Steven Hassan

Steven Hassan, PhD, MA, MEd, LMHC, NCC has helped thousands of individuals and families recover from undue influence (mind control). With over 45 years of experience, he is sought after as one of the foremost authorities on undue influence and controlling groups and individuals. Steve understands the subject from a unique perspective as both a former cult member and as a clinical professional.

Steven is the Founding Director of the Freedom of Mind Resource Center, a coaching, consulting, and training organization dedicated to supporting individuals to have the freedom to think clearly and to freely consider how they want to live their lives.  Steven pioneered a breakthrough method called the Strategic Interactive Approach (SIA), an effective and legal alternative for families to help cult members.  The SIA teaches family and friends how to strategically influence the individual involved in the cult.

Contact Freedom of Mind to schedule a consultation or to learn about offered services.

Learn about how the Strategic Interactive Approach can help rescue your friend or loved one out from under predatory influence.

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Right-Wing Extremist Terrorists Target Humanists Who Teach Critical Thinking

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This week’s blog features an interview with my friend Narendra Nayak who is the President of the Federation of Indian Rationalist Associations (FIRA). His organization consists of eighty constituent groups who together seek to promote scientific thinking. For example, members have been a force to teach Indians about magic tricks used by cult gurus like Sai Baba to induce them to believe he had God-like powers. Decades ago, Premanand, the original founder of the Indian Skeptic organization, introduced me to Narendra Nayak.

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Children are Harmed by Destructive Cults – Part One

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Last week, I blogged about adults in totalistic, destructive cults who are physically still in but psychologically out and sitting on the fence. This week I wanted to blog about children who are helpless and were born or raised in a group. They do not have the resources to protect themselves. In this blog (part one of a two-part series) I focus on the physical and medical harm to children. Next week, I will discuss psychological harm to children. Both weeks, I will include some resources for addressing these problems.

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Children Are Harmed by Destructive Cults: Part Two

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Last week, I blogged about some ways that children are harmed physically by destructive cults, including murder, suicide, medical neglect, trafficking, corporal punishment and sexual predation. Many children that are born or raised in a group are helpless and do not have the resources to protect themselves. And very often, children are harmed psychologically and face difficulties not just during their childhood but also after leaving the group. For example, in this week’s blog we list just a few things that can cause lifelong harm if not addressed with proper counseling and resources.

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Jonestown and the Mind Control Cult of Jim Jones: A Survivor’s Story

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November 18th, 1978 will be a day I will never forget. I was glued to the television as images came over the screen about a horrible mass suicide. I had never heard of the People’s Temple before but I was about to learn. Ultimately, it changed the course of my life as it summoned me to be involved in a much higher level of activity than ever before. This November marks the 40th anniversary of the Jonestown massacre where over 900 people were killed and the 10th anniversary of the publication of my first book, Combatting Cult Mind Control (two “t”s, unlike the current edition which has one “t” in Combating).

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