A clinical study of four Unification church members

Four women who were or had been members of the Unification church were studied by means of clinical interviews and psychological tests. The authors found that these women shared the following characteristics: 1) difficulties with heterosexual relations; 2) idealism and usually the wish to serve or unify others; 3) a spiritual world view with "magical-mystical" overtones; and 4) a tendency to deny and "wish away" threatening perceptions, specifically noted in projective testing. They suggest how these characteristics may have influenced the subjects' affinity for the life style and doctrines of the sect.