Best questions for ex-cult member survey about reasons for joining

Here are some of the best questions for an ex-cult member survey about reasons for joining, to help you go beyond surface-level insight. If you want to build a highly effective survey, Specific can help you generate one in seconds.

Best open-ended questions for ex-cult member survey about reasons for joining

Open-ended questions let people share their stories without constraints. They’re key if you want true qualitative insight—not just data points. They’re best when you want details, nuance, or motivation, and they often uncover reasons or feelings you didn’t expect.

1. What initially attracted you to join the group?

2. Can you describe any specific events or moments that influenced your decision to join?

3. What personal needs or desires did you hope the group would fulfill?

4. Was there anything happening in your life at the time that made you more open to joining?

5. How did members of the group make you feel welcomed or valued when you considered joining?

6. What first impressions did you have of the group’s leader(s)?

7. Can you recall any doubts or hesitations you had before joining?

8. How did friends, family, or other relationships affect your decision to join?

9. Looking back, do you see any vulnerabilities or circumstances that made you susceptible to recruitment?

10. What do you think was the single biggest reason you joined?

You’ll find that many ex-cult members cite emotional vulnerability, trauma, or a deep search for belonging as drivers behind their decision [1][2]. Open-ended questions are a must for surfacing such details.

Best single-select multiple-choice questions for ex-cult member survey about reasons for joining

Single-select multiple-choice questions help quantify trends—perfect if you want quick stats or to make the survey easier to start. Sometimes, picking from a short list is less intimidating than writing out a story, especially for a complex topic like cult involvement. These questions can also spark follow-up questions for deeper exploration.

Question: Which of the following best describes your primary motivation for joining the group?

• Sense of belonging or community

• Spiritual or religious fulfillment

• Search for meaning or purpose

• Trauma recovery or emotional support

• Other

Question: At the time you joined, how would you describe your emotional state?

• Stable and content

• Lonely or isolated

• Anxious or uncertain

• Recovering from trauma

• Other

Question: Did you know anyone who was already a member before you joined?

• Yes—a close friend or family member

• Yes—an acquaintance

• No

When to followup with "why?" Ask “why” if you want to go beyond the checkbox answer. For example, if someone selects “Trauma recovery or emotional support,” follow up by asking, “Can you share what was going on in your life at the time that made this support appealing?” This simple nudge often opens the door to context you’d otherwise miss [3].

When and why to add the "Other" choice? Include “Other” when your list might not cover everyone’s situation. Asking a follow-up when “Other” is selected gives respondents a chance to share unique motivations and unexpected insights—crucial for a nuanced topic like cult involvement.

NPS question for ex-cult member survey about reasons for joining

Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a classic tool for measuring loyalty or the likelihood that someone would recommend an experience—or, in this context, reflect on their overall experience with joining. For ex-cult members, an NPS-style question can bring structured insight to how they now perceive their membership versus their expectations at the time. This kind of data can help counselors and researchers quickly spot how negative (or positive) the joining experience felt, and compare across subgroups.

If you want to see how this applies, you can try building an NPS survey for ex-cult members using Specific.

The power of follow-up questions

Open-ended or single-select, follow-up questions are what turn a flat answer into an actual conversation. With Specific’s automatic AI follow-up questions, the survey acts like a skilled interviewer—digging for context, clarifying vague phrases, and surfacing the real “why.” This drives richer insights and saves you endless time compared to manual follow-ups via email or phone. The process feels natural and the conversation flows, so respondents share more detail and nuance in a single sitting.

• Ex-cult member: “I joined because I was lonely.”

• AI follow-up: “Can you share a bit about what was making you feel lonely at the time you joined? Were there circumstances or events that led to that feeling?”

How many followups to ask?
Generally, two or three follow-ups per question are enough. With Specific, you can set a max follow-up depth and even instruct the AI to stop once you’ve got the key details, keeping the experience natural and efficient.

This makes it a conversational survey: The survey adapts in real time and responds conversationally—resulting in a more human experience for the respondent while giving you deeper, more usable feedback.

Easy AI analysis: Even though you gather a lot of unstructured responses, AI makes it simple to analyze all the feedback and spot trends instantly. This is invaluable for understanding hidden motivations or patterns in such sensitive topics.

Automated followups are a new concept—try generating a survey with them and you’ll quickly see the difference in the quality and depth of responses.

How to use ChatGPT prompts to generate ex-cult member survey questions

Want to make use of AI yourself? The quality of your survey depends on the prompt you give to ChatGPT or any GPT-based generator. Here’s a basic starting point:

Suggest 10 open-ended questions for Ex-Cult Member survey about Reasons For Joining.

But the more context you give, the better your results. For example:

I am a mental health researcher looking to understand the personal motivations of ex-cult members. Suggest 10 open-ended, non-judgmental questions that help uncover the emotional, social, and situational reasons people decide to join cults.

Try another prompt after generating a list:

Look at the questions and categorize them. Output categories with the questions under them.

Once you see the categories, go deeper:

Generate 10 questions for categories such as “social belonging,” “spiritual needs,” or “emotional vulnerabilities.”

By iterating this way, you’ll quickly cover all angles needed for a well-rounded ex-cult member survey.

What is a conversational survey?

A conversational survey is an interactive, chat-based experience—driven by AI—where each question and follow-up feels like part of a natural conversation. Unlike rigid forms, these surveys adapt to each respondent’s answers in real time. The benefits?

• Higher engagement—people are more likely to finish and share details.

• Deeper insight—clarifying context and motivation with each follow-up.

• Faster setup and editing—you just describe what you need, and the survey is generated like magic. The AI survey editor lets you tweak things in natural language.

Why use AI for ex-cult member surveys?
AI survey example workflows shine when you need to navigate complex, emotional narratives—like why someone joined a cult or what their current needs are. The AI adapts the tone, remembers details, and keeps the respondent comfortable. This isn’t possible with traditional form surveys.

If you want a smooth, best-in-class user experience for conversational surveys, Specific offers a design that is both engaging for the respondent and effortless for you. For step-by-step guidance, read our detailed article on how to create an ex-cult member survey about reasons for joining.

See this reasons for joining survey example now

Don’t miss the opportunity to understand the real motivations shared by ex-cult members—generate a conversational survey with intelligent follow-ups to get deeper, more actionable insight than you’ve ever had.