Love bombing

Love bombing is an attempt to influence a person by demonstrations of attention and affection. It happens when someone overwhelms the victim with loving words or physical actions with manipulative behaviours. It can be used in different ways and for either positive or negative purposes. Psychologists have identified love bombing as a possible part of a cycle of abuse and have warned against it. Critics of cults use the phrase with the implication that the "love" is feigned and that the practice is psychological manipulation in order to create a feeling of unity within the group against a society perceived as hostile In 2011 clinical psychologist Oliver James advocated love bombing in his book "Love Bombing: Reset Your Child's Emotional Thermostat", as a means for parents to rectify emotional problems in their children. 
Origin of term and definition.
The expression "love bombing" was coined by members of the Unification Church of the United States cult during the 1970s and was also used by members of the Family International cult.
In 1978 Sun Myung Moon, the founder and then-leader of the Unification Church, said:
Anthropology professor Geri-Ann Galanti defines the term: “A [[Maslow's hierarchy of needs|basic human need]] is for [[self-esteem]]... Basically [love bombing] consists of giving someone a lot of positive attention. However, [[Psychotherapy|psychotherapist]] Ami Kaplan, [[List of credentials in psychology|LCSW]], further explains:
[[Marriage and Family Therapist]] Shirin Peykar, LMFT, further defines the original motivation behind "love bombing": "It’s often used to win over your trust and affection so that they can meet a goal of theirs", such as a desire for control, the feeling of power or superiority, or the boosting of the abuser's ego.
Popularization of concept awareness.
Psychology professor [[Margaret Singer]] popularized awareness of the concept with her writings on cult behaviors and psychology. In her 1996 book, "[[Cults in Our Midst]]," she writes:
Abusive relationships.
The expression has also been used to describe the tactics used by [[pimps]] and [[Gang|gang members]] to [[Abusive power and control|control]] their victims. Modern [[social media]] can intensify the effect of love bombing since it enables the abuser with nearly constant contact and communication with the victim.
One of the signs of love bombing in the start of a relationship is intense attention during a short period of time and pressure for very rapid commitment.
Psychologist [[Dale Archer]] identifies the phases of love bombing with the acronym IDD: ”Intense [[Idealization and devaluation|Idealization, Devaluation]], Discard (Repeat)" and the process of identifying this behavior pattern as SLL: "Stop, Look, and Listen"; after which breaking off contact with the abuser can become more possible by also seeking support from family and friends.
Another sign of love bombing is being intensely showered with affection, gifts, and promises for the future with the predator so that the victim feels or is made to believe that all this is a sign of "[[love at first sight]]". Since such signs of affection and affirmation may meet felt needs and not look harmful at the surface, the excitement of such a new relationship often does not appear cause for alarm. However, after the initial excitement, when the victim shows interest or care about anything beyond their new partner, the manipulator may show anger, [[passive-aggressive behavior]], or accuse the victims of selfishness. If the victim does not comply to demands, the [[devaluation]] stage begins: the abuser withdraws all affection or [[Reinforcement|positive reinforcement]] and instead punishes the victim with whatever they feel is appropriate—shouting, beratement, [[mind games]], [[silent treatment]], or even [[physical abuse]].
Benign occurrences.
Excessive attention and affection does not constitute love bombing if there is no intent or pattern of further abuse. Archer explains: 
In the 2010s British author and psychologist [[Oliver James]] recommended love bombing as a technique for parents to help their troubled children. He described it as, "dedicating one-on-one time spoiling and lavishing yourg child with love, and, within reason, pandering to their every wish." Heidi Scrimgeour, a reporter for "[[The Daily Express]]", tried the technique with her son and reported:
Evolutionary psychology analysis.
Dr. Hans Breiter, a [[neuroscientist]] at [[Harvard University]], states that "Some people seem to be born with vulnerable [[dopamine]] systems that get hijacked by social rewards."
[[Keith Henson]] has attempted to explain in [[evolutionary psychology]] terms how love bombing works. It is based on the idea that the brain evolved in a social context and that attention from others acts as a reward.
"It should come as no surprise that this powerful [[reward system|reward mechanism]] can be taken over by drug-induced rewards, but this is not the only way the brain reward system can be hijacked. [[Memes]] . . . which manifest as cults and related social movements have "discovered" the brain's reward system as well. Successful cult memes induce intense social interaction behavior between cult members. This trips the attention detectors. Tripping the detectors causes the release of reward chemicals . . . . Anyone who has ever had the feeling of being higher than a kite after giving a public speech is well aware of the effects of attention.
References.
[[Category:Abuse]]
[[Category:Narcissism]]
[[Category:Psychological manipulation]]
[[Category:Unification Church controversies]]
[[Category:Unification Church neologisms]]