The Cultic Milieu: Oppositional Subcultures in an Age of Globalization

A permanent feature of all societies, the "cultic milieu" is defined by Kaplan (religion, U. of Wisconsin at Oshkosh) and Lööw (National Council of Crime Prevention, Sweden) as a permanent class of people with shifting ideas and shifting allegiances to organizations or leaders, but a shared opposition to the dominant paradigms of their own society. Borrowing the concept from British sociologist Colin Campbell's 1970s work on religious groups, 12 contributions expand the concept in order to promote its usefulness for the analysis of neo-nazi groups, the Nation of Islam, radical environmentalists, conservative communes, "anti-globalization" activists, and anti-cult "cults." Annotation c. Book News, Inc.,Portland, OR