Just in case you didn’t know, Scientology is a religion started by science fiction writer Ron L. Hubbard and has experienced quite a bit of backlash in popular culture. Often, the subject of ridicule is the outrageous claim that extraterrestrial life detonated hydrogen bombs in volcanoes sealing millions of thetans on Earth. It manages to be even more outrageous than the religions that claim a zombie man ran across the Earth for a couple of days before rising into the sky, which is quite a feat. But I digress.

However, the real issue that most people have with Scientology is not their extraterrestrial claims, but the way the organization, however misguided, brainwashes and controls their members into paying outrageous sums for progressing membership while simultaneously claiming altruism.

In my brief inspection of the church, I suggest that there are two primary psychological effects (irony anyone?) that serve to condition the members for absolute subservience.

1. One tends to artificially value more when one pays a high price for something.

A unique thing happens when you pay a high price for something, you value it. In fact, you tend to value it a lot more than something someone simply gives you. It’s the exact psychology behind selling high priced designer jeans when jeans bought at the local Walmart are of comparable quality. While higher price items don’t always become a “status symbol” or similar, the price plus societies’ approval can categorize the said item as a status symbol.

Anyone with a working knowledge of Scientology is aware of the extremely high fees the church demands for the practice of auditing. Auditing is a type of interviewing along with an e-meter (a device that has been proven to measure nothing but random electrical impulses) that is required to advance to higher levels of the church. Many believe that Scientology is simply an “unscrupulous commercial enterprise” because these high prices simply prey on unwitting people who get caught up in the scam.

However, it is simply a device that serves several purposes. First, it raises capital that can be used by the church however it sees fits, whether fighting people who stand up and speak out against the church or purchasing impressive buildings to expand. Second, it conditions the members to value their membership because of the inherent sacrifices involved in pursuing higher membership. Finally, it helps lock members in a fanatical obsession. An interesting feature (or bug?) of the brain is how it tends to rationalize its decisions regardless of the circumstances. This loyalty, inflated by sacrifice, results in the famous fanaticism so hallmark of Scientology.

2. Adjusting behavior in order to instill radical beliefs or values.

By extension, it’s called brainwashing via behavior modification. This is a common component in almost all cases of brainwashing. Take, for example, turning a spy. When a foreign spy is found out, rather than removing him or her, they often convince the spy to do something trivial but in opposition to their alignment. Because they can often leverage the knowledge of his real nature, it can be rather successful. As soon as trivial act becomes normal, they escalate the act demanded of him or her. This repeats gradually until the spy is effectively turned. The unique part is the spy can become completely indoctrinated into the opposite agenda and subsequently does such work willingly. In effect, the adjusted behavior seeded the new belief or value.

This replacement in behaviors breaks down the person’s previous identity and ultimately removes it completely. At this point, the new behaviors shape the new identity. Ultimately, you believe what you do, and you do what you believe.

Replace the spy with an average Joe and the hostile country with Scientology and you have a basic understanding of how Scientology conditions otherwise rational people to their new and strange tenants. It is gradual and methodical. However, their use of brainwashing serves the unique purpose of fully indoctrinating its members into a culture so perverse that its barriers against logical opposition are already built in. Put simply: once you’re in, you rarely leave simply because you don’t want to.

A powerful combination.

By understanding the methods by which members’ fanaticism and beliefs are conditioned, one can begin to feel sympathy for the lower level members and repugnance for the leaders of the church. There is absolutely no doubt whatsoever that the organization is designed solely to reap profits by controlling their members. Even more disturbing is the fact that Scientology fully intends on infiltrating and controlling governments.

Such cults of conditioning and control are a blight on society and need to be controlled as well.