OMOLLO: Hidden psychology of cult tragedies and the hard road to reform

The same questions resurfaced in August this year, as security agencies began an exhumation exercise in Kwa Binzaro, Kilifi County, where more than 30 bodies have so far been recovered in what appears to be a replication of the Shakahola cult-related deaths. Once again, and justifiably so, Kenyans are demanding accountability from the government.

In many quarters, blame was also directed at the victims themselves, criticised for being gullible, naive, or even foolish in following such teachings.

But how often do we pause to truly ask ourselves, what exactly goes on in the mind of the victim? Cult indoctrination and religious radicalisation are among the most complex psychological and social phenomena of our time. They defy the simple answers many of us might assume. If only we could fully understand this complexity, then we would truly appreciate why detecting, preventing and disrupting extremist networks remains one of the most challenging undertakings for authorities, families and communities.

Psychologists view destructive indoctrination as a systematic breakdown of a person’s sense of self. It goes beyond semantics, touching on practices of organised religion and various forms of religious re-education.

My first visit to Shakahola left me haunted. I remember standing before a grave where a woman and her two children, presumably hers, had been buried together. How could anyone be persuaded to embrace such destruction? I really wanted to glimpse the inner world of the 427 victims – especially the adults, since children were too young to comprehend such choices or make independent decisions.

In my search for understanding, I came across Robert Jay Lifton’s Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism. Though his study focused on political indoctrination in Maoist China in the 1950s, his insights have become central to understanding religious indoctrination, cults and spiritual abuse in the contemporary world. Lifton showed that control works not just by rules or threats but by reshaping how people think, speak, and see themselves. Then step by step, the victims are stripped of independent thought and critical judgment until they are wholly dependent on the authority of the cult.

He described eight steps of totalist control, some of which echo painfully in the Shakahola and Kwa Binzaro stories. It begins with what he called milieu control – cutting people off from the outside world, warning against “worldly” education or friends. Then comes mystical manipulation, where the cult leaders claim divine visions and tell followers that suffering or coincidences are “God’s will.” A demand for absolute purity follows, with impossible standards of holiness, sin shaming and rules about food, dress, or family ties. After that comes the cult of confession phase, whereby the members are forced to admit sins or doubts in front of others, leaving them guilty and dependent. This is followed by sacred science, during which doctrine is declared infallible. This is done through teachings like “the Bible says, the pastor interprets and you obey.” Loaded language then creates insider jargon such as outsiders are “worldly,” critics are “backsliders,” and leaving is “rebellion.”

The next phase is doctrine over person. Here, lived experience is dismissed. Ideas like “if your views don’t match Scripture, you are wrong” are inculcated in them. Finally, the group dispenses existence, branding outsiders as damned and telling members that only those inside are truly saved.