Seekers in the 21st century

This is an attempt to categorize individuals who in one way or another may come into contact with psychiatry and where their "cult" involvement may be part of what needs to be mapped, understood and treated. It's a draft, a thought experiment. For the vast majority who come into contact with psychiatry, this is not relevant anyway, it is a few.

But, the picture should therefore be read as: "Individuals who have left or are still under the influence of...", etc...

In the upper left field we have the well-known sects, such as the Church of Scientology, Hare Krishna, the Moon movement/Unification Church. The most famous "Swedish" example is Jehovah's Witnesses. Certain political organizations, such as IS, also belong in that box. It is likely that equivalents can be found in Sweden. They are united by precisely a "utopian" view of how society and the world should be set up. Some of them resort to violence, let "the ends justify the means", because it is so important that the ends be achieved and the pure ideals honored.

In the upper right box we have criminal organizations, such as Hells Angels or Bandidos. They are closed, characterized by strong cohesion, but rarely have any utopian visions. Their focus is more on making the most of their presence in society. There are examples of commercial cults as well. Sometimes you hear about them in the media. Companies (often in the sales industry) that are run in a charismatic way, with employee meetings similar to revival meetings, but where the vision is to do as well as possible in the market (ie make money). That I put cultures of honor in this box may seem strange. Aren't they often religious? Nah, I think it's less important. Most often, these rest on cultural patterns and customs, which existed before religion came into the picture.

The lower left corner requires a little more explanation. Here you normally find no "sects" or even membership. These are unorganized (or at most weakly organized) movements or communities of interest. This category appears in (superficial, bad) self-help literature, ordinary superstitions and various TV programs on TV4/Kanal 7, about mediums, haunted houses, and the like. Most of the time it is completely harmless, or even an asset (we need to play and dream too!), but for some individuals this way of looking at life becomes a problem. It is utopian, idealized, but an interest you cultivate more or less on your own.

The box at the bottom right contains people with very firm beliefs about various forms of conspiracy theories. Examples of this are "chem trails" (that is, there is a spraying of the atmosphere for more or less malicious reasons), that the world is controlled by a secret, hugely powerful elite, which is sometimes called the New World Order or "Illuminati". Here, one encounters rather the opposite of utopia: "dystopia". They are beliefs that can be so enchanting and hard to shake. It is distrust of those in power or criticism of civilization that has crossed the line into the fantastic.

Each square in the diagram also of course has its completely unproblematic side. For the treatment of these individuals, the religious (or whatever it is) is not relevant. Their problems have nothing or very little to do with this. If you go through the boxes in the same order: Belonging to a religious congregation can of course be something strengthening and nice. There is a lot of research, especially from the USA, that shows this. Working for a company, or being part of one or another "worldly" organization, with strong cohesion and a shared vision, is of course not automatically a bad thing. Nor to be interested in astrology, reincarnation, séances, to be convinced that telepathy works, etc.

What should be placed in the last box? In the religious area, I am tempted to write the Church of Sweden and Friskis & Svettis yoga. It does have a spiritual origin, but in its current form is neither utopian nor characterized by a great deal of peer pressure.