num_pages: 524
description: Informed by Erik Erikson's concept of the formation of ego identity, this book, which first appreared in 1961, is an analysis of the experiences of fifteen Chinese citizens and twenty-five Westerners who underwent "brainwashing" by the Communist Chinese government. Robert Lifton constructs these case histories through personal interviews and outlines a thematic pattern of death and rebirth, accompanied by feelings of guilt, that characterizes the process of "thought reform." In a new preface, Lifton addresses the implications of his model for the study of American religious cults.
language: English
title: Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A Study of 'Brainwashing' in China
titlecomplete: Thought Reform and the Psychology of Totalism: A Study of 'Brainwashing' in China
genres: China, Research, History, Science, Politics, Sociology, Philosophy, Cults, Psychology, Nonfiction
ratings_count: 247
publisher: The University of North Carolina Press