Satanic Panic: The Creation of a Contemporary Legend

Acknowledgments Chapter One: Rumors, Claims, and Allegations about Satanic Cult Crimes — Some Strange Happenings — What's Going On? — The Claims and Claims-Makers — What This Book Provides Chapter Two: The Evolution of the Satanic Cult Legend — The Evolution of the Satanic Cult Legend — The Power of Contemporary Legends — Chronology of the Satanic Cult Scare in the United States Chapter Three: The Social Dynamics of a Rumor-Panic — The Community Panic of Friday the Thirteenth — How a Rumor-Panic Develops: The Rumor Process in One Community — Chronology of Jamestown Area Events — Why So Many People Believe Bizarre Rumors: The Rumor Consensus — The Underlying Sources of Shared Stress — Interpreting the Hidden Meanings in Rumors: Rumors as Metaphors — Symptoms of a Moral Crisis Chapter Four: Rumor-Panics Across the Country — What Is a Rumor? — Community Panics in Response to Satanic Cult Rumors — What Are the Underlying Causes of These Rumor-Panics? — How Do the Rumor-Panics Get Started? — How Do the Rumors Spread? — The Contemporary Legend-Making Process Chapter Five: Satanic Cult "Survivor" Stories — "Survivor" Stories — The Search for Evidence and Understanding — The Psychiatric Communication Network — Another Hoax in the Name of Science Chapter Six: Satanism and Alleged Threats to Children — Claims about Child Sexual Abuse by Satanists — Research on Ritual Sexual Abuse Allegations — The Collective Behavior Process in Ritual Abuse Scares — Claims about Kidnappings, Missing Children, and Ritual Murders — Research on the Kidnapping of Children — The Collective Behavior Process in Satanic Cult Kidnapping Scares — Conclusions Chapter Seven: Satanism and Teenage Crime — Claims about Teenage Satanism — Teenage Behavior Labelled as Satanism — Juvenile Delinquents Involved in Pseudo-Satanism — A Psychological Analysis of Pseudo-Satanist Delinquency — Social Influences upon Teenage Pseudo-Satanism — What Can Be Done to Help Teenagers? Chapter Eight: Searching for Satanism in Schools, Books, Music, and Games — The Search for Subversive Satanic Influences — Searching for Satanism in Schoolbooks and Libraries — Searching for Satanism in Rock Music — Searching for Satanism in Dungeons and Dragons Games — Searching for Secret Satanists in Local Communities — Conclusion Chapter Nine: The Moral Crisis in American Society — Disruption and Stress in Family Relationships — The Family under Assault by Social Problems — The Moral Crisis in American Society Chapter Ten: The Search for Scapegoat Deviants — The Social Construction of Imaginary Deviants — Social Conflict and the Creation of Scapegoat Deviants — Society and the Problem of Evil Chapter Eleven: The Rhetoric of the Moral Crusade against Satanism — Moral Crusades and Moral Crusaders — Rhetorical Claims as Moral Propaganda — Basic Assumptions of the Moral Crusaders Conclusions Chapter Twelve: The Organization of the Moral Crusade — The Mobilization of Resources — Motives, Meanings, and Metaphors — The Career of a Moral Crusader Chapter Thirteen: The Politics of the Moral Crusade — The Political Development of a Moral Crusade — Sources of Opposition to the Moral Crusade against Satanism — The Role of the Mass Media in the Satanism Scare — Science and Conflict over Claims about Satanism — Government and Conflict over Claims about Satanism — The Courts and Conflict over Claims about Satanism — Religious Conflict and Allegations of Satanism — The Struggle to Legitimize Claims about a New Form of Deviance Chapter Fourteen: The Medieval Origins of Modern Demonology — A Counter-Subversion Demonology — The Medieval Origins of the Demonology — The Origins of the Blood Libel Myth — The Beginning of the Great European Witch Hunt — The Impact of Medieval Folklore on the Modern Mind Chapter Fifteen: Conclusions: The Social Construction of Imaginary Deviance — The Future of the Moral Crusade against Satanism — Practical Implications of the Research Findings — The Social Construction of Imaginary Deviance — Underlying Social Dynamic Causes — The Cognitive Basis — The Organizational Basis — Rumors of Evil Appendix I: Bibliography of Resource Books, Articles, and Periodicals Appendix II: Resource Persons Who May Be Contacted for Assistance Appendix III: Guidelines for Dealing with Satanic Cult Rumors in a Community Appendix IV: Descriptions of Satanic Cult Rumor-Panics in the United States and Canada, 1982–1992 Appendix V: Some Satanic Ritual Abuse Cases, 1983–1987 Notes Index