Steven Hassan

==Background==
===Institutions===
In 1979, Hassan founded a non-profit organization called Ex-Moon Inc. The organization consisted of over four hundred former members of the Unification Church. The organization is now defunct.<ref name="sam"/> In 1999, he founded the Freedom of Mind Resource Center.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/wjj85y/how-cult-leaders-use-youtube-to-recruit-new-members |title=How Cults Use YouTube for Recruitment |first=Mack |last=Lamoureux |date=August 11, 2017 |work=[[Vice (magazine)|Vice]]}}</ref> The center is registered as a domestic {{not a typo|profit}} corporation in the Commonwealth of [[Massachusetts]], and Hassan is president and treasurer.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Business Entity Summary for Freedom of Mind Resource Center |work=corp.sec.state.ma.us |publisher=Office of the [[Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts]] |access-date=December 6, 2023 |url= https://corp.sec.state.ma.us/CorpWeb/CorpSearch/CorpSummary.aspx?sysvalue=XfsAs7QojZL7_jMMuLyu9CM2tGbrCSxd9lHwjn.rxyY-}}</ref> Hassan posts dossiers on the site about organizations he has investigated or received complaints about.<ref name="bmag">{{cite magazine |url=https://www.bostonmagazine.com/2007/09/01/the-other-side-of-enlightenment/ |title=The Other Side of Enlightenment |last=Elton |first= Catherine |date=September 1, 2007 |work=[[Boston (magazine)|Boston]] |access-date=August 23, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210823154137/https://www.bostonmagazine.com/2007/09/01/the-other-side-of-enlightenment/ |archive-date=August 23, 2021}}</ref>

===Deprogramming and exit counseling===
Hassan took part in a number of "[[deprogramming]]s" in the late 1970s, but has been critical of them since 1980 and has instead advocated exit counseling.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Hassan |first=Steven Alan |title=Refuting the Disinformation Attacks Put Forth by Destructive Cults and their Agents |url=http://www.freedomofmind.com/stevehassan/refuting/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061212132017/http://www.freedomofmind.com/stevehassan/refuting/ |archive-date=December 12, 2006 |access-date=September 5, 2022 |work=Freedom of Mind Resource Center}}</ref> Deprogramming was a controversial form of coercive intervention in which a number of self-styled "deprogrammers" were hired (usually by families or parents) to separate someone from a religious or other movement; after being abducted and/or confined, the individual was subjected to a sustained verbal attack, which might continue for days or weeks, on the group to which they were connected.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Laycock |first=Douglas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bEiwxUad97IC |title=Religious Liberty |volume=2: ''The Free Exercise Clause'' |date=2011 |publisher=[[Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing]] |isbn=978-0-8028-6522-9 |location=Grand Rapids, Michigan |page=746}}</ref> Hassan claims that he never abducted, restrained, threatened or disrespected anyone in any deprogrammings in which he participated, although this is contradicted by affidavits from victims, and also by Hassan's own written description of a deprogramming he conducted.{{r|shupe2006|p=150-51}} However, according to Shupe and Darnell, Hassan represents "a maturation of the anti-cult movement toward professionalisation and away from coercive vigilantism".{{r|shupe2006|p=152}} Hassan's preferred approach, exit counseling, is also a form of family-initiated intervention, but distinguishes itself by allowing the subject to leave at any time and by adopting a non-violent, persuasive approach.{{r|langone|pages=166, 171–4}} In ''[[Combatting Cult Mind Control]]'' (1988), Hassan stated that although "the non-coercive approach will not work in every case, it has proved to be the option most families prefer. Forcible intervention can be kept as a last resort if all other attempts fail."<ref>{{cite book |last=Hassan |first=Steven |date=1988 |title=Combatting Cult Mind Control |publisher=Park Street Press |isbn=0-89281-243-5 |page=114}}</ref>

===Education and writing===
In 1985, Hassan completed a Master’s degree in [[counseling psychology]] at [[Cambridge College]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cambridgecollege.edu/alumni-friends/stories/steven-hassan|title=Steven Hassan|access-date=August 12, 2021}}</ref> Hassan studied [[hypnosis]] and is a member of the [[American Society of Clinical Hypnosis]]<ref>{{Cite web |title=Member Referral Search |work=ASCH.net |publisher=[[American Society of Clinical Hypnosis]] |access-date=February 5, 2016 |url= http://www.asch.net/Public/MemberReferralSearch.aspx}}</ref> and the International Society of Hypnosis.<ref name="hypnosis">{{Cite web |title=The International Society of Hypnosis |work=WN.com |publisher=[[World News Network]] |access-date=February 5, 2016 |url=http://wn.com/the_international_society_of_hypnosis}}</ref> In ''Combatting Cult Mind Control'' he described his own recruitment as the result of the unethical use of powerful psychological influence techniques by members of the Church.<ref>{{cite book |title=Combatting Cult Mind Control |first=Steven |last=Hassan |date=1998 |publisher=Park Street Press |chapter=Ch. 1 |isbn=0-89281-243-5}}{{primary source inline|date=September 2023}}</ref>

Hassan studied the "thought reform" theories of [[Robert Jay Lifton]], and concluded that the Moon organization used all eight characteristics of thought reform described by Lifton. He also studied the work of [[Richard Bandler]] and [[John Grinder]] (founders of [[neuro-linguistic programming]]), [[Milton H. Erickson]], [[Virginia Satir]], and [[Gregory Bateson]], and wrote that their work was the basis for his own theories on mind control, counseling, and intervention.<ref>{{cite book |title=Combatting Cult Mind Control |first=Steven |last=Hassan |date=1998 |publisher=Park Street Press |chapter=Ch. 2 |isbn=0-89281-243-5}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves |chapter=Ch. 2 |first=Steven |last=Hassan |publisher=FOM Press |date=2000 |isbn=9780967068800}}</ref>

Hassan spent several years developing and promoting a model to evaluate what he calls "cult" and "cult-like" groups. In his third book, ''Freedom of Mind: Helping Loved Ones Leave Controlling People, Cults, and Beliefs'' (2012), Hassan presents Lifton's and [[Margaret Singer]]'s models of evaluation alongside his own model represented by the acronym "BITE": control of Behavior, Information, Thought and Emotion.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Hassan |first1=S. A. |last2=Shah |first2=M. J. |title=The anatomy of undue influence used by terrorist cults and traffickers to induce helplessness and trauma, so creating false identities |work=Ethics, Medicine and Public Health |date=January 1, 2019 |volume=8 |pages=97–107 |doi=10.1016/j.jemep.2019.03.002 |doi-access=}}</ref>

In 2019, Hassan published ''The Cult of Trump'': ''A Leading Cult Expert Explains How the President Uses Mind Control''. The book represents a broadening of his focus from [[new religious movement]]s into political culture.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fisher |first=Marc |title=Review: The Republican Party is in thrall to Trump. Does that make him a cult leader? |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/outlook/the-republican-party-is-in-thrall-to-trump-does-that-make-him-a-cult-leader/2019/10/03/63855136-d592-11e9-9343-40db57cf6abd_story.html |access-date=March 11, 2021 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref> The author compares Trump's behaviour to that of [[Jim Jones]], [[L. Ron Hubbard]], and Sun Myung Moon, and expresses the hope that the book will lessen political division.<ref name="globe" />

Hassan received his doctorate from [[Fielding Graduate University]]<ref name="PsyTodayAbout" /> and published a dissertation in January 2021. His dissertation was titled "The BITE Model of Authoritarian Control: Undue Influence, Thought Reform, Brainwashing, Mind Control, Trafficking and the Law". Hassan describes his model as an effort to measure degrees of exploitative control or [[undue influence]] and as an attempt to evaluate behavior, information, thought and emotional controls.<ref>{{cite thesis |id={{ProQuest|2476570146}} |last=Hassan |first=Steven Alan |date=2020 |title=The BITE Model of Authoritarian Control: Undue Influence, Thought Reform, Brainwashing, Mind Control, Trafficking and the Law}}</ref>

===In the media===
Hassan is often described in the media as a "cult" and "mind control" expert.<ref name="salon">{{cite news |url=https://www.salon.com/2021/03/25/qanon-and-the-trump-cult-expert-steven-hassan-on-whether-they-can-be-saved/ |title=QAnon and the Trump cult: Expert Steven Hassan on whether they can be saved |work=[[Salon.com]] |date=March 25, 2021 |last=Devenga |first=Chauncey}}</ref><ref name="globe">{{cite news |last=Pennington |first=Juliet |title=Author and cult expert talks Fiji, diving, and future grand plans |work=[[The Boston Globe]] |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/2020/12/17/lifestyle/author-cult-expert-talks-fiji-diving-future-grand-plans/ |access-date=August 22, 2021 |date=December 17, 2020}}</ref><ref name="slate" /> After the 2013 [[Boston Marathon bombing]], he was interviewed by reporters to explain his view of the bombers' state of mind and how he believed mind control was involved.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.necn.com/04/25/13/Radicalism-and-mind-control/landing_features.html?blockID=838993&feedID=8498 |first1=Steven |last1=Hassan |first2=Kit |last2=Hoover |first3=Joel |last3=McHale |title=Radicalism and mind control |date=February 28, 2014 |orig-date=originally aired January 26, 2014 |work=[[New England Cable News]] |access-date=December 6, 2023}} Interview. If video does not auto-load, quickly click "Reload" in top-left of video area before the page auto-loads a new video.</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= http://outfront.blogs.cnn.com/2013/04/23/officials-suspect-claims-they-were-self-radicalized-on-internet/ |title=Officials: Suspect claims they were self-radicalized on Internet |first1=Steven |last1=Hassan |first2=Erin |last2=Burnett |publisher=[[CNN]] |work=Erin Burnett OutFront |date=April 23, 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210325065616/https://outfront.blogs.cnn.com/2013/04/23/officials-suspect-claims-they-were-self-radicalized-on-internet/ |archive-date=March 25, 2021 |url-status=dead}} Interview. Video no longer available, but some relevant text remains.</ref>