Edward Lottick
Encyclopedia
Edward Lottick is a family physician and inventor.
His son was Scientologist Noah Lottick. Noah Lottick's suicide was featured as part of the Time Magazine article "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power
", by Richard Behar
. After his son's death, Lottick was inspired to further research cult
s.
Lottick, along with Paul R. Martin
in the same year, is the winner of the 1993 John G. Clark Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Cultic Studies.
Lottick is on the Board of Trustees of the Pennsylvania Medical Society and is Editor of the Luzerne County Medical Society Bulletin. He was on the Board of Directors
of the previous version of the International Cultic Studies Association
, the American Family Foundation. Lottick is the inventor of the electrosurgical hemostat
.
, and later in Reader's Digest
.
Noah Lottick was a Russian studies
student, who "jumped from a 10th-floor window of the Milford Plaza Hotel and bounced off the hood of a stretch limousine". When found by police, he was holding $171 dollars in cash. The Lottick family found their son's body, lying in a morgue, a month after his death. Initially, his father had thought that Scientology
was similar to Dale Carnegie
's techniques. However, after his ordeal, Lottick now believes that the organization is a "school for psychopaths".
After the article describing these incidents had been published in Time, he and Mrs. Lottick submitted affidavit
s, when the Church of Scientology
sued Richard Behar and Time Magazine for $416 million. All counts against Behar and Time were later dismissed in courts of law. In their court statements, the Lotticks "affirmed the accuracy of
each statement in the article", and stated that Lottick "concluded that Scientology therapies were manipulations, and that no Scientology staff members attended the funeral" (of their son).
Medical Society's House of Delegates. The resolution requested that a survey be performed to assess physician's current level of awareness regarding destructive cult
s. Arthur A. Dole
and Michael D. Langone were consulted in the process of tabulating and analyzing the survey. The final results were published in the Cult Observer
in 1993. For purposes of their survey, a destructive cult was defined as "a group which violates the rights of its members, harms them through abusive techniques of mind control, and distinguishes itself from a normal social or religious group by subjecting its members to physical, mental, or financial deprivation or deception to keep them in the group." For his work and research, Lottick was awarded the 1993 John G. Clark Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Cultic Studies.
In 2005, Lottick presented empirical research
into the prevalence of cults in the United States, at the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid.
In 2006, Lottick gave a presentation for the International Cultic Studies Association
conference in Denver, Colorado
, entitled "Rajneesh and Bioterrorism".
Media/Press mention
His son was Scientologist Noah Lottick. Noah Lottick's suicide was featured as part of the Time Magazine article "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power
The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power
"The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" is an article, written in 1991 by U.S. investigative journalist Richard Behar, which is highly critical of Scientology. It was first published by Time magazine on May 6, 1991, as an eight-page cover story, and was later published in Reader's Digest in October...
", by Richard Behar
Richard Behar
Richard Behar is an award-winning American investigative journalist who has written on the staffs of leading magazines including Forbes, Time and Fortune over a 22-year period from 1982-2004. His work has also appeared on CNN and PBS...
. After his son's death, Lottick was inspired to further research cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
s.
Lottick, along with Paul R. Martin
Paul R. Martin
Paul R. Martin was a psychotherapist, licensed clinical psychologist, and director of the Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center in Ohio. He also worked in private practice in Athens, Ohio...
in the same year, is the winner of the 1993 John G. Clark Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Cultic Studies.
Lottick is on the Board of Trustees of the Pennsylvania Medical Society and is Editor of the Luzerne County Medical Society Bulletin. He was on the Board of Directors
Board of directors
A board of directors is a body of elected or appointed members who jointly oversee the activities of a company or organization. Other names include board of governors, board of managers, board of regents, board of trustees, and board of visitors...
of the previous version of the International Cultic Studies Association
International Cultic Studies Association
The International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
, the American Family Foundation. Lottick is the inventor of the electrosurgical hemostat
Hemostat
A hemostat , is a vital surgical tool used in almost any surgical procedure, usually to control bleeding. Therefore, it is not uncommon to see the initial incision lined with hemostats closing blood vessels awaiting ligation during the initial phases of surgery...
.
Son's death
On May 11, 1990, Lottick's son Noah Antrim Lottick committed suicide. Lottick described this as his motivation for researching cults in his article describing a survey of physicians that he presented to the Pennsylvania State Medical Society. However, these events were initially described in the Time Magazine article: The Thriving Cult of Greed and PowerThe Thriving Cult of Greed and Power
"The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" is an article, written in 1991 by U.S. investigative journalist Richard Behar, which is highly critical of Scientology. It was first published by Time magazine on May 6, 1991, as an eight-page cover story, and was later published in Reader's Digest in October...
, and later in Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
.
Noah Lottick was a Russian studies
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
student, who "jumped from a 10th-floor window of the Milford Plaza Hotel and bounced off the hood of a stretch limousine". When found by police, he was holding $171 dollars in cash. The Lottick family found their son's body, lying in a morgue, a month after his death. Initially, his father had thought that Scientology
Scientology
Scientology is a body of beliefs and related practices created by science fiction and fantasy author L. Ron Hubbard , starting in 1952, as a successor to his earlier self-help system, Dianetics...
was similar to Dale Carnegie
Dale Carnegie
Dale Breckenridge Carnegie was an American writer, lecturer, and the developer of famous courses in self-improvement, salesmanship, corporate training, public speaking, and interpersonal skills...
's techniques. However, after his ordeal, Lottick now believes that the organization is a "school for psychopaths".
After the article describing these incidents had been published in Time, he and Mrs. Lottick submitted affidavit
Affidavit
An affidavit is a written sworn statement of fact voluntarily made by an affiant or deponent under an oath or affirmation administered by a person authorized to do so by law. Such statement is witnessed as to the authenticity of the affiant's signature by a taker of oaths, such as a notary public...
s, when the Church of Scientology
Church of Scientology
The Church of Scientology is an organization devoted to the practice and the promotion of the Scientology belief system. The Church of Scientology International is the Church of Scientology's parent organization, and is responsible for the overall ecclesiastical management, dissemination and...
sued Richard Behar and Time Magazine for $416 million. All counts against Behar and Time were later dismissed in courts of law. In their court statements, the Lotticks "affirmed the accuracy of
each statement in the article", and stated that Lottick "concluded that Scientology therapies were manipulations, and that no Scientology staff members attended the funeral" (of their son).
Cult research
In October 1991, Lottick introduced a resolution to the PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
Medical Society's House of Delegates. The resolution requested that a survey be performed to assess physician's current level of awareness regarding destructive cult
Destructive cult
A destructive cult is a religion or other group which has caused or has a high probability of causing harm to its own members or to others. Some researchers define "harm" in this case with a narrow focus, specifically groups which have deliberately physically injured or killed other individuals,...
s. Arthur A. Dole
Arthur A. Dole
Arthur A. Dole is a professor of psychology and education, at the University of Pennsylvania's Graduate School of Education, Division of Psychology and Education...
and Michael D. Langone were consulted in the process of tabulating and analyzing the survey. The final results were published in the Cult Observer
Cultic Studies Review
International Journal of Cultic Studies is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the International Cultic Studies Association.- External links :* , Don Lattin, San Francisco Chronicle, Religion Writer, February 13, 2001...
in 1993. For purposes of their survey, a destructive cult was defined as "a group which violates the rights of its members, harms them through abusive techniques of mind control, and distinguishes itself from a normal social or religious group by subjecting its members to physical, mental, or financial deprivation or deception to keep them in the group." For his work and research, Lottick was awarded the 1993 John G. Clark Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Cultic Studies.
In 2005, Lottick presented empirical research
Empirical research
Empirical research is a way of gaining knowledge by means of direct and indirect observation or experience. Empirical evidence can be analyzed quantitatively or qualitatively...
into the prevalence of cults in the United States, at the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid.
In 2006, Lottick gave a presentation for the International Cultic Studies Association
International Cultic Studies Association
The International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
conference in Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
, entitled "Rajneesh and Bioterrorism".
Awards and honors
- John G. Clark Award for Distinguished Scholarship in Cultic Studies, 1993, with Paul R. MartinPaul R. MartinPaul R. Martin was a psychotherapist, licensed clinical psychologist, and director of the Wellspring Retreat and Resource Center in Ohio. He also worked in private practice in Athens, Ohio...
, Ph.D.Ph.D.A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
Articles
- The Forgotten Freedom: Persistent Constraint Into the Twenty-first Century, Torch Magazine, Spring 2006
- Prevalence of Cults: A Review of Empirical Research in the U. S. A., Edward Lottick, International Cultic Studies AssociationInternational Cultic Studies AssociationThe International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
, Universidad Autonoma de Madrid, July 14, 2005 - Survey Reveals Physicians' Experience with Cults, Edward Lottick, Cult ObserverCultic Studies ReviewInternational Journal of Cultic Studies is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the International Cultic Studies Association.- External links :* , Don Lattin, San Francisco Chronicle, Religion Writer, February 13, 2001...
, Volume 10, Number 3, 1993. - "Congresspersons: An Endangered Species", Vol.11, No. 3, 1994, Cultic Studies ObserverCultic Studies ReviewInternational Journal of Cultic Studies is a peer-reviewed academic journal published by the International Cultic Studies Association.- External links :* , Don Lattin, San Francisco Chronicle, Religion Writer, February 13, 2001...
Presentations
- "Preventing Family Violence: Becoming Part of the Solution", Psychological Manipulation: The Abuse of Women Conference, May 30 and May 31, 1997 - Philadelphia
- "Children and Cults", American Family Foundation Annual Conference: May 29–31, 1998 – Philadelphia, PA
See also
- The Thriving Cult of Greed and PowerThe Thriving Cult of Greed and Power"The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" is an article, written in 1991 by U.S. investigative journalist Richard Behar, which is highly critical of Scientology. It was first published by Time magazine on May 6, 1991, as an eight-page cover story, and was later published in Reader's Digest in October...
- List of doctorsPhysicianA physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
- List of cult and new religious movement researchers
- Richard BeharRichard BeharRichard Behar is an award-winning American investigative journalist who has written on the staffs of leading magazines including Forbes, Time and Fortune over a 22-year period from 1982-2004. His work has also appeared on CNN and PBS...
External links
- Edward Lottick, profile at International Cultic Studies AssociationInternational Cultic Studies AssociationThe International Cultic Studies Association , formerly the American Family Foundation, describes itself as an "interdisciplinary network of academicians, professionals, former group members, and families who study and educate the public about social-psychological influence and control,...
- Find a Grave, Memorial for Noah Lottick on Find a GraveFind A GraveFind a Grave is a commercial website providing free access and input to an online database of cemetery records. It was founded in 1998 as a DBA and incorporated in 2000.-History:...
- Noah Antrim Lottick, Memorial for Noah Lottick
- Scholarly articles by Edward Lottick, at Google ScholarGoogle ScholarGoogle Scholar is a freely accessible web search engine that indexes the full text of scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines. Released in beta in November 2004, the Google Scholar index includes most peer-reviewed online journals of Europe and America's largest...
Media/Press mention
- Scientology: The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power, Time Magazine, May 6, 1991, article featuring the Lottick family tragedy
- Scientologist Commits Suicide, Scientology Convicted, St. Petersburg TimesSt. Petersburg TimesThe St. Petersburg Times is a United States newspaper. It is one of two major publications serving the Tampa Bay Area, the other being The Tampa Tribune, which the Times tops in both circulation and readership. Based in St...
, published February 8, 1998 - "A Dangerous Cult Goes Mainstream", Readers Digest, Richard BeharRichard BeharRichard Behar is an award-winning American investigative journalist who has written on the staffs of leading magazines including Forbes, Time and Fortune over a 22-year period from 1982-2004. His work has also appeared on CNN and PBS...
.