United StatesDr. Doni Whitsett is a Fulbright scholar and Clinical Professor Emerita of Social Work at the University of Southern California, where she taught for over 25 years on topics including neurobiology, trauma, mental health, and sexuality. As a psychotherapist in private practice, she has worked with cult-involved clients and their families for nearly four decades.She has presented nationally and internationally—including in Australia, Canada, France, Poland, and Spain. Her writing focuses on the neurobiological impacts of cult involvement and the dynamics of families affected by cults, often in collaboration with Dr. Stephen Kent. In 2016, she received a Fulbright Specialist Scholarship to research and teach on sexuality in China.She is an AASECT-certified sex therapist and currently serves as guest editor for the special issue on sexuality for the International Journal of Coercion, Abuse, and Manipulation (IJCAM).Selected publications
A modern psychodynamic approach to working with 1st generation cult survivors. Whitsett, D. (in press).
Global violence of women in cults. Whitsett, D. (in press).
[Multiple co-authored articles with Stephen Kent on neurobiological effects and family systems in cultic contexts].
Women’s voices have been silenced throughout history. Nowhere is this more evident than in malevolent groups, also known as “cults,” in which women and girls are exploited and forced into submission for the pleasure of
This article analyzes women’s relationship attitudes in post–Open Door China, exploring monogamy, patriarchy, and the relevance of coercive control in intimate and cultural contexts.
