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Kurt Lewin
Seducing, Deceiving and Manipulating People Through the Use of:
Force Field Analysis, Group Dynamics, and Unfreezing, Moving, and Refreezing—the three steps of brainwashing.

"A successful change includes, therefore, three aspects: unfreezing the present level, moving to the new level, and freezing group life on the new level." "The individual accepts the new system of values and beliefs by accepting belongingness to the group." (source: Kenneth Benne, Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

Describing the father's/Father's authority and the effect it has upon the child, i.e., the guilty conscience, Kurt Lewin explained what must be done in order to negate its effect upon the child, 'liberating' the child, i.e., the child's carnal nature from the father's/Father's authority.

"The negative valence of a forbidden object which in itself attracts the child thus usually derives from an induced field of force of an adult." "If this field of force loses its psychological existence for the child (e.g., if the adult goes away or loses his authority) the negative valence also disappears." (Kurt Lewin, A Dynamic Theory of Personality)

He explained how to overcome the effect the father's/Father's authority has upon a meeting, how to destabilize those loyal to the father's/Father's authority in order to initiate change. By bringing dialogue (which has no father's/Father's authority in it, i.e., is informal and subjective, i.e., is subject to the persons "feelings" of the 'moment,'  i.e., is subject to the persons desires or "self interest" of the 'moment') into a discussion (which supports the father's/Father's authority, i.e., is formal and objective, i.e., is subject to being right and not wrong according to established commands, rules, facts, and truth) confusion is engendered, requiring either moving to discussion, i.e., rejecting dialogue, retaining the father's/Father's authority or moving to dialogue, i.e., rejecting the father's/Father's authority, 'liberating' the participates (and the outcome) from being subject to the father's/Father's authority, i.e., "rule of law." By forcing the meeting into dialogue, with the objective of coming to a consensus (a "feeling" of "oneness"), any who insist upon discussion, i.e., holding onto the father's/Father's authority, insisting upon doing right and not wrong according to established commands, rules, facts, and truth become the source of "controversy," i.e., are labeled as being negative, divisive, hateful, intolerant, maladjusted, lower order thinkers, unadaptable to 'change,' intolerant of diversity (deviance), irrational, unreasonable, phobic, in denial, resisters to 'change,' not team players, phobic, racist, fascist, psychological, immoral, uncaring, etc., and are either converted (willingly participate in dialogue), are silenced (told not to be "negative"), or are cast out of (not invited back into) the meeting.

"Change in organization can be derived from the overlapping between play and barrier behavior. To be governed by two strong goals is equivalent to the existence of two conflicting controlling heads within the organism. This should lead to a decrease in degree of hierarchical organization. Also, a certain disorganization should result from the fact that the cognitive-motor system loses to some degree its character of a good medium because of these conflicting heads.  It ceases to be in a state of near equilibrium; the forces under the control of one head have to counteract the forces of the other before they are effective." (Kurt Lewin in Child Behavior and Development Chapter XXVI Frustration and Regression)

He explained the importance of the group, i.e., the desire for approval (affirmation) which includes the fear of rejection, in changing an individuals way of thinking and acting.

"It is usually easier to change individuals formed into a group than to change any one of them separately."  "The individual accepts the new system of values and beliefs by accepting belongingness to the group." (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Benne, Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

He explained the importance of desire being put into action, setting aside restraints, and group affirmation in order for 'change' to become reality. The dynamics of the group ("group dynamics"), i.e., the desire for approval from those in the group moved a persons focus from holding to established principles to how the group was perceiving him, i.e., how it was behaving toward him, i.e., affirming or disaffirming him.

"A change in action-ideology, a real acceptance of a changed set of facts and values, a change in the perceived social world—all three are but different expressions of the same process," "Social action no less than physical action is steered by perception." "... the new system of values and beliefs dominates the individual's perception."  (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Benne, Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

"... the group to which an individual belongs is the ground for his perceptions, his feelings, and his actions"  (Kurt Lewin,  Resolving social conflicts: Selected papers on group dynamics)

"Kurt Lewin emphasized that the child takes on the characteristic behavior of the group in which he is placed. . . . he reflects the behavior patterns which are set by the adult leader of the group." "It changes his cognitive structure, the way he sees the physical and social worlds, including all his facts, concepts, beliefs, and expectations." "It modifies his valences and values, ... his attractions and aversions to groups and group standards, his feelings in regard to status differences, and his reactions to sources of approval or disapproval."   (Wilbur Brookover, A Sociology of Education)

According to Lewin, by 'liberal's focusing the meeting upon being "positive," i.e., tolerant of all viewpoints, i.e., suspending the truth, as upon a cross, in order to continue the dialogue, those who come from a "negative" background, insisting upon one point of view, can be disarmed until their desire for approval (affirmation) from those in "the group" ("a strong we-feeling") overwhelms their desire for approval from the authority figure they came into the room, originally loyal to.

"Feelings of not belonging can be forestalled by making everyone feel welcome and wanted from the very beginning."  "It is probable that the individual who does not belong will act in ways not conducive to good group action."  "The best approach is to help him feel that he does belong and that he is wanted, whether or not his ideas are similar to those of the group." "Give him a 'we' feeling if possible, and avoid any 'you vs. us' attitude by word or gesture." "For re-education seems to be increased whenever a strong we-feeling is created."  (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Benne, Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

It is imperative that all participants willingly take part in social action (group projects) if their new beliefs and values are to become a permanent part of their thoughts and actions.

"Physical experiences cause a change in our theories and concepts about the physical world."  (Principles of Re-education Kurt Lewin and Paul Grabbe "Conduct, Knowledge, and Acceptance of New Values" The Journal of Social Issues)  If you preach and teach (and then chasten those who are disobedient) in order to initiate and sustain order, you engender a "top-down," Patriarchal Paradigm (righteousness) order of absolutes ('fixity').  But if you dialogue opinions to a consensus (insisting upon "tolerance of ambiguity") in order to initiate and sustain order, you engender an "equality," Heresiarchal Paradigm (sensuousness) order of permissiveness ('changingness').

"The objective sought will not be reached so long as the new set of values is not experienced by the individual as something freely chosen." "An outright enforcement of the new set of values and beliefs is simply the introduction of a new god who has to fight with the old god, now regarded as a devil."  (Principles of Re-education Kurt Lewin and Paul Grabbe "Conduct, Knowledge, and Acceptance of New Values" The Journal of Social Issues)

"... the new set of values he is expected to accept does not assume in him the position of super-ego, and his re-education therefore remains unrealized."  (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Bennie Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

"Re-education" (a key word for brainwashing) requires the subject to be manipulated into thing he is in control of what is going on when in fact he is subject to the influences of the facilitator of 'change' and people who are already intoxicated with, addicted to, and/or possessed by the process of 'change.'

"Re-education must be clever enough in manipulating the subjects to have them think that they are running the show."  (Principles of Re-education Kurt Lewin and Paul Grabbe "Conduct, Knowledge, and Acceptance of New Values" The Journal of Social Issues)

Carl Rogers explained it this way: "If we have the power or authority to establish the necessary conditions, the predicted behaviors [our potential ability to influence or control the behavior of groups] will follow." "We can choose to use our growing knowledge to enslave people in ways never dreamed of before, depersonalizing them, controlling them by means so carefully selected that they will perhaps never be aware of their loss of personhood."
   "We know how to change the opinions of an individual in a selected direction, without his ever becoming aware of the stimuli which changed his opinion." "We know how to influence the ... behavior of individuals by setting up conditions which provide satisfaction for needs of which they are unconscious, but which we have been able to determine."
   "'Now that we know how positive reinforcement
 [group affirmation] works, and why negative [enforcing commands, rules, facts, and truth] doesn't' ... 'we can be more deliberate and hence more successful in our cultural design. We can achieve a sort of control under which the controlled [the manipulated] though they are following a code much more scrupulously [more government regulations and oversight (sight based management)] than was ever the case under the old system, nevertheless feel free. They are doing what they want to do, not what they are forced to do. That's the source of the tremendous power of positive reinforcement—there's no restrain and no revolt. By a careful design, we control not the final behavior, but the inclination to behavior—the motives, the desires, the wishes. The curious thing is that in that case the question of freedom never arises." (Carl Rogers, on becoming a person: A Therapist View of Psychotherapy)

Lewin's agenda was to initiate a "culture war," where, through "group psychotherapy," i.e., the consensus process culture would forever be 'liberated' from the father's/Father's authority, creating a new world order where all could do wrong, disobey, sin with impunity.

"The re-educative process has to fulfill a task which is essentially equivalent to a change in culture." (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Bennie Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

"A feeling of complete freedom and a heightened group identification are frequently more important at a particular stage of re-education than learning not to break specific rules."  (Principles of Re-education Kurt Lewin and Paul Grabbe "Conduct, Knowledge, and Acceptance of New Values" The Journal of Social Issues)

Lewin developed the three key elements of brainwashing , i.e., "unfreezing, moving, and refreezing" in order to not only 'change' America but the world as well. It was essential a trained facilitator of 'change' lead the meeting or 'change,' while being initiated, would not be sustained.

"A successful change includes, therefore, three aspects: unfreezing the present level, moving to the new level, and freezing group life on the new level."  "... general principles for changing group culture" [are]" change of group atmosphere, (the system of values which governs the ideology of a group), changes of power constellation within the group (change in methods of leadership is probably the quickest way to bring about a change in the cultural atmosphere of a group.)"  (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Bennie Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

His "force field analysis" was simply how to evaluate the people in the room, those loyalty to the father's/Father's authority, those loyal to their self only, those loyal to "the group," and those loyal to the process of 'change,' in order to know how best to initiate and sustain control of the meeting, for the 'purpose' of 'change.'

"Driving forces are those forces or factors affecting a situation which are 'pushing' in a particular direction; they tend to initiate a change and keep it going."  (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Bennie Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

"Restraining forces may be likened to walls or barriers.  They only prevent or retard movement toward them.... the first step may be to determine what forces, if any, must be dealt with before a change can occur."  (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Bennie Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

Lewin recognized Hitler's use of the group process in order to engender 'loyalty' to himself and Fascism, i.e., traditional authority without the right of discussion (which is tyrannical) and his need to use dialogue in order to negate traditional authority, making everyone subject to global-socialism aka common-ism.  (see The Liberal Mind)

A "hierarchy of leaders has to be trained which reach out into all essential sub-parts of the group."  "Hitler himself has obviously followed very carefully such a procedure."  "The democratic procedure will have to be as thorough and as solidly based on group organization."  (Kurt Lewin in Kenneth Bennie Human Relations in Curriculum Change)

© Institution for Authority Research,  Dean Gotcher 2015, 2018, 2019