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{{short description|Company offering personal development programs}}
{{distinguish|Landmark School|Landmark College}}
{{COI|date=October 2023}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2021}}
{{Use American English|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Landmark Worldwide LLC
| logo = [[File:Landmark Worldwide Logo.png]]
| type = Privately held company [[limited liability company|LLC]]
| founded = {{start_date|1991|1|16}}
| ___location = San Francisco, California
| key_people = Harry Rosenberg, CEO{{ r | Believer_2003 | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | MJ_2009 }}
| industry = [[Personal development]]
| products = The Landmark Forum, associated coursework
| revenue = $100 million (2016){{r| Spears_2017-03-30}}
| profit = $5 million (2016){{r| Spears_2017-03-30}}
| num_employees = 500 employees and 7,500 volunteers{{r| Spears_2017-03-30 | NYMag_2001-07-09 }}
| parent =
| subsid = {{ublist|The Vanto Group|Tekniko Licensing Corporation}}
| homepage = {{official URL}}
| footnotes =
}}
'''Landmark Worldwide''' (known as '''Landmark Education''' before 2013), or simply '''Landmark''', is an American [[employee-owned]] for-profit company that offers [[personal development|personal-development]] programs, with their most-known being the '''Landmark Forum'''. It is one of several [[large-group awareness training]] programs.
Several [[sociologists]] and scholars of religion have classified Landmark as a "[[new religious movement]]" (NRM), while others have called it a "self-religion," a "corporate religion," and a "religio-spiritual corporation".<ref>See the [[#Scholars|Scholars]] section for citations. There are about 20 sources which support the statements this sentence is summarizing.</ref> Landmark has sometimes been described as a [[cult]]. Some religious experts dispute this claim, pointing out that Landmark does not meet some characteristics of cults, including being a religious organization, or having a central leader. Landmark has been criticized for the stress it puts on participants while it tries to convert them to a new worldview and for its recruitment tactics: Landmark does not use [[advertising]], but instead pressures participants during courses to recruit relatives and friends as new customers.
As part of the [[Human Potential Movement]], which was centered in [[San Francisco]], [[Werner Erhard]] created and ran the ''est'' ([[Erhard Seminars Training]]) system from 1971 to 1984, which promoted the idea that individuals are empowered when they take personal responsibility for all events in their lives, both good and bad. In 1985, Erhard modified est to be gentler and more business oriented and renamed it the Landmark Forum. In 1991, he sold the company and its concepts to some of his employees, who incorporated it as Landmark Education Corporation, which was restructured into Landmark Education [[LLC]] in 2003, and then renamed Landmark Worldwide LLC in 2013. Its subsidiary, the '''Vanto Group''', markets and delivers [[training]] and consulting to organizations.
<!-- maybe a good ___location for a summary of the concepts they teach in their courses /-->== History ==
{{See also|Erhard Seminars Training}}
[[Werner Erhard]], creator of the [[Erhard Seminars Training]] (EST or est) changed the name of the organization to the Landmark Forum in 1985.<ref name=":1">{{Cite news |last=Hacker |first=Kathy |date=10 February 1985 |title=Guru of 'Get It' Onstage With New Plan |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-sunday-oregonian/170401166/ |access-date=15 April 2025 |work=The Sunday Oregonian |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> He had been working on the idea for the Forum starting around 1983.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ashley |first=Beth |date=19 May 1985 |title=Est Founder Werner Erhard -- Is He Huckster or Philosopher |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/courier-post/75843333/ |access-date=15 April 2025 |work=Camden Courier-Post |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> Erhard also changed the content to be gentler and somewhat more business oriented.{{r|Spears_2017-03-30|Believer_2003|NYT_2010-11-28}} The first forum events cost $525 per person and were $50 more expensive than est.<ref name=":1" /> Erhard also created a "Young People's Forum" for children ages 6 to 12 with same cost as an adult event.<ref name=":1" />{{r|Believer_2003|CSIndy_2019-07-24}}
In 1991, Erhard sold the intellectual property rights associated with the Forum's concepts to some of his employees,<ref>{{Cite news |date=12 February 1991 |title=Werner Erhard Sells Est Empire to Employees |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/courier-post/75843333/ |access-date=15 April 2025 |work=Albany Democrat-Herald |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref> (including his brother Harry Rosenberg who became CEO) who incorporated into "Landmark Education Corporation."{{ r | Believer_2003 | Spears_2017-03-30 | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | MJ_2009 }}<ref>[[Steven Pressman|Pressman, Steven]] (1993). ''[[Outrageous Betrayal]]: The dark journey of [[Werner Erhard]] from [[Erhard Seminars Training|est]] to exile''. New York City: [[St. Martin's Press]]. {{ISBN|0-312-09296-2}}, p. 254. ([[Out of print]]).</ref> Landmark paid Erhard $3 million as an initial licensing fee, with additional payments over the next 18 years not to exceed $15 million.{{ r | NYMag_2001-07-09 }}<ref>{{cite court | litigants=Ney v. Landmark Education Corporation and Werner Erhard | vol= | reporter= | opinion=92-1979 | court=[[United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit]] | date=1994-02-02 | url=https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Ney_v._Landmark_Education_Corporation_and_Werner_Erhard | quote=The parties calculated the value of WE&A's assets at $ 8,600,000. Landmark also acquired Erhard's stock in WE&AII, which was valued at $ 1,200,000. Landmark agreed, as payment for the WE&A assets and WE&AII stock, to assume liabilities in the amount of $ 6,800,000 and to pay an additional $ 3 million to Erhard. The agreedon downpayment of $ 300,000 was paid out of the account of WE&AII, whose stock was sold to Landmark. The $ 2,700,000 balance was to be paid by January 30, 1992, but payment was later extended and the due date delayed. Landmark obtained from Erhard a license to present the Forum for 18 years in the United States and internationally with the exception of Japan and Mexico. Erhard retained ownership of the license. The license was not assignable without Erhard's express written consent, and was to revert to Erhard after 18 years. Furthermore, under the Agreement, Erhard was promised 2% of Landmark's gross revenues payable on a monthly basis and, in addition, 50% of the net (pre-tax) profit payable quarterly. Such payments to Erhard were not to exceed a total payment of $ 15 million over the 18 year term of the license. }}</ref> The new company offered similar courses and employed many of the same staff.{{sfn|Marshall|1997}}{{sfn|Pressman|1993|pp=245–246, 254–255}} The Forum was reduced in length from four days to three, and its price is about 50% of the cost of the est courses.{{ r | Time_1998-03-16 }} It was still considered very challenging, lasting 39 hours for each forum.<ref name="Hill_2003">{{cite news |last=Hill |first=Amelia |date=December 14, 2003 |title=I thought I'd be brainwashed. But how wrong could I be |url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/dec/14/ameliahill.theobserver |access-date=16 April 2025 |newspaper=[[The Observer]] | quote=Since its creation in 1991, Landmark Education has been described variously as a cult, an exercise in brainwashing and a marketing trick cooked up by a conman to sap the vulnerable of their savings. ... Landmark has faced accusations of being a cult, but I saw nothing of that. Far from working to separate us from our families and friends, we were told there was no relationship too dead to be revived, no love too cold to be warmed.}}</ref> In 2001, Rosenberg stated that Landmark had completely purchased the licenses to all of Erhard's concepts and all divisions of the company.{{ r | NYMag_2001-07-09 }}
In 2003, Landmark Education [[Corporation]] was re-structured into Landmark Education [[LLC]], and in 2013 it was renamed Landmark Worldwide LLC.{{cn|date=December 2023}} Landmark Worldwide states that it operates as a [[for-profit]] company, whose [[employee-owned|employees own]] all the shares of the corporation.{{ r | Landmark_website_1 }} The company states that it invests its surpluses "into making its programs, initiatives, and services more widely available."<ref name="Landmark_website_1">{{ cite web | url=https://www.landmarkworldwide.com/about/company-overview | title=Landmark Company Overview | last= | first= | work=Landmark Worldwide | date= | access-date=2023-12-07 | quote=Landmark is a for-profit company 100% owned by over 600 employees through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) and similar international plans. The organization's executive team reports to a Board of Directors that is elected annually by the ESOP. }} </ref>
The company reported in 2019 that more than 2.4 million people had participated in its programs since 1991.{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 }} Landmark holds seminars in approximately 125 locations in more than 21 countries.<ref name=Spears_2017-03-30 /><ref>See:
* LandmarkWorldwide.com. [http://www.landmarkworldwide.com/who-we-are Landmark Fact Sheet]. Retrieved on October 22, 2008.
* LandmarkWorldwide.com. [https://web.archive.org/web/20130722145531/http://www.landmarkworldwide.com/who-we-are/company-overview/company-history Company History]. Retrieved on October 22, 2008.
* Nathan Thornberg April 10, 2011 [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2055188-2,00.html Change We Can (almost) Believe In.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401192222/https://www.landmarkworldwide.com/who-we-are |date=April 1, 2019 }}</ref> Landmark's revenue surpassed $100 million in 2018, with profits of about $5 million.{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | Spears_2017-03-30 }} The organization has 500 employees, and about 7,500 volunteers, an unusually large number of volunteers for a ''for-profit'' company.{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | NYMag_2001-07-09 }} Their use of volunteers prompted three separate investigations by the [[United States Department of Labor]], which concluded without requiring Landmark to make any changes to their practices.{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | p=1 }}
===Business consulting===
In 1993, Landmark started a subsidiary named Landmark Education Business Development (LEBD),{{cn|date=December 2023}} (later renamed to the Vanto Group) which uses the Landmark methodology to provide consulting services to businesses and other organizations.{{ r | NYT_2010-11-28 }} LEBD became the Vanto Group in 2008.<ref name=Reuters>(February 1, 2008). "[https://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS271093+01-Feb-2008+PRN20080201 Landmark Education Business Development, LEBD, Changes Name to Vanto Group] {{webarchive|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20090408040623/http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS271093+01-Feb-2008+PRN20080201 |date= 2009-04-08 }}". [[Reuters]]. Retrieved on October 22, 2008.</ref>
=== Controversial marketing practices ===
Landmark does not use advertising to reach potential customers, but instead repeatedly pressures participants during their courses to recruit relatives, friends, and acquaintances as new clients.{{ r | Believer_2003 | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | MJ_2009 |Spears_2017-03-30 | NYMag_2001-07-09 | Time_1998-03-16 | CBC_2014-10-15 | TIME_2011-04-10 }} This complete reliance on word-of-mouth advertising to market its programs has been described by reporters variously as: "evangelical",{{ r | Spears_2017-03-30 }} having "a [[Ponzi scheme|Ponzi]] taste",{{ r | TIME_2011-04-10 }} "a quasi-[[pyramid scheme]]",{{ r | Believer_2003 }} and including a "hard, hard sell".{{ r | MJ_2009 }}
=== Accusations of being a cult ===
Landmark has faced accusations of being a [[cult]].{{r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | Spears_2017-03-30 }}<ref name=Barker_2004 /><ref>{{Cite news |last=Loomis |first=Ronald N. |date=24 March 1996 |title=Cult Friction |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/hartford-courant/170378752/ |access-date=15 April 2025 |work=Hartford Courant |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref>{{ r | Hill_2003}} Several commentators unrelated to Landmark have stated that because it has no single central leader, is a [[secular]] (non-religious) organization, and tries to unite (and re-unite) participants with their family and friends (rather than isolate them) that it does not meet many of the characteristics of a cult.{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | Spears_2017-03-30 | Toutant }}
Landmark has threatened and pursued lawsuits against people who have called or labeled it such, including individuals ([[clinical psychology]] professor [[Margaret Singer]]), magazines ([[Elle (magazine)|''Elle'']], [[Self (magazine)|''Self'']], and ''Now'') and organizations ([[Cult Awareness Network]]).{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | NYMag_2001-07-09 | PNT_2000-10-19 }} After Singer wrote a book, ''[[Cults in Our Midst]]'', in which she mentioned Landmark as a controversial [[New Age]] training course, Landmark sued Singer.{{ r | PNT_2000-10-19 }} The suit was resolved when Singer agreed to provide a sworn statement that Landmark is not a cult or sect.{{ r | PNT_2000-10-19 }} Singer stated that she would not recommend the group to anyone, and would not comment on whether Landmark used coercive persuasion for fear of legal recrimination from Landmark.{{ r | PNT_2000-10-19 }} In 1997, Landmark sued Cult Awareness Network (CAN) after they made statements alleging or implying that Landmark was a cult.{{ r | PNT_2000-10-19 }} That suit was resolved when CAN stated that it has no evidence that Landmark is a cult.{{ r | PNT_2000-10-19 }}
In 2004, it was revealed that Landmark had paid French anti-cult expert [[Jean-Marie Abgrall]] to "audit" them.{{ r | Palmer_2011 | Vézard_2004 }} Landmark had been listed as a cult by the [[Parliamentary Commission on Cults in France]] 1995 list of cults; displeased by their designation, they contacted Abgrall to have them removed from the list.{{ r | Palmer_2011 | Vézard_2004 }} Abgrall wrote a report on the organization arguing that they were not a cult, arguing that they were a "harmless organization", though they did conclude by recognizing that the group may have had some warning signs.{{ r | Palmer_2011 | Vézard_2004 }} Following his report they were removed from the list, and Abgrall was paid {{Euro|45,699.49}} by Landmark from the period of 2001 to 2002.{{ r | Palmer_2011 | Vézard_2004 }} Abgrall complained in 2004 when interviewed by ''[[Le Parisien]]'' that this had only been revealed to block his involvement in the ongoing [[Order of the Solar Temple]] cult trial, and that he had no conflict of interest as he "wrote an unfavorable report and paid my taxes."<ref name="Palmer_2011">{{Cite book |last=Palmer |first=Susan J. |author-link=Susan J. Palmer |title=The New Heretics of France: Minority Religions, la République, and the Government-Sponsored "War on Sects" |title-link=The New Heretics of France |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |year=2011 |isbn=978-0-19-973521-1 |pages=161–168, footnote 64 |language=en |chapter=Néo-Phare: The First Application of the About-Picard Law |ref=none}}</ref><ref name="Vézard_2004">{{Cite news |last=Vézard |first=Frédéric |date=2004-05-28 |title=L'embarrassant rapport de l'expert antisectes |trans-title=The embarrassing report of the anti-cult expert |url=https://www.leparisien.fr/faits-divers/l-embarrassant-rapport-de-l-expert-antisectes-28-05-2004-2005017489.php |access-date=2024-08-27 |work=[[Le Parisien]] |language=fr-FR}}</ref>
In June 2004, Landmark filed a 1 million dollar lawsuit against [[Rick Alan Ross]]'s Cult Education Institute, alleging that postings on the institute's websites which characterized Landmark as a cultish organization that brainwashed their clients damaged Landmark's product.<ref name="Toutant">{{cite news |last1=Toutant |first1=Charles |title=Suits Against Anti-Cult Blogger Provide Test for Online Speech |url=https://www.law.com/almID/900005547114/ |access-date=October 26, 2023 |work=New Jersey Law Journal |publisher=Law.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061006121535/http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1136838328818 |archive-date=October 6, 2006 |language=en|url-access=subscription|url-status=live}}</ref> In December 2005, Landmark filed to dismiss its own lawsuit [[Prejudice (legal term)#Civil law|with prejudice]], purportedly on the grounds of a material change in case law after the publication of an opinion in another case, ''Donato v. Moldow'', regarding the [[Communications Decency Act]] of 1996, even though Ross wanted to continue the case in order to further investigate Landmark's educational materials and history of suing critics.<ref name="Toutant" /> Ross stated that he does not see Landmark as a cult because they have no individual leader, but he considers them harmful because subjects are harassed and intimidated, causing potentially unsafe levels of stress.<ref name="Toutant" />
===
In 2004, a lawsuit was filed against Landmark, accusing the business of causing a [[Psychosis|psychotic episode]] in an individual after they attended a Landmark Seminar.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Marshall |first=Nicole |date=4 April 2004 |title=Suit Targets Firm in Postal Killing |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/tulsa-world/170379951/ |access-date=15 April 2025 |work=Tulsa World |pages=A21}} and {{Cite news |title=Weed |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/tulsa-world/170380342/ |work=Tulsa World |pages=A24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=8 February 2007 |title=Mother Sues Over '01 Death |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-daily-oklahoman/170380684/ |access-date=15 April 2025 |work=The Daily Oklahoman}}</ref>
== Courses ==
Many large companies and government agencies have paid for and encouraged their employees to take Landmark's classes.{{ r | Spears_2017-03-30 | Believer_2003 }}
[[Andrew Cherng]], the founder and co-CEO of [[Panda Express]], has said that Landmark aided his company's success.{{ r | Spears_2017-03-30 | p=1 }}{{ r | BusinessWeek_2010-11-18 }} He has strongly encouraged his employees and all managers to take Landmark's classes.{{ r | BusinessWeek_2010-11-18 }} [[Chip Wilson]], the founder of [[Lululemon Athletica]], is a follower of Landmark's principles, and has directed his companies to pay for employees to attend Landmark's classes.{{ r | FC_2009-04-01 | SMH_2016-02-03 | MJ_2009 }}
Some of Landmark's courses require participants to start a [[community project]].{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 | p=1 }}<ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-karnataka/Helping-professionals-take-up-community-welfare-projects/article15911751.ece | title = Helping professionals take up community welfare projects | publisher = Hindu Times | access-date = July 8, 2020 | date= September 13, 2010 | ___location= Chennai, India}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url = https://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503343&objectid=11038761 | title = Charity walk to boost anti-suicide initiatives | newspaper = Bay of Plenty Times | access-date = October 14, 2011 | date=August 20, 2011 | quote = Irene has undertaken the charity event as part of her Landmark Education Self Expression and Leadership course. "I had to set up a community programme of my choice that would make a difference," Irene said.}}</ref>
=== Landmark Forum ===
Erhard promoted the idea that all events (good and bad) of an individual's life were of their own making, and that individuals would be empowered when they take personal responsibility for all events in their lives, an idea based in the [[Human Potential Movement]].{{r|Believer_2003|Spears_2017-03-30}} Many individuals liked this belief, whether or not it is true, or simply works as a [[placebo]].{{r|Believer_2003}} The Landmark Forum's niche was for people who did not have major psychological problems, but were nonetheless seeking self-improvement and were not served by the medical psychological establishment.{{r|Believer_2003|CSIndy_2019-07-24}}
The Landmark Forum takes place over three consecutive days with three long sessions.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Braid |first=Mary |date=5 December 2003 |title=Turn Up, Tune In, Transform? |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-independent/170403992/ |access-date=15 April 2025 |work=The Independent |via=[[Newspapers.com]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.landmarkworldwide.com/the-landmark-forum|title = The Landmark Forum - Personal Development Courses – Landmark Worldwide}}</ref> The Forum is attended in a group varying in size between 75 and 250 people. Landmark arranges the course as a dialogue in which the Forum leader presents a series of proposals and encourages participants to take the floor to relate how those ideas apply to their own individual [[personal life|lives]].{{sfn|Stassen|2008}} Course leaders set up rules at the beginning of the program and Landmark strongly encourages participants not to miss any part of the program.{{Cn|date=November 2024}} Attendees are also urged to be "coachable" (open minded to the course's concepts) and not just be observers during the course.{{r | Time_1998-03-16 }}{{sfn|McCrone|2008}}
Various ideas are proposed for consideration and explored during the course. These include:
* There can be a big difference between the facts and events in a person's life and the [[meaning (psychology)|meaning]], interpretation, and significance the person gives to or makes up about those events.{{sfn|Stassen|2008}}<ref name=Allinson>{{Cite journal|last=Allinson|first=Amber|date=April 2014|title=Mind over Matter|url=https://issuu.com/runwildmedia/docs/mayf_apr_14_issuu|journal=The Mayfair Magazine (U.K.)|volume=April 2014|pages=72–73}}</ref> The course proposes that people frequently conflate facts with their own interpretations of what occurred and, as a result, create self-inflicted suffering and a loss of effectiveness in their lives.
* Meaning is a function of language, something people make up, rather than something intrinsic to life or occurrences. By articulating differently in a given context, people can alter the meaning they create and experience a greater degree of effectiveness in how they deal with events.{{sfn|McCrone|2008}}
* In learning to perceive self-created meaning, people begin to see that assumptions they have made about who they are in life are actually shaped by limitations they have made up in response to past circumstances or events. This realization allows participants to articulate new meanings that are free of self-imposed constraints. The Forum goes on to train participants in actualizing these new possible meanings by sharing them with people in their lives. This creates a supportive social environment for achieving one's dreams and goals.{{sfn|McCrone|2008}}<ref name="Promise of Philosophy">{{cite journal |author1=McCarl, Steven R. |author2=Zaffron, Steve |author3=Nielson, Joyce |author4=Kennedy, Sally Lewis |date=January–April 2001 |title=The Promise of Philosophy and the Landmark Forum |journal=Contemporary Philosophy |volume=XXIII |issue=1 & 2 |doi=10.2139/ssrn.278955 |ssrn=278955|doi-access=free }}</ref>
* The term "new possibilities" means something different from the common definition as something that may happen. Rather, the term refers to a here-and-now opportunity to be differently or take new action, free of constraints from the past.<ref name="Promise of Philosophy" />
* A person's behavior is often governed by a perceived need to look good and be right, and people are often unaware of how their behaviors are shaped by these needs.{{r | Allinson}}
* People have persistent complaints that are accompanied by unproductive fixed ways of being and acting,<ref name="ReferenceA">See:
*{{request quotation|date=August 2017}};
*{{harv|McCrone|2008}};
*{{harv|Odasso|2008}}.</ref>
During the course, participants are encouraged to call friends and family members with whom they feel they have unresolved tensions,{{Cn|date=November 2024}} and to take responsibility for their own behavior.<ref>See:
*{{harv|Odasso|2008}}.</ref>
The evening session follows closely on the three consecutive days of the course and completes the Landmark Forum. During this final session, the participants share information about their results and bring guests to learn about the Forum.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
A 2011 [[Time magazine|''Time'']] article stated that "Landmark has been criticized for delving into the traumas of largely unscreened participants without having mental-health professionals on hand."{{ r | TIME_2011-04-10 }}
== Reception ==
=== Scholars ===
Sociologist [[Eileen Barker]] and sociologist of religion [[James A. Beckford]] both classified Landmark and its predecessor organization ''est'' as a "[[new religious movement]]" (NRM).<ref>{{harvnb|Barker|1996|p=126}}: "To illustrate rather than to define: among the better-known NRMs are the Brahma Kumaris, the Church of Scientology, the Divine Light Mission (now known as Elan Vital), est (Erhard Seminar Training, now known as the Landmark Forum), the Family (originally known as the Children of God), ISKCON (the Hare Krishna), Rajneeshism (now known as Oslo International), Sahaja Yoga, the Soka Gakkai, Transcendental Meditation, the Unification Church (known as the Moonies) and the Way International."</ref><ref name=Barker_2004 /><ref name=Barker_2005 /><ref>{{cite book |last=Beckford |first=James A. |author-link=James A. Beckford |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=WW-XcDe-IMEC |title=New Religious Movements in the Twenty-first Century: Legal, Political, and Social Challenges in Global Perspective |publisher=Routledge |year=2004 |isbn=0-415-96576-4 |editor1-last=Lucas |editor1-first=Phillip Charles |___location=Abingdon and New York |page=256 |language=en |chapter=New Religious Movements and Globalization |quote=The prospect of a new global order is also central to many variants of the Human Potential and New Age movements and Scientology. All these very different kinds of NRM nevertheless share a conviction that human beings have, perhaps for the first time, come into possession of the knowledge required to free them from traditional structures of thought and action. Hence, the confidence of the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, founder of Transcendental Meditation, and of Werner Erhard, the founder of est (now largely re-configured as the Landmark Trust) |editor2-last=Robbins |editor2-first=Thomas |editor2-link=Thomas Robbins (sociologist)}}</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Beckford|2003|p=156}}:"[...] post-countercultural religious movements such as Erhard Seminars Training (now the Landmark Forum) [...]."</ref> Some scholars have categorized Landmark or its predecessor organizations as a "[[self religion]]" or a (broadly defined) new religious movement (NRM).<ref name="Lockwood_2011" /><ref name="Heelas_1991" /><ref>See:
<!--progress tag (Avatar317)-->
*{{harv|Ramstedt|2007|pp=196–197}}.</ref><ref>See:
*{{harv|Bhugra|1997|p=126}};
*{{harv|Chryssides|2006|pp=197–198}};
*{{harv|Lazarus|2008}};
*{{harv|Partridge|2004|p=406}}.</ref><ref>
{{cite book
| last1 = Clarke
| first1 = Peter B.
| author-link1 = Peter B. Clarke
| chapter = New Religious Movements
| editor1-last = Taliaferro
| editor1-first = Charles
| editor1-link = Charles Taliaferro
| editor2-last = Harrison
| editor2-first = Victoria S.
| editor3-last = Goetz
| editor3-first = Stewart
| title = The Routledge Companion to Theism
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=CNATXtGJIvUC
| series = Routledge Religion Companions Series
| year = 2013
| ___location = New York
| publisher = Routledge
| publication-date = 2013
| page = 123
| isbn = 978-0-415-88164-7
| access-date = 23 June 2021
| quote = Like the [New Age Movement], many of the Self-religions (Heelas 1991) have been heavily influenced by Asian, and more generally Eastern, ideas of spirituality and divinity and do not acknowledge an external theistic being but rather, use spiritual and psychological techniques to reveal the god within and/or the divine self. The Forum and/or ''est'', whose origins are in the United States (Tipton 1982) holds to the belief that the self itself is god.
}}
</ref><ref>
{{cite book
| year = 1988
| editor1-last = Clarke
| editor1-first = Peter
| editor1-link = Peter B. Clarke
| editor2-last = Sutherland
| editor2-first = Stewart
| editor2-link = Stewart Sutherland, Baron Sutherland of Houndwood
| title = The World's Religions: The Study of Religion, Traditional and New Religion
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=eWeKAgAAQBAJ
| publisher = Routledge
| publication-date = 2002
| page =
| isbn = 978-1-134-92221-5
| access-date = 23 June 2021
| quote = [...] the founder of est (the highly influential seminar training established by Erhard in 1971) observes that, 'Of all the disciplines that I studied and learned, Zen was the essential one.
}}
</ref> Others question some aspects of these characterizations.<ref name="ReferenceB">Communication for planetary transformation and the drag of public conversations: The case of Landmark Education Corporation. Patrick Owen Cannon, University of South Florida</ref><ref>See:
*{{harv|Beckford et al., eds.|2007|pp=229, 687}}{{request quotation|date=December 2020}};
*{{harv|Bromley|2007|p=48}}.
</ref><ref>Education Embraced: Substantiating the Educational Foundations of Landmark Education's Transformative Learning Model Marsha L. Heck International Multilingual Journal of Contemporary Research, 3(2), pp. 149–162 DOI: 10.15640/imjcr.v3n2a14</ref>
Renee Lockwood, a sociology of religion researcher at [[The University of Sydney]] described Landmark as a "corporate religion" and a "religio-spiritual corporation" because of its emphasis on teaching techniques for improvement in personal and employee productivity, which is marketed to businesses as well as government agencies.{{r|Lockwood_2012}} Sociologist of religion [[Thomas Robbins (sociologist)|Thomas Robbins]] says that Landmark could be considered an NRM.<ref name=":0">{{cite book |last1=Robbins |first1=Thomas |author-link1=Thomas Robbins (sociologist) |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vA8edg7bv0kC |title=The SAGE Handbook of the Sociology of Religion |last2=Lucas |first2=Philip Charles |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-4462-0652-2 |editor1-last=Beckford |editor1-first=James A. |editor1-link=James A. Beckford |page=229 |chapter=From 'Cults' to New Religious Movements: Coherence, Definition, and Conceptual Framing in the Study of New Religious Movements |quote=[...] many other types of groups have emerged that could fall under the purview of NRM study. We have suggested some of these in the above paragraph. Others might include [...] religio-therapy groups such as Avatar, Mindspring, and Landmark Forum [...]. |access-date=December 19, 2020 |editor2-last=Demerath |editor2-first=N. Jay}}
</ref> [[George Chryssides]], a researcher on NRMs and cults said: "''est'' and Landmark may have some of the attributes typically associated with religion, but it is doubtful whether they should be accorded full status as religious organizations."<ref name="Chryssides_1999" />
[[Stephen A. Kent]], professor of [[sociology]] and an expert in [[new religious movements]], stated in 2014 that Landmark's business is "to teach people that the values they have held up until now have held them back; that indeed they need a new set of values and this group [Landmark] can provide those new sets of values ... I don't know of any academic research that verifies that kind of perspective" and while some individuals feel "cleansed" or "invigorated" by Landmark's training, others may feel violated by the pressure put on them to reveal their innermost secrets to strangers during Landmark's training sessions.{{ r | CBC_2014-10-15 }}
Landmark maintains that it is an educational foundation and denies being a religious movement.<ref name=Lockwood_2011 /><ref name=Puttick_2004/>
====Large Group Awareness Training study====
{{main|Evaluating a Large Group Awareness Training}}
In 1985, a group of psychology researchers studied participants of the Forum, (a [[Large Group Awareness Training]] course) and compared their outcomes to a [[control group]] of non attendees. They published their results in the book ''[[Evaluating a Large Group Awareness Training]]''. They found that participants had a short-term increase in [[internal locus of control]] (the belief that one can control their life), but found no long-term positive or negative effects on individuals' [[self-perception]].
===
[[Time (magazine)|''Time'']] reporter Nathan Thornburgh, in his review of The Landmark Forum, said, "At its heart, the course was a withering series of scripted reality checks meant to show us how we have created nearly everything we see as a problem," and, "I benefited tremendously from the uncomfortable mirror the course had put in front of me."{{ r | TIME_2011-04-10}}
Reporter Laura McClure with ''[[Mother Jones (magazine)|Mother Jones]]'' attended a three and a half-day forum, which she described as "My lost weekend with the trademark happy, bathroom-break hating, slightly spooky inheritors of est."{{ r | MJ_2009 }} Heidi Beedle, writing for the ''[[Colorado Springs Independent]]'' in 2019, said that "The tangible benefits of Landmark's courses may seem hard to pin down" though [[community projects]] do seem to be one, and, "One thing is certain: Landmark is a program that is incredibly successful at making people feel good about Landmark."{{ r | CSIndy_2019-07-24 }}
{{Anchor|France 3 documentary}}<!-- Courtesy note: [[Voyage Au Pays des Nouveaux Gourous]] redirects here -->
In 2004, the French channel [[France 3]] aired a television documentary on Landmark in their investigative series ''[[Pièces à Conviction]]''.<ref name=VLNG_transcript >{{ cite web | url=http://88.80.16.63/leak/suppressed-french-documentary-on-landmark-forum-cult--24-may-2004.txt | title=French Documentary Transcript: "Voyage to the Land of the New Gurus" | last= | first= | date=2004-05-24 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090913100315/http://88.80.16.63/leak/suppressed-french-documentary-on-landmark-forum-cult--24-may-2004.txt | archive-date=2009-09-13 }}</ref> The episode, called "Voyage Au Pays des Nouveaux Gourous" ("Journey to the land of the new gurus") was highly critical of its subject.<ref>See:
*{{harv|Roy|2004}};
*{{harv|TD|2004}};
*{{harv|Tessier|2004}}.</ref> Shot in large part with a hidden camera, it showed attendance at a Landmark course and a visit to Landmark offices.{{sfn|Roy|2004}} In addition, the program included interviews with former course participants, anti-cultists, and commentators. Landmark left France following the airing of the episode and a subsequent site visit by labor inspectors that noted the activities of volunteers,<ref>
See:
*{{harv|Lemonniera|2005}}, French text: "L'Inspection du Travail débarque dans les locaux de Landmark, constate l'exploitation des bénévoles et dresse des procès-verbaux pour travail non déclaré." English translation: "Labor inspectors turned up at the offices of Landmark, noted the exploitation of volunteers and drew up a report of undeclared employment.";
*{{harv|Landmark staff|2004}}, Landmark's response;
</ref>
and sued [[Jean-Pierre Brard]] in 2004 following his appearance in the documentary.{{sfn|Palmer|2011}}
The episode was uploaded to a variety of websites, and in October 2006 Landmark issued subpoenas pursuant to the [[Digital Millennium Copyright Act]] to [[Google Video]], YouTube, and the [[Internet Archive]] demanding details of the identity of the person(s) who had uploaded those copies. These organizations challenged the subpoenas and the [[Electronic Frontier Foundation]] (EFF) became involved, planning to file a motion to quash Landmark's DMCA subpoena to Google Video.<ref>See:
*{{harv|EFF staff|2011}};
*{{harv|Landmark (Art Schreiber)|2006a}};
*{{harv|Landmark (Art Schreiber)|2006b}};
*{{harv|EFF staff|2007}}.
</ref> Landmark eventually withdrew its subpoenas.<ref>
[https://www.eff.org/cases/landmark-and-internet-archive Landmark Education and the Internet Archive]. [[Electronic Frontier Foundation]]. Retrieved May 25, 2020 – "In a settlement reached November 29, 2006 Landmark agreed to withdraw the subpoena to Google and end its quest to pierce the anonymity of the video's poster. Landmark has also withdrawn its subpoena to the Internet Archive."
</ref><ref>[https://www.eff.org/press/archives/2006/11/30 Self-Help Group Backs Off Attack on Internet Critic]. [[Electronic Frontier Foundation]]. Retrieved May 25, 2020 – "A controversial self-help group has backed off its attack on an Internet critic after the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) intervened in the case."</ref>
==
{{main|EST and The Forum in popular culture}}
In "[[The Plan (Six Feet Under)|The Plan]]," the third episode of the second season of the American drama television series ''[[Six Feet Under (TV series)|Six Feet Under]]'', est and The Forum are parodied.{{ r | MJ_2009 }}
== See also ==
* [[Applied Ontology]]
* [[List of large-group awareness training organizations]]
* [[Lifespring]]
* [[Mind Dynamics]]
==
{{Reflist|30em|refs=
<ref name=Heelas_1991 >{{cite book |last=Heelas |first=Paul |author-link=Paul Heelas |editor1-first=S.R. |editor1-last=Sutherland |editor2-first=P.B. |editor2-last=Clarke |title=The Study of Religion: Traditional and New Religions |year=1991 |publisher=Routledge |___location= London |isbn=0-415-06432-5 |chapter=Western Europe: Self Religions | pages=165–166, 171 }}</ref>
<ref name=Time_1998-03-16>{{cite magazine | url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,987975,00.html | title=The Best of Est? | last1=Faltermayer | first1=Charlotte | last2=Woodbury | first2=Richard | date=1998-03-16 | magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070529235150/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,987975,00.html | archive-date=2007-05-29 | quote=But outreach was clearly part of the agenda. Pupils were assigned to call or write people with whom they "want to make a breakthrough," thereby introducing others to Landmark. On graduation night participants were encouraged to bring guests, who were then led away to learn more and sign on. From Day 1, attendants were told that for a limited time, the Forum's tuition included a $95 follow-up, "The Forum in Action." The crowd was also repeatedly invited to sign up for the $700 "Advanced Course." Act now and get a $100 discount. }}</ref>
<ref name=Chryssides_1999>{{cite book | last1 = Chryssides | first1 = George D. | author-link1 = George Chryssides | year = 2001 | orig-date = 1999 | chapter = The Human Potential Movement | title = Exploring New Religions | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=S4_rodMYMygC | series = Issues in Contemporary Religion | ___location = New York | publisher = A&C Black | page = 314 | isbn = 978-0-8264-5959-6 | access-date = March 23, 2017 | quote = [...] ''est'' and Landmark [...] have addressed human problems in a radical way, setting super-empirical goals, and addressing what some may regard as a spiritual aspect of human nature (the Core Self, the Source, which is at least godlike, if not divine. ''est'' and Landmark may have some of the attributes typically associated with religion, but it is doubtful whether they should be accorded full status as religious organizations.}}</ref>
<ref name=PNT_2000-10-19>{{cite news |last1=Scioscia |first1=Amanda |date=October 19, 2000 |title=Drive-thru Deliverance |url=https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/drive-thru-deliverance-6419949 |work=[[Phoenix New Times]] |___location= Phoenix, Arizona |publisher= Phoenix New Times, LLC |access-date= December 19, 2020 |quote= [...] Landmark vigorously disputes the cult accusation and freely threatens or pursues lawsuits against those who call it one ... Landmark also boasts numerous letters from experts stating that it does not meet cult criteria. One such letter comes from Dr. Margaret Singer, professor emeritus of psychology at the University of California at Berkeley, and an expert on cults. Landmark sued Singer after she mentioned the company in her book Cults in Our Midst. Singer says she never called it a cult in her book, but simply mentioned it as a controversial New Age training course. In resolution of the suit, Singer gave a sworn statement that the organization is not a cult or sect. She says this doesn't mean she supports Landmark. "I do not endorse them -- never have," she says. Singer, who is in her 70s, says she can't comment on whether Landmark uses coercive persuasion because "the SOBs have already sued me once." "I'm afraid to tell you what I really think about them because I'm not covered by any lawyers like I was when I wrote my book." }}</ref>
<ref name=NYMag_2001-07-09>{{cite news | last = Grigoriadis | first = Vanessa | author-link1 = Vanessa Grigoriadis | title = Pay Money, Be Happy | url=https://nymag.com/nymetro/news/culture/features/4932/index1.html | work = [[New York (magazine)|New York]] | date = July 9, 2001 | quote=Some Landmark graduates also volunteer for the company, which has approximately 500 employees and a reported 7,500 unpaid "assistants" (though Landmark puts this number much lower) who answer phones, sign up recruits, and cater to the Forum leaders. ... Though it was rumored that Erhard sold his system for $1, it was later revealed that he received an initial payment of $3 million in addition to an eighteen-year licensing fee that was not to exceed $15 million; Erhard kept the Mexican and Japanese branches of the operation. ... Last year, Landmark had revenues of $58 million, and Rosenberg says the company has bought outright Erhard's license and his rights to Japan and Mexico. }}</ref>
<ref name=Believer_2003 >{{cite magazine | last1=Snider | first1=Suzanne | title=Est, Werner Erhard and The Corporatization of Self-Help | url=https://www.thebeliever.net/est-werner-erhard-and-the-corporatization-of-self-help/ | magazine=[[Believer Magazine]] | access-date=2023-11-01 | date=1 May 2003}}</ref>
<ref name=Puttick_2004>{{cite book |last=Puttick |first=Elizabeth |editor-first=Christopher Hugh |editor-last=Partridge |title=Encyclopedia of New Religions |year=2004 |publisher=Lion |___location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-7459-5073-0 |chapter=Landmark Forum (est) |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopediaofne0000unse_d3h6 | pages=406–407}}</ref>
<ref name=Barker_2004>{{cite book | last1 = Barker | first1 = Eileen | author-link1 = Eileen Barker | chapter = General Overview of the 'Cult Scene' in Great Britain | editor1-last = Lucas | editor1-first = Phillip Charles | editor2-last = Robbins | editor2-first = Thomas | editor2-link = Thomas Robbins (sociologist) | title = New Religious Movements in the Twenty-first Century: Legal, Political, and Social Challenges in Global Perspective | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=WW-XcDe-IMEC | series = Sociology/Religious studies | year = 2004 | ___location = New York | publisher = Psychology Press | publication-date = 2004 | page = 28 | isbn = 978-0-415-96577-4 | access-date = 23 June 2021 | quote = Erhard Seminars Training (''est'') and other examples of the human potential movement joined indigenous new religions, such as the Emin, Exegesis, the Aetherius Society, the School of Economic Science, and the Findhorn community in the north of Scotland, and a number of small congregations within mainstream churches were labelled 'cults' as they exhibited some of the more enthusiastic characteristics of new religions and their leaders.}}</ref>
<ref name=Barker_2005>{{cite book | last1 = Barker | first1 = Eileen | author-link1 = Eileen Barker | chapter = New Religious Movements in Europe | editor1-last = Jones | editor1-first = Lindsay | title = Encyclopedia of Religion | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ODIOAQAAMAAJ | year = 2005 | ___location = Detroit |publisher=MacMillan | page = 6568 | isbn = 978-0028657431 | quote = The majority of NRMs [New Religious Movements] are, however, not indigenous to Europe. Many can be traced to the United States (frequently to California), including offshoots of the Jesus Movement (such as the Children of God, later known as the Family); the Way International; International Churches of Christ; the Church Universal and Triumphant (known as Summit Lighthouse in England); and much of the human potential movement (such as est, which gave rise to the Landmark Forum, and various practices developed through the Esalen Institute). }}</ref>
<ref name=MJ_2009 >{{ cite magazine | url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2009/08/landmark-42-hours-500-65-breakdowns/ | title=The Landmark Forum: 42 Hours, $500, 65 Breakdowns | last=McClure | first=Laura | magazine=[[Mother Jones (magazine)|Mother Jones]] | date=August 17, 2009 | access-date=October 13, 2020 | quote= }}</ref>
<ref name=FC_2009-04-01 >{{cite magazine |last=Sacks |first=Danielle |url=https://www.fastcompany.com/1208950/lululemons-cult-of-selling |magazine=[[Fast Company]] |title=Lululemon's Cult of Selling - Lululemon has created a cult following for its yoga gear. Its secret? The Secret, as well as other controversial self-help classics. |date=April 1, 2009 | quote=A cult following is the most coveted accessory in retail, and Lululemon's is even more lustworthy than its Velocity Gym Bag. It wasn't built on the work of some Jobs-ian swami, however, but on the sources of Lulu founder and chairman Chip Wilson's own spiritual awakening. Wilson has mixed a heady self-actualizing cocktail from equal parts Landmark Forum (seminars based on the philosophy of Werner Erhard), the books of motivational business guru Brian Tracy, and Oprah-endorsed best seller The Secret, by Rhonda Byrne. He is now hard at work formalizing them in a Lululemon "internal constitution." }}</ref>
<ref name=BusinessWeek_2010-11-18 >{{cite news |url=http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_48/b4205098143983.htm | work=[[Bloomberg Businessweek]] |title=General Tso, Meet Steven Covey |access-date=March 14, 2011 |date=November 18, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306230429/https://www.bloomberg.com/bw/magazine/content/10_48/b4205098143983.htm |archive-date=March 6, 2016 | quote=Cherng is an avid consumer of self-improvement programs. ... He has since 2003 been a participant in Life Academy, a Taiwanese organization that follows a "life manual" dedicated to the "advancement of the human spirit." He is a devotee of Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Deepak Chopra's The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success, and Don Miguel Ruiz's Four Agreements. Recently, Cherng has become passionate about the Landmark Forum, a program that utilizes Werner Erhard's EST methodology, which Psychology Today described as one that, "tore you down and put you back together." }}</ref>
<ref name=NYT_2010-11-28 >{{cite news |last=Alford |first=Henry |title=You're O.K., But I'm Not. Let's Share |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/28/fashion/28Landmark.html |newspaper=[[New York Times]] |___location=New York |date=November 26, 2010 }}</ref>
<ref name=TIME_2011-04-10 > {{ cite magazine | url=https://time.com/archive/6595354/change-we-can-almost-believe-in/ | title=Change We Can (Almost) Believe In | last=Thornburgh | first=Nathan | magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] | date=2011-04-10 | quote=By the end of the course, almost all of us felt giddy with exhaustion and catharsis, but there was a fair amount of pressure to sign up for additional instruction. If we were serious about our transformation, we were told, we would enlist friends and family and even co-workers to take the $495 Forum themselves. It had just enough of a Ponzi taste that I stepped firmly and finally back outside the Landmark circle. (A Landmark executive later told me the company is "committed" to toning down the hard sell.) }} </ref>
<ref name=Lockwood_2011 >{{cite journal
| last1 = Lockwood
| first1 = Renee
| title = Religiosity Rejected: Exploring the Religio-Spiritual Dimensions of Landmark Education
| url = https://journal.equinoxpub.com/IJSNR/article/view/12184
| journal = International Journal for the Study of New Religions
| publisher = Equinox Publishing Ltd.
| publication-place = Sheffield, England
| publication-date = 2011
| volume = 2
| issue = 2
| pages = 225–254
| doi = 10.1558/ijsnr.v2i2.225
| issn = 2041-9511
| access-date = 23 June 2021
| quote = Incorporating several eastern spiritual practices, the highly emotional nature of the Landmark Forum's weekend training is such as to create Durkheimian notions of 'religious effervescence', altering pre-existing belief systems and producing a sense of the sacred collective. Group-specific language contributes to this, whilst simultaneously shrouding Landmark Education in mystery and esotericism. The Forum is replete with stories of miracles, healings, and salvation apposite for a modern western paradigm. Indeed, the sacred pervades the training, manifested in the form of the Self, capable of altering the very nature of the world and representing the 'ultimate concern'.
| url-access= subscription
}}
</ref>
<ref name=Lockwood_2012 >{{cite journal |last=Lockwood |first=Renee D. |date=2012-06-01 |title=Pilgrimages to the Self: Exploring the Topography of Western Consumer Spirituality through 'the Journey' |journal=Literature & Aesthetics |volume=22 |issue=1 |pages=108–130 |doi= |s2cid=142958283 | quote=[p111] Yet perhaps a more salient manifestation of this phenomenon exists in the form of corporate religions, groups with a specific religio-spiritual function that are established, managed, and presented as corporations. Representing the ultimate fusion of the sacred and the economic, corporate religion may be interpreted as the latest manifestation of the Human Potential Movement, with groups and practitioners such as Anthony Robbins, Deepak Chopra, and Landmark Education. Within corporate spirituality, the late-modern concept of the internalised sacred is paramount, with the "Self" offering epoch-specific modes of salvation in the form of seminars and spiritual products. The philosophy and praxes of corporate religions are predominantly bound by the ethics of market capitalism and the values of Western consumer culture. To this end, they are often tailored towards improving productivity amongst individuals and employees, and are subsequently marketed not only to individuals, but also to companies and government agencies. [p125] For religio-spiritual corporations such as Landmark Education, all previous ideas and beliefs must be dissolved and washed away in order to create 'nothing,' a clean slate from which truth may arise. }}</ref>
<ref name=CBC_2014-10-15 >{{cite news |last1=Rusnell |first1=Charles |last2=Russell |first2=Jennie |date=October 17, 2014 |title=Alberta Health Services staff pressured to attend controversial seminars - Government continued to use Landmark Education despite employee complaints |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-health-services-staff-pressured-to-attend-controversial-seminars-1.2798835 |newspaper=[[CBC.ca]] |___location=Ottawa, Ontario | quote="They are manipulative, they are controlling, they involve coercive persuasion," said Steve Kent, a University of Alberta sociology professor. Kent is an internationally recognized expert in deviant ideological and religious groups who has studied Landmark and similar organizations for decades. }} </ref>
<ref name=SMH_2016-02-03>{{Cite news|url=https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/chip-wilson-tries-to-reinvent-himself-after-his-lululemon-turmoil-20160203-gmk4h3.html|title=Chip Wilson tries to reinvent himself after his Lululemon turmoil|last=Rosman|first=Katherine|date=February 2, 2016|website=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]|language=en| quote=Punctuality is a central focus of Wilson's. It is also a key principle espoused by the Landmark Forum, a leadership development program based on Werner Erhard's EST curriculum. When Wilson was running Lululemon, the company paid for employees to attend Landmark seminars; Kit and Ace employees enjoy the same benefit. One of the main lessons of Landmark is that punctuality is a strong indicator of personal integrity. }}</ref>
<ref name=Spears_2017-03-30>{{cite news |title= How an American motivational guru is inspiring British businesses |work=[[Spear's magazine]] |first= Caroline |last= Phillips | date= March 1, 2017 | access-date= June 6, 2018 | url = https://spearswms.com/american-motivational-guru-inspiring-british-businesses/ | quote=And yet others who claim that it’s a cult, brainwashing, and evangelical — about which more later. ... And now to that important question: is it a cult, brainwashing and evangelical? Cross out the first two; tick the third (but not in a literal, bible-bashing way — it’s just that there’s a lot of American hard sell). The party line is that evangelism is not a corporate approach: they attribute it to the individuals’ passion. But I don’t buy that. Whipping up the fervour and lurve is how they put bums on seats. }}</ref>
<ref name=CSIndy_2019-07-24>{{cite news | url = https://www.csindy.com/coloradosprings/landmark-worldwide-the-arts-community-and-the-big-bizarre-business-of-personal-development/Content?oid=20065897 | title = Landmark Worldwide, the arts community and the big, bizarre business of personal development | newspaper =[[Colorado Springs Independent]] | access-date = July 8, 2020 | date=July 24, 2019 | first = Heidi | last = Beedle | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190724095838/https://www.csindy.com/coloradosprings/landmark-worldwide-the-arts-community-and-the-big-bizarre-business-of-personal-development/content/?oid=20065897 | archive-date=2019-07-24 | quote=}}</ref>
}}
== References ==
{{refbegin|30em}}
;Books
* {{cite book |last=Anderson |first=Kurt |editor1-first=Lillian |editor1-last=Ross |title=The Fun of It: Stories from The Talk of the Town; The New Yorker |year=2007 |publisher=Vintage Books/Random House |___location=New York |isbn=978-0-375-75649-8 |chapter=Son of EST: The Terminator of Self-Doubt |url=https://archive.org/details/funofitstoriesf00ross }}
* {{cite book |last=Atkin |first=Douglas |title=The Culting of Brands: Turn Your Customers Into True Believers |publisher=Penguin/Portfolio |___location=New York |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-59184-027-5 |chapter=What Is Required of a Belief System? |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/cultingofbrandsw0000atki }}
* {{cite book |last=Barker |first=Eileen |author-link=Eileen Barker |editor-first=Dinesh |editor-last=Bhugra |editor-link=Dinesh Bhugra |title=Psychiatry and Religion: Context, Consensus and Controversies |year=1996|publisher=Routledge |___location=London and New York |isbn=0-415-08955-7 |chapter=New Religions and Mental Health |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s3tqDwAAQBAJ}}
* {{cite book |last=Bartley |first=William W. |title=Werner Erhard: The Transformation of a Man |publisher=Clarkson N. Potter |___location=New York |year=1978 |isbn=0-517-53502-5 |url=https://archive.org/details/wernererhard00will }}
* {{cite book |last=Beckford |first=James A. |author-link1 = James A. Beckford |title=Social Theory and Religion |publisher=Cambridge University Press |___location=Cambridge |year=2003 |isbn=0-521-77431-4 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=7nIhAwAAQBAJ }}
* {{cite book |editor1-first=James A. |editor1-last=Beckford |editor1-link=James A. Beckford |editor2-first=Jay |editor2-last=Demerath |title=The SAGE Handbook of the Sociology of Religion |year=2007 |publisher=SAGE |___location=London |isbn=978-1-4129-1195-5 |ref={{sfnRef|Beckford et al., eds.|2007}} }}
* {{cite book |last=Bhugra |first=Dinesh |title=Psychiatry and Religion: Context, Consensus and Controversies |publisher=Routledge |year=1997 |isbn=0-415-16512-1 }}
* {{cite book |last=Boulware |first=Jack |title=San Francisco Bizarro |publisher=Macmillan/St. Martins |___location=New York |year=2000 |isbn=0-312-20671-2 }}
* {{cite book |last=Bromley |first=David G. |author-link=David G. Bromley |title=Teaching New Religious Movements |year=2007 |publisher=Oxford University Press |___location=Oxford and New York |isbn=978-0-19-517729-9 }}
* {{cite book |last=Chryssides |first=George |title=Exploring New Religions |year=1999 |publisher=Continuum International Publishing Group |___location=New York }}
* {{cite book |last=Chryssides |first=George D. |author-link=George D. Chryssides |title=The A to Z of New Religious Movements |publisher=Scarecrow Press |year=2006 |isbn=0-8108-5588-7 }}
* {{cite book |last=Clarke |first=Peter B. |author-link=Peter B. Clarke |editor1-first=Charles |editor1-last=Taliaferro |editor2-first=Victoria S. |editor2-last=Harrison |editor3-first=Stewart |editor3-last=Goetz |title=The Routledge Companion to Theism |year=2012 |publisher=Routledge |___location=London |isbn=978-0-415-88164-7 |page=123 |chapter=New Religious Movements }}
* {{cite book |last=Colman |first=Andrew M. |title=A Dictionary of Psychology |year=2009 |publisher=Oxford University Press |___location=Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-953406-7 }}* {{cite book |last=Eisner |first=Donald A. |title=The Death of Psychotherapy: From Freud to Alien Abductions |year=2000 |publisher=Praeger |___location=Westport, Connecticut |isbn=0-275-96413-2 }}
* {{cite book |last=Farber |first=Sharon Klayman |title=Hungry for Ecstasy: Trauma, the Brain, and the Influence of the Sixties |publisher=Jason Aronson/Rowman & Littlefield |___location=Lanham, Maryland |year=2012 |isbn=978-0-7657-0858-8 }}
* {{cite book |last=Gastil |first=John |title=The Group in Society |year=2010 |publisher=SAGE |___location=Los Angeles |isbn=978-1-4129-2468-9 }}
* {{cite book |last=Goldwag |first=Arthur |title=Cults, Conspiracies, and Secret Societies |year=2009 |publisher=Vintage/Random House |___location=New York |isbn=978-0-307-39067-7 |url=https://archive.org/details/cultsconspiracie00gold }}
* {{cite book | last1=Conway | first1=Flo | last2=Siegelman | first2=Jim | title=Snapping: America's Epidemic of Sudden Personality Change | publisher=Stillpoint | ___location=New York | year=1995 | isbn=0-9647650-0-4 |ref={{sfnRef|Conway and Siegelman|1995}} }}
* {{cite book |last1=Koocher |first1=Gerald P. |last2=Keith-Spiegel |first2=Patricia |title=Ethics in Psychology and the Mental Health Professions: Standards and Cases |publisher=Oxford University Press |___location=New York |year=2008 |isbn=978-0-19-514911-1 |ref={{sfnRef|Koocher and Keith-Spiegel|2008}} }}
* {{cite book |last=Palmer |first=Susan |author-link=Susan J. Palmer |title=The New Heretics of France: Minority Religions, la Republique, and the Government-Sponsored War on Sects |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pY5pAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA27 |date=2011 |publisher=Oxford UP |isbn=978-0-19-987599-3 }}
* {{cite book |last=Paris |first=Joel |title=Psychotherapy in an Age of Narcissism: Modernity, Science, and Society |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |___location=New York |year=2013 |isbn=978-0-230-33696-4 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Partridge |first1=Christopher |author-link=Christopher Partridge |last2= Puttick |first2=Elizabeth|title=New Religions: A Guide |publisher =Oxford University Press, USA |year=2004 |isbn=0-19-522042-0 |ref={{harvid|Partridge|2004}} }}
* {{cite book |last=Pressman |first=Steven |title=Outrageous Betrayal: The Dark Journey of Werner Erhard from est to Exile |publisher=St. Martin's |___location=New York |year=1993 |isbn=0-312-09296-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/outrageousbetray00stev }}
* {{cite book |last1=Ramstedt |first1=Martin |editor1-first=Daren |editor1-last=Kemp |editor2-first=James R. |editor2-last=Lewis |editor2-link=James R. Lewis (scholar) |title=Handbook of the New Age |series=Brill Handbooks on Contemporary Religion |volume=1 |year=2007 |publisher=BRILL |___location=Leiden |page=196 |isbn=978-90-04-15355-4 |chapter=New Age and Business: Corporations as Cultic Milieus? }}
* {{cite book |last=Richardson |first=James T. |editor-first=William H. |editor-last=Swatos, Jr. |title=Encyclopedia of Religion and Society |publisher=AltaMira |___location=Walnut Creek, California |year=1998 |isbn=0-7619-8956-0 |chapter=est (THE FORUM) }}
* {{cite book |last=Rupert |first=Glenn A. |editor1-first=James R. |editor1-last=Lewis |editor2-first=J. Gordon |editor2-last=Melton |title=Perspectives on the New Age |publisher=SUNY Press |___location=Albany, New York |year=1992 |isbn=0-7914-1213-X |chapter=Employing the New Age: Training Seminars }}
* {{cite book |last=Saliba |first=John A. |title=Understanding New Religious Movements |publisher=Rowman Altamira |___location=Walnut Creek, California |year=2003 |page=88 |isbn=978-0-7591-0355-9 }}
* {{cite book |last=Sharot |first=Stephen |title=Comparative Perspectives on Judaisms and Jewish Identities |year=2011 |publisher=Wayne State University Press |___location=Detroit, Michigan |isbn=978-0-8143-3401-0 }}
* {{cite book |last=Wright |first=Stuart |editor1-first=David G. |editor1-last=Bromley |editor1-link=David G. Bromley |editor2-first=J. Gordon |editor2-last=Melton |editor2-link=J. Gordon Melton |title=Cults, Religion, and Violence |publisher=Cambridge University Press |___location=Cambridge |year=2002 |isbn=0-521-66898-0 |chapter=Public Agency Involvement in Government–Religious Movement Confrontation }}
;Journals
* {{cite journal |author=Schneider |year=1995 |title=Der Pädagogische Bereich als Operationsfeld für Psychokulte |journal=20 Jahre Elterninitiative |volume=e.V. |pages=189–190 |publisher=University of Tubingen, Theologische Abteilung |isbn=3-927890-23-5 |issn=0720-3772 }}
;Web sources
* {{cite web |author=Landmark (Art Schreiber) |url=http://www.culteducation.com/reference/landmark/landmark107.pdf |title=Declaration of Arthur Schreiber; US District Court, New Jersey; Civil Action No.04-3022(JCL) |date=May 3, 2005 |website=CEI |publisher=Cult Education Institute |access-date=January 27, 2015 }}
* {{cite web |author=Landmark (Art Schreiber) |url=https://www.eff.org/files/filenode/landmark/archive_landmark_request.pdf |title=Landmark's letter to the Internet Archive |year=2006a |website=eff.org |publisher=Electronic Frontier Foundation |access-date=January 23, 2015 }}
* {{cite web |author=Landmark (Art Schreiber) |url=https://www.eff.org/files/filenode/landmark/google_landmarkdec.pdf |title=Landmark's letter to Google |year=2006b |website=eff.org |publisher=Electronic Frontier Foundation |access-date=January 23, 2015 }}
* {{cite web |author=Landmark staff |url=http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/landmark-education-business-development-lebd-changes-name-to-vanto-group-56770627.html |title=Landmark Education Business Development, LEBD, Changes Name to Vanto Group |website=PRNewswire |date=February 1, 2008 |access-date=October 22, 2008 |ref={{sfnRef|Landmark press release|2008}} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180120183657/https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/landmark-education-business-development-lebd-changes-name-to-vanto-group-56770627.html |archive-date=January 20, 2018 }}
* {{cite web|author=Landmark staff |url=http://www.landmarkeducation.com/display_content.jsp?top=26&mid=659&bottom=676&siteObjectID=707 |title=Landmark Education Celebrates 11 Years of Business and Growth |year=2002 |website=Landmark Education |___location=San Francisco, California |access-date=October 22, 2008 |ref={{sfnRef|Landmark staff|2002a}} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070927213240/http://www.landmarkeducation.com/display_content.jsp?top=26&mid=659&bottom=676&siteObjectID=707 |archive-date=September 27, 2007 }}
*{{cite web |author=Landmark staff|url=http://landmarkeducation.com/OVERVW/default.htm |title=Overview |date=2002 |website=Landmark Education |___location=San Francisco, California |access-date=January 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020803185812/http://landmarkeducation.com/OVERVW/default.htm |archive-date=August 3, 2002 |ref={{sfnRef|Landmark staff|2002b}} }}
*{{cite web |author=Landmark staff|url=http://www.landmarkeducation.fr/menu.jsp?top=20447&siteObjectID=21551 |title=Landmark Education – Droit de Répons – France 3 |website=Landmark Education |___location=San Francisco, California |year=2004|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721001823/http://www.landmarkeducation.fr/menu.jsp?top=20447&siteObjectID=21551 |archive-date=July 21, 2011 |language=fr |access-date=October 23, 2008 }}
*{{cite web |author=Landmark staff|url=http://www.landmarkworldwide.com/who-we-are/company-overview |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130721172129/http://www.landmarkworldwide.com/who-we-are/company-overview |archive-date=July 21, 2013 |title=Overview |website=Landmark Education |year=2014 |___location=San Francisco, California |access-date=October 22, 2014 |ref={{sfnRef|Landmark staff|2014a}} }}
*{{cite web |author=Landmark staff |url=http://www.landmarkworldwide.com/who-we-are |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130721172235/http://www.landmarkworldwide.com/who-we-are |archive-date=July 21, 2013 |title=Landmark Fact Sheet |website=Landmark Worldwide |year=2014 |___location=San Francisco, California |access-date=January 22, 2015 |ref={{sfnRef|Landmark staff|2014b}} }}
*{{cite web |author=Landmark staff|title=The Landmark Advanced Course |url=http://www.landmarkworldwide.com/after-the-landmark-forum/advanced-programs/advanced-course |website=Landmark Worldwide |year=2015 |access-date=January 17, 2015 }}
*{{cite web |author=CASS staff |url=http://kepler.ss.ca.gov/corpdata/ShowLpllcAllList?QueryLpllcNumber=200305810074 |title=LP/LLC Information |website=California Secretary of State |year=2003 |publisher=California |___location=Sacramento, California |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080131201220/http://kepler.ss.ca.gov/corpdata/ShowLpllcAllList?QueryLpllcNumber=200305810074 |archive-date=January 31, 2008 |access-date=October 23, 2008 }}
*{{cite web|author=CASS staff |url=http://kepler.sos.ca.gov/corpdata/ShowAllList?QueryCorpNumber=C1197599 |title=Entity Number C1197599 |website=California Secretary of State |publisher=California |___location=Sacramento, California |year=1987 |access-date=October 23, 2008 |ref={{sfnRef |11=CASS staff |12=1987 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/20110721034252/http://kepler.sos.ca.gov/corpdata/ShowAllList?QueryCorpNumber=C1197599 |archive-date=July 21, 2011 }} |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129063713/http://kepler.sos.ca.gov/corpdata/ShowAllList?QueryCorpNumber=C1197599 |archive-date=November 29, 2014 }}
* {{cite web |author=EFF staff |url=https://www.eff.org/cases/landmark-and-internet-archive |title=Landmark and the Internet Archive |year=2011 |website=eff.org |publisher=Electronic Frontier Foundation |access-date=January 23, 2015 }}
* {{cite web |author=EFF staff |url=https://www.eff.org/files/filenode/landmark/eff_letter.pdf |title=EFF and Internet Archive response to Landmark |year=2007|website=eff.org |publisher=Electronic Frontier Foundation |access-date=January 23, 2015 }}
*{{cite web |author=Office of International Religious Freedom |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2005/51539.htm |title=International Religious Freedom Report 2005: Austria |year=2005 |publisher=U.S. Dept. of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor |___location=Washington, D.C. |access-date=August 28, 2013 }}
*{{cite web |author=Office of International Religious Freedom |url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2005/51583.htm |title=International Religious Freedom Report 2005: Sweden |year=2006 |publisher=U.S. Dept. of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor |___location=Washington, D.C. |access-date=August 28, 2013 }}
;News articles
* {{cite news |author=ABC News staff |title=Defence workers trained by 'cult' |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/02/2205464.htm?section=australia |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080411024853/http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/02/2205464.htm?section=australia |url-status=dead |archive-date=April 11, 2008 |work=ABC News |___location=Sydney, NSW |access-date=January 29, 2015 |ref={{sfnRef|ABC News staff|2008}} }}
* {{cite news |last=Bass |first=Alison |title=The Forum: Cult or comfort? |newspaper=[[The Boston Globe]] |publisher=[[The New York Times Company]] |date=March 3, 1999 }}
* {{cite news |last=Bauder |first=Don |date=August 7, 1994 |title=Firm Turns to est Guru; Still Slides |newspaper=Union-Tribune |___location=San Diego }}
* {{cite news |last=Dewan|first=Shaila|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/04/us/04giles.html|title=Hired to Bring Order, Kings' Adviser Brings Peace|date=May 3, 2010|access-date=November 2, 2010 |ref=CITEREFDewan3_May_2010 }}*{{cite news |last=Gordon |first=Suzanne |date=December 1978 |title=Let Them Eat est |url=https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2009/07/hunger-artist |newspaper=Mother Jones |___location=San Francisco, California |access-date=December 8, 2014 }}
* {{cite news |last=Faltermayer |first=Charlotte |date=June 24, 2001 |title=The Best of est? |url= http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,138763,00.html |newspaper=Time Magazine |___location=New York |access-date=December 8, 2014 }}
* {{cite news |last=Grigoriadis |first=Vanessa |date=July 9, 2001 |title=Pay Money, Be Happy |url=http://nymag.com/nymetro/news/culture/features/4932/index1.html |newspaper=New York Magazine |___location=New York City |access-date=September 6, 2014 }}
* {{cite news |last=Hellard |first=Peta |date=June 11, 2006 |title=Stress Fear in $700 Child Forum: WA children as young as eight who attend "life-changing" coaching sessions by a controversial US company could have difficulty with their schoolwork afterwards, according to experts |newspaper=Sunday Times |publisher=News Corporation |___location=Perth, Western Australia }}
* {{cite news |last=Hukill |first=Traci |date=July 15, 1998 |title= The est of Friends |journal=[[Metro Silicon Valley|Metroactive]] |url=http://www.metroactive.com/landmark/landmark1-9827.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090123235400/http://metroactive.com/landmark/landmark1-9827.html |archive-date=January 23, 2009 |access-date=January 23, 2015 }}
* {{cite news |last=Kornbluth |first=Jesse |date=March 19, 1976 |title=The Fuhrer over EST |newspaper=New Times |publisher=Hirsch |___location=New York }}
* {{cite news |last=Lazarus |first=Baila |title=Attain Freedom from the Past |newspaper=Jewish Independent |date=April 11, 2008 }}
* {{Cite news |last=Lemonniera |first=Marie |title=Chez les gourous en cravate |newspaper=[[Le Nouvel Observateur]] |date=May 19, 2005 |url=http://hebdo.nouvelobs.com/hebdo/parution/p2115/dossier/a268827-chez_les_gourous_en_cravate.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090121000653/http://hebdo.nouvelobs.com/hebdo/parution/p2115/dossier/a268827-chez_les_gourous_en_cravate.html |archive-date=January 21, 2009|language=fr |access-date=December 7, 2008 }}
* {{cite news |last=Marshall |first=Jeannie |date=June 27, 1997 |title=The est in the Business: That old seventies personal growth fad has been resurrected and retooled, and it's coming soon to a corporation near you |newspaper=National Post: Saturday Night |___location=Toronto, Ontario }}
* {{cite news |last=McClure |first=Laura |date=July–August 2009 |title=The Landmark Forum: 42 Hours, $500, 65 Breakdowns; My lost weekend with the trademark happy, bathroom-break hating, slightly spooky inheritors of est |url=https://www.motherjones.com/media/2009/07/landmark-42-hours-500-65-breakdowns |newspaper=Mother Jones |___location=San Francisco, California |access-date=December 8, 2014 }}
* {{cite news |last=McCrone |first=John |title=A Landmark Change |newspaper=The Press Supplement |___location=Christchurch New Zealand |date=November 22, 2008 }}
* {{cite news |last1=Mullally |first1=Una |last2=Burke |first2=John |date=July 31, 2005 |title=Labour senator promotes group classified in France as 'cult-like' |newspaper=Sunday Tribune |___location=Dublin Ireland |ref={{sfnRef|Mullally and Burke|2005}} }}
* {{cite news |last=Odasso |first=Diane |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/diana-odasso/my-landmark-experience_b_105502.html |title=My Landmark Experience |work=[[Huffington Post]] |date=June 5, 2008 |access-date=December 9, 2009 }}
* {{cite news|last=Palme |first=Christian |url=https://www.dn.se/nyheter/sverige/landsting-kopte-kurs-av-landmark/ |title=Landsting köpte kurs av Landmark |newspaper=[[Dagens Nyheter]] |date=June 3, 2002 |access-date=April 18, 2012 |ref=CITEREFPalme3_June_2002 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110807091642/http://www.dn.se/nyheter/sverige/landsting-kopte-kurs-av-landmark |archive-date=August 7, 2011 }}
*{{cite news |last=Rolfe |first=Peter |date=March 9, 2008 |title=We Pay for Seminars: TAXPAYERS are picking up the bill to send police officers and bureaucrats on a controversial personal enlightenment course |newspaper=Sunday Herald Sun |___location=Melbourne, Victoria }}
*{{Cite news |last=Roy |first=Anne |title=France 3: L'investigation prend du galon |work=[[L'Humanité]] |date=May 24, 2004 |url=https://www.humanite.fr/node/306038 |access-date=September 21, 2014 |language=fr }}
*{{cite news |last=D'Souza |first=Christa |date=July 13, 2008 |title=Sex Therapy |newspaper=The Times |___location=London }}
*{{cite news |last=Stassen |first=Wilma |url=https://www.health24.com/Mental-Health/Living-with-mental-illness/Inside-a-Landmark-Forum-weekend-20120721 |title=Inside a Landmark Forum weekend |date=September 11, 2008 |newspaper=Health 24 |access-date=October 2, 2019 }}
*{{Cite news |author=TD |title=Une secte démasquée grâce à la caméra cachée |newspaper=[[Le Parisien]] |date=May 24, 2004 |url=http://www.leparisien.fr/loisirs-et-spectacles/une-secte-demasquee-grace-a-la-camera-cachee-24-05-2004-2005006048.php |language=fr |access-date=September 21, 2014 }}
*{{Cite news |last=Tessier |first=Odine |title=Voyage au pays des nouveaux gourous |newspaper=[[Le Point]] |date=May 20, 2004 |url=http://www.lepoint.fr/culture/2007-01-17/voyage-au-pays-des-nouveaux-gourous/249/0/28932 |language=fr |access-date=September 21, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213070836/http://www.lepoint.fr/culture/2007-01-17/voyage-au-pays-des-nouveaux-gourous/249/0/28932 |archive-date=December 13, 2014 }}
{{refend}}
== Further reading ==
* {{cite news |last=Rayman |first=Graham |date=May 20, 2008 |title=Suit Against Sperm-Bank Firm Claims Sexual Harassment and Cult-Like Behavior |newspaper=[[The Village Voice]] |___location=New York |url=http://www.villagevoice.com/2008-05-20/news/sperm-bank-lawsuit | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080803030318/http://www.villagevoice.com/2008-05-20/news/sperm-bank-lawsuit/ | archive-date=2008-08-03 }}
* Logan, David C. (1998). Transforming the Network of Conversations in BHP New Zealand Steel: Landmark Education Business Development's New Paradigm for Organizational Change (Case 1984-01). USC Marshall School of Business.
== External links ==
{{commons}}
*{{official}}
{{Wikisource}}
{{Werner Erhard}}
[[Category:1991 establishments in California]]
[[Category:Companies based in San Francisco]]
[[Category:Education companies established in 1991]]
[[Category:Employee-owned companies of the United States]]
[[Category:Werner Erhard]]
[[Category:Large-group awareness training]]
[[Category:Self religions]]
[[Category:Training companies of the United States]]
[[Category:New religious movements established in the 1990s]]
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