups of people develop their own natural, social rules which are informal which govern the way that people behave, and as social creatures, we are very sensitive to them. In any such gathering, this unwritten code has been called the “hidden curriculum,” and it serves a useful purpose within a healthy social group. However, in cultic groups, these social pressures work against the unsuspecting member in profound ways and usually differ significantly from their formally stated goals and mission.

The true goals of a high demand group — the preservation of the infallibility of the group leader, his/her ultimate benefit, and the group’s unquestionable doctrine — are never discussed openly in such a direct manner, though all social interaction and life within the group support them. This creates a great deal of cognitive dissonance for the member which is generally vague enough to cause them to ignore the inconsistencies that give way to their sense of confusion. Most optimistic people will dismiss the disparagements between the hidden curriculum and their good beliefs about the group because of confirmation bias — their wishful thinking and faith in the benefits of membership. Over time, the member learns to ignore the nagging sense that “something is wrong” with the group and will use the sensation as a cause to question themselves. As Cialdini describes in the book, Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, the inherent human traits such as our tendency to comply with those in authority or those we like, the pressure to be consistent and committed to a cause, social proof, and the desire to reciprocate care and benefits also help reinforce the hidden demands required of the member to remain part of the life of a group.

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~ Cynthia Kunsman

The view of Quiverfull from my vantage

August 2015