EDMONTON (CBC) – A professor at the University of Alberta says cults are active in the Edmonton area.
A conference on cults involving experts from all over the world is underway at the university.
Stephen Kent warns some groups are targeting foreign students on the university campus.
He says the cults invite students into the group under the guise of helping them improve their English skills.
Kent says cults today largely operate the same way they did in the 1960’s.
He says cult leaders translate psychological issues into belief systems – and cult members treat these belief systems as religion instead of personality disorders.
The conference includes people who used to belong to cults and their family members.
They’re discussing the ways that people are drawn into cults, and the most effective methods for helping people leave.