THE PSYCHOLOGY OF SATANIC CULT INVOLVEMENT: AN ...

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society's experience of dislocation and upheaval. While this may account for rumours of
Satanist activity, it does not, of course, explain first-hand reports of such involvement.
Chapter Five also discussed alternative theories of survivor narratives, based on the
assumption that although the individuals concerned may not have intentionally fabricated
their reported experiences, their so-called memories of alleged satanic happenings are
essentially delusional phenomena.
Such sceptical objections to survivor narratives cannot simply be brushed aside,
particularly as most of the subjects in this study were fundamentalist Christians who had
an ideological and spiritual investment in convincing the researcher that Satanism is real
and constitutes a danger to Christian society. Their commitment to the Christian cause
might thus incline them to more dramatic recollections of their satanic past than might
otherwise have been the case had they not undergone Christian conversion. Alternatively,
it is also possible that these individuals' Christian conversion, and the intensity of their
commitment, supports their claims of satanic involvement. Had they not experienced the
events reported in their interviews, they might well have been less zealously committed to
Christian fundamentalism. In other words, their Christian spirituality may make their
claims more, rather than less, credible.
It must also be kept in mind that these subjects' recollections of their satanic experiences
are retrospective accounts. Were they still committed Satanists at the time of the
interviews their narratives would no doubt have been considerably different. Different
readers may be either inclined to believe or disbelieve the substantive details emerging
from the interviews. But, as is usually the case with survivor narratives, these subjects'
accounts cannot be proven beyond doubt. What attitude is therefore most appropriate for
a researcher to adopt toward these extraordinary claims of satanic cult involvement? The
value of the constructionist perspective is that it constitutes a sceptical voice of reason in
the face of the subversion myth's paranoia. The value of the realist perspective is that it
alerts us to the non-discursive reality of satanic organisations, which pursue their secret
ritual activities without any regard for either public scepticism or acknowledgement.