Work

Religious socialization of non-religious university students

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: Studies of non-religion and youth raise questions regarding the conceptual usefulness of religious socialization. If religious socialization is studied only as the extent to which intergenerational transmission of religiosity occurs, the religious socialization of those who identify as non-religious falls out of the scope of research. This article explores the religious socialization of a group of university students from Sweden, Finland, Poland, and Israel who identify as non-religious. Interviews with these young adults allow us to explore the (religious) socialization of non-religious individuals in different contexts. The findings point to how the influence of socialization agents turned some of the students onto a path towards non-religion. Others, in turn, are characterized by family backgrounds where religion has not played any significant part. Our findings indicate that religious socialization, broadly construed, can be a useful perspective for understanding varying paths towards non-religiosity.

Source: Religion

DOI: 10.1080/0048721x.2019.1584355

Authors: Karoliina Dahl, Nurit Novis-Deutsch, Maria Klingenberg, Janne Kontala, Sławomir Sztajer, Avivit Mussel

Institutions: Åbo Akademi University, University of Haifa, Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań

Language: English

Topic: Religion and Society Interactions

Subfield: Sociology and Political Science

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: green

Funder: Academy of Finland

Award: G1010647222