"The true believer" begins as a frustrated man driven by guilt, failure and/or self-disgust to bury his own identity in a cause oriented to some future goal. Douglas points out that research into the psychology of persuasion has found that those who believe most are also most motivated to broadcast their beliefs. True Believers Thinking about Belief Change Aaron Smith is a professor of management at Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University, in Melbourne, Australia. The True Believer by Eric Hoffer is a journey into the mind of the unreasoned mind. He wrote “The True Believer” in reaction to the rise of fascism, Nazism and communism. Moral certainty and the true believer Why not choose the story that damages others the least? The irony of Trump’s “true believers” remark probably escaped both the … Why can’t we use the best insights of psychology along with the Bible? As a psychiatrist, I’m interested in how vulnerable groups can be manipulated by misleading rhetoric. Hoffer shrewdly analyzed the forces that spark nationalist and totalitarian movements. Keene is a reformed phony psychic who exposed religious racketeering—to little effect, apparently. Targeting the true believer The irony of Trump’s “true believers” remark probably escaped both the president and his audience. True-believer syndrome is an expression coined by M. Lamar Keene to describe an apparent cognitive disorder characterized by believing in the reality of paranormal or supernatural events after one has been presented overwhelming evidence that the event was fraudulently staged. True-believer syndrome is an informal or rhetorical term used by M. Lamar Keene in his 1976 book The Psychic Mafia.Keene used the term to refer to people who continued to believe in a paranormal event or phenomenon even after it had been proven to have been staged. Many Christians are confused about “Christian” psychology: Should it be gladly embraced, used cautiously, or rejected outright? Against all odds, the book became a best-seller. Quick Summary: The True Believer was written over 60 years ago, but it is still frighteningly relevant and accurate today. Phony faith healers, psychics, … He takes a long look at mass movements, and the people who give their lives up to them. “True believers” unite into a close group which gives them a new identity and new life, and liberates them from the cage of their frustration. The True Believer—the first and most famous of his books—was made into a bestseller when President Eisenhower cited it during one of the earliest television press conferences. Illustration: Hisham Akira Bharoocha B elief is a powerful and necessary thing, governing our societies, our day-to-day and inner lives, our thoughts, hopes, plans, and relationships. His analysis of the psychology of mass movements is a brilliant and frightening study of the mind of the fanatic. From Christianity to National Socialism, Eric Hoffer shows how all mass movements are similar. It is not merely the psychology of the ardent communist, or nationalist, but of the cultist as well He delves into…