Abstract
Hypotheses are tested concerning the relationship between level of and changes in self-attitudes on the one hand and the adoption of membership in the charismatic religious movement on the other hand. The hypotheses are derived from a general theory of deviant behavior. Subjects (generally aged 13–25) were 65 members of a local charismatic religious group and a comparison group of 47 members of three, more traditional urban Protestant churches. Self-attitudes were measured by a self-derogation scale responded to with reference to two points in time: the present and 6 months to 1 year prior to the test administration. The three hypotheses were supported. (1) The charismatic subjects, relative to the comparison subjects, displayed significantly higher levels of self-derogation at the time of adopting membership in the charismatic group. (2) Individuals who adopted membership in the charismatic cults, relative to the comparison group, displayed a significantly greater tendency to decrease the level of self-derogation between the earlier point in time and the point in time when the subjects were interviewed. (3) Significantly greater decrease in self-derogation on the part of the charismatic cult subjects resulted in comparable levels of selfderogation for the charismatic and comparison groups at the time of the interview.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Brownfain, J. (1952). Stability of the self-concept as a dimension of personality.J. Abnorm. Soc. Psychol. 47: 597–606.
Coopersmith, S. (1967).The Antecedents of Self-esteem, Freeman, San Francisco.
Engel, M. (1959). The stability of the self-concept in adolescence.J. Abnorm. Soc. Psychol. 58: 211–215.
French, J. R. P. (1968). The conceptualization and measurement of mental health in terms of self-identity. In Sells, S. B. (ed.),The Definition and Measurement of Mental Health, National Center for Health Statistics, U.S. Public Health Service, Washington, D.C., pp. 136–159.
Kaplan, H. B. (1971). Social class and self-derogation: A conditional relationship.Sociometry 34: 41–64.
Kaplan, H. B. (1972). Toward a general theory of psychosocial deviance: The case of aggressive behavior.Soc. Sci. and Med. 6: 593–617.
Kaplan, H. B. (1975).Self-attitudes and Deviant Behavior, Goodyear Publishing Co., Pacific Palisades, Calif.
Kaplan, H. B., and Pokorny, A. D. (1969). Self-derogation and psychosocial adjustment.J. Nerv. Ment. Dis. 149: 421–434.
Nicholi, A. H. (1974). A new dimension of the youth culture.Am. J. Psychiat. 131: 396–401.
Rosenberg, M. (1965).Society and the Adolescent Self-image, Princeton University Press, Princeton, N.J.
Wilson, W. P. (1972). Mental health benefits of religious salvation.Dis. Nerv. Syst. 33: 382–386.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Received M.D. from the University of Ottawa in 1960, did his fellowship in psychiatry in Mayo Clinic, 1968–1970, and is a fellow of the American Board of Neurology and Psychiatry (1973). Major interest is religion and psychiatry.
Received Ph.D. in sociology from New York University in 1958. Current research interests are social psychiatry and, more specifically, the reciprocal relationship berween self-attitudes and the adoption of deviant response patterns.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Freemesser, G.F., Kaplan, H.B. Self-attitudes and deviant behavior: The case of the charismatic religious movement. J Youth Adolescence 5, 1–9 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01537081
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01537081