Thus, educational decisions, disciplinary measures, medical decisions, etc., will frequently issue from the group's leader, directly or indirectly. If the leader does not value children or subscribes to a belief in corporal punishment, severe harm can be inflicted upon the children. There have been many such cases in the literature. Although Jonestown is obviously an extreme example, the extreme merely underlines the principle, which can be very destructive even in much less extreme situations. Neither of these options suppression of natural tendencies to test limits and assert individuality vs. exposure to possibly severe and persistent punishments is conducive to the growth of self-esteem and a secure sense of belonging to a caring community.
Belief systems are usually so structured that leadership is always right.
If a group advocates meditation or prayer to cure physical ills and a member who meditates or prays remains sick, then the obvious conclusion leadership draws is that the member is not meditating or praying enough, or not doing it correctly. Children raised in such environments cannot develop confidence in themselves or their immediate environment because they can be criticized even when they obey, for they are obeying irrational belief systems that often have negative consequences in the real world. It is almost self-evident that groups that are isolationist, subjectivist, and logically closed will hinder children's attempts to learn the interpersonal, intellectual, and practical skills that mainstream society puts so much effort into teaching children. If reason is denigrated because reason threatens the irrational beliefs of leadership, a child's capacity to reason will be stunted, If the outside world is viewed as evil, a child's opportunity to interact with a variety of people and to learn practical skills in the world will be restricted. Moreover, the tendency to demonize those who disagree or disobey will come into conflict with normal developmental changes, such as teenagers' tendency to test limits by breaking rules.