ch. 1. What are cults? Cults are harmful and extreme religious groups / Jayanti Tamm -- The term cult is misused for new religious movements / Douglas E. Cowan and David G. Bromley -- Cults and religions have important differences / H. Stephen Shoemaker -- Cults and religions have similarities / Brad Hirschfield -- Mormonism and cults have similarities / Christopher Hitchens -- It does not matter if Mormonism is a cult / Michael Riley -- $t Scientology is a dangerous cult / Amy Scobee, as told to Mike Hess -- Scientology is more than just a cult / Janet Reitman --

ch. 2. Are cults a serious threat? Cults are prone to crime and violence / Tom O'Connor -- The threat of cults is exaggerated / Bruce A. Robinson -- Cults are a serious threat in Japan / Leo Lewis -- Some cults are sexually abusive / Celeste Jones, Kristina Jones, and Juliana Buhring -- Polygamist cults threaten women and girls / Carolyn Jessop, as told to Luiza Ch. Savage -- The practice of polygamy is defensible / Jacob Hodgen --

ch. 3. Why do people join cults? Cults brainwash their members / Michael Haag -- Cults do not brainwash their members / Bruce A. Robinson -- Psychological traits can influence people to join cults / Frank MacHovec -- People join cults for a variety of reasons / Robin Jackson --

ch. 4. How can cult members be helped? Ex-cult members can be deprogrammed / Rick Alan Ross

Some cult deprogrammers are as harmful as cults / Dominic Streatfeild

Some ex-cult members maintain healthy connections with their former cults / Gina Catena

Children should not be returned to their parents in cults / Flora Jessop and Paul T. Brown

Organizations to contact.