I found an interesting article in the Wikipedia encyclopedia. It actually states that "Shunning" is used as a method of psychological torture.
Psychological torture is less well known than physical torture and tends to be subtle and much easier to conceal. In practice the distinction between physical and psychological torture are often blurred. Physical torture is the inflicting of severe pain or suffering on a person. In contrast, psychological torture is directed at the psyche with calculated violations of psychological needs, along with deep damage to psychological structures and the breakage of beliefs underpinning normal sanity. Torturers often inflict both types of torture in combination to compound the associated effects. [citation needed]
Psychological torture also includes deliberate use of extreme stressors and situations such as mock execution, shunning, violation of deep-seated social or sexual norms and taboos, or extended solitary confinement. Because psychological torture needs no physical violence to be effective, it is possible to induce severe psychological pain, suffering, and trauma with no externally visible effects
The article goes on to say why people are capable of administering psychological torture to other people. Research over the past 50 years shows tha, under the right circumstances and with the appropriate encouragement and setting, most people can be encouraged to torture others.
Peer encouragement: to accept torture as necessary, acceptable or deserved, or to comply from a wish to not reject peer group beliefs.
Disinhibition : socio-cultural and situational pressures may cause torturers to undergo a lessening of moral inhibitions and as a result act in ways not normally countenanced by law, custom, conscience.
Organisationally : like many other procedures, once torture becomes established as part of internally acceptable norms under certain circumstances, it's use often becomes institutionalised and self- perpetuating over time, as what was once used exceptionally for perceived necessity finds more reasons claimed to justify wider use.
This article could have been written exclusively about the WT to my way of thinking. If the use of such methods are classed as psychological torture then why aren't they made a crime when used by religious organisations? I can't get my head around this one, even though I know about the "religious freedom" thing.
Maddie