Bridging sociology of religion to transition to adulthood: The emerging role of religion in young adults’ lives

Abstract

The sociology of religion has not systematically explored the emerging roles of religion in the whole process of the transition to adulthood, especially in the changing contexts of delayed and complicated transitions to adulthood. Seeking to bridge the two different fields of sociology, we identify four directions of research: (1) a multidimensional approach that identifies the different dimensions of religion with varying degrees of relationship to young adults’ lives; (2) a close attention to racial/ethnic variation in the roles of religion for the transition to adulthood; (3) an open inquiry into the changing importance of religion for young adults in a rapidly shifting neoliberal global economy; and (4) the detrimental effects of religion in the transition to adulthood. We call for more research on the increasingly complex relationship between religion and the transition to adulthood.

Religious Socialization and Self-Definition Among Black Undergraduate Women Attending Predominantly White Institutions

“…Research on religiosity and spirituality among emerging adults must address the unique meaning-making experiences and life circumstances of this developmental period (Argue, 2017; Jung & Park, 2020). While several women adhered to childhood religious and spiritual belief systems, others departed from prior religious socialization during college.…”

“…Emerging adults of all racial and ethnic groups tend to report a decline in regular service attendance and feeling connected to their religious community (Argue, 2017). Still, many maintain their ties to a particular religious or spiritual affiliation (Barry et al, 2019;Jung & Park, 2020), while engaging in private practices (i.e., prayer). Although researchers document that higher education institutions provide numerous opportunities for emerging adults to explore personal interests and academic goals (e.g., Barber et al, 2013;Lund et al, 2019;Mishra, 2020), fewer studies consider how college influences undergraduates' religious and spiritual belief systems (Barry et al, 2019;Cokley et al, 2013).…”

StateChurch: Bringing Religion to Public Higher Education

“…Consistently, research has shown that faculty attitudes towards diversity influence students' openness and capacity to engage in difficult dialogue (e.g., Shim and Perez 2018;Ryder et al 2016), so it may appear unsurprising that students reported being more willing to engage in religious conversations in classrooms where faculty facilitated challenging religious diversity conversations. In these instances, classroom spaces become arenas for developmental conversations to take shape, for assumptions to be questioned, and values to be examined-key practices that may not happen if students are left to their own devices in terms of religious engagement (Jung and Park 2020).…”

“…Some research suggests that faculty ideologies misaligned with those of students resulted in their lack of interest in course material and overall more negative experiences in the classroom (Kelly- Woessner and Woessner 2006;Woessner 2012;Woessner et al 2019). Notably, religion is a unique dimension of diversity in that different faiths may proclaim exclusive access to the truth (Jung and Park 2020). How can educators acknowledge the particularities of religion while recognizing its connectedness to other dimensions of inequality?…”

Sociology of Food Tourism Research Opportunities: A Bibliometric Analysis

“…The broad scope of sociological research can be drawn from sociological theory, which covers many research domains in other scientific fields (Ritzer, 1990, Holzhauser & Eggert, 2021. Sociological research has developed in the fields of education (Diamond, 2018;Lingard, 2021), religion (Altglas & Wood, 2018;Jung & Park, 2020), health (Dmitrieva & Frolov, 2020;Henwood & Marent, 2019), even in natural sciences (Joksić, 2022;Zeynep & Sever, 2020).…”