The parish priest or local pastoral worker or adviser usually has to deal first and foremost with the relatives and friends of such a person. Often the person involved can be approached only indirectly. In those cases when the person can be approached directly in order to give him or her guidance, or to advise an ex-member on how to reintegrate into society and the Church, psychological skill and expertise is required. The most vulnerable groups in the Church, especially the youth, seem to be the most affected. When they are footloose, unemployed, not active in parish life or voluntary parish work, or come from an unstable family background, or belong to ethnic minority groups, or live in places that are rather far from the Church's reach, etc.
Some sects seem to attract mainly people in the middle-age group.
In this context, mention must be made of university campuses that are often favorable breeding grounds for sects or places of recruitment. Moreover, difficult relations with the clergy or an irregular marriage situation can lead one to break with the Church and join a new group. Very few people seem to join a sect for evil reasons. Perhaps the greatest opportunity of the sects is to attract good people and good motivation in those people. In fact, they usually succeed best when society or Church has failed to touch this good motivation.