The Cult Education Institute archvies has quite a few articles about this.
See [
www.culteducation.com]
This is a subsection about "brainwashing" with many articles that explain that process.
Also see [
www.culteducation.com]
This FAQ page answers some of the basic questions about destructive cults and how they work.
Psychologist Margaret Singer wrote an excellent book "Cults in Our Midst."
See [
www.amazon.com]
Flo Conway and Jim Siegelman also wrote a excellent book "Snapping" that has a second edition in print.
See [
www.amazon.com]
All of this information can help you to sort through the issues regarding cults, cult leaders and how people are drawn in and manipulted.
Recovery from cults is essentially an educational process. And avoiding cults is likewise based upon an education.
Two books about cult-like destructive church groups written from an evangelical Christian perspective are "The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse" and "Churches that Abuse."
See [
www.amazon.com]
Also see [
www.amazon.com]
I hope this is helpful.