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Demographic and Experiential Preconditions for Conversion: The Case of Turkish Protestants

Year 2024, Issue: 52, 317 - 344

Abstract

This study aimed to reveal the demographic profile of people raised in Muslim families who converted to Protestant Christianity in Türkiye and to determine the influence of common experiential patterns that condition the conversion process within this context. The dataset for this mixed-method study was obtained by using content analysis to examine the conversion stories of 80 participants from 7 cities in Türkiye, which were broadcasted on a Christian television channel. Through these stories, 16 main variables regarding the demographic characteristics of the participants, their family stories and the conditions they experienced during the conversion process were coded, and the level of differentiation of these variables with the general population in Türkiye and the significance of the correlations between them were measured by two-tailed test and one-sample t-test. In the study, it was found that the sample differed statistically significantly from Türkiye in terms of the demographic variables of being male, being raised in a single-parent family, being of Alevi origin and living a religiously indifferent life before conversion. The most common experience pattern that preceded the participants' conversion processes was migration and divorce-like experiences that they experienced just before the time when they were exposed to the new religion. In the study, significant correlations were found between these experiences and unhappy childhood stories arising from relationships with parents, which occurred frequently enough to form a pattern. The dynamics that may condition religious conversion are analyzed within the theoretical frameworks of Social Network Theory and Attachment Theory.

References

  • Asan, S. (2023). Diyarbakır İncil Topluluğu üzerine sosyolojik bir araştırma (Doktora tezi). https://tez.yok.gov.tr/UlusalTezMerkezi/giris.jsp
  • Beit-Hallahmi, B. & Argyle, M. (1997). The psychology of religious behaviour, belief and, experience. London: Routledge.
  • Buchbinder, J., Bilu Y. & Witzum, E. (1997). Ethnic background and antecedents of religious conversion among Israeli Jewish outpatients. Psychological Reports, 81(3), 1187-1202.
  • Bromley, D. G. (2012). The sociology of new religious movements. O. Halmer (Ed.) The Cambridge Companion to New Religious Movements İçinde (s. 13-28) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Buxant, C., Saroglou, V., Casalgfiore, S. & Christians L. L. (2007). Cognitive and emotional characteristics of new religious movement members: New questions and data on the mental health issue. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 10(3), 219-238.
  • Çayır, C. (2008). Türkiye’de din değiştirip Hristiyanlığa geçişin psiko-sosyal etkenleri (Doktora Tezi). https://tez.yok.gov.tr/UlusalTezMerkezi/giris.jsp
  • Cragun, R., & Lawson, R. (2010). The secular transition: The worldwide growth of Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh-Day Adventists. Sociology of Religion (71/3)
  • Dawson, L. (2007). Comprehending cults: The sociology of new religious movements. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.
  • Esen Y. (2019). Türkiye aile yapısı araştırması, 2016. T.C. Aile, Çalışma ve Sosyal Hizmetler Bakanlığı Aile ve Toplum Hizmetleri Genel Müdürlüğü. https://www.aile.gov.tr/media/35811/taya-2016.pdf
  • Glock, C. Y. & Stark, R. (1970). Religion and society in tension. London: Rand McNally
  • Granqvist,P. & Hagekull, B. (1999). Religiousness and perceived childhood attachment: Profiling socialized correspondence and emotional compensation. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. 21(2), 254-273.
  • Granqvist, P. (2002). Attachment and religiosity in adolescence: Cross-sectional and longitudinal evaluations. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28, 260-270.
  • Granqvist, P. & Kirkpatrck, L. A. (2004). Religious conversion and perceived childhood attachment: A meta-analysis. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion. 14(4), 223-250.
  • Granqvist, P. (2020). Attachment in religion and spirituality: A wider view. Boston: Guilford Publications.
  • Halama, P., Gasparikova, M. & Sasbo, M. (2013). Relationship between attachment styles and dimensions of the religious conversion process. Studia Psychologica, 55(3), 195.
  • Jindra, I. W. (2014). A new model of religious conversion: Beyond network theory and social constructivism. Leiden: Brill.
  • Kanal Hayat. (2012a). Dar Kapıdan Gelenler: [Neden Hristiyan Oldum?] https://www.kanalhayat.com/s/MeqXLBFM?r=SnOlZJ2F
  • Kanal Hayat. (2012b). Dar Kapıdan Girenler: Neden Hristiyan Oldum? [Video]. Youtube. https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQfi14V3hH0LbhGFHWgN17D9Vu8BzGXw5
  • Kaya, A. (2020). Diyarbakır İncil topluluğu üzerine sosyolojik bir inceleme. Şarkiyat İlmi Araştırmalar Dergisi, 28/2
  • Kilbourne, B. & Richardson, J. T. (1989). Paradigm conflict, types of conversion, and conversion theories. Sociology of Religion, 50(1), 1–21.
  • Köse, A. (1996). Conversion to Islam: A study of native British converts. London: Keegan Paul
  • Lofland, J. & Stark, R. (1965). Becoming a world-saver: A theory of conversion to a deviant perspective. American Sociological Review, 30(6), 862–875.
  • Long, T. & Hadden, J. (1983). Religious conversion and socialization. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 24, 1–14.
  • Murken, S. & Namini, S. (2007). Childhood familial experiences as antecedents of adult membership in new religious movements: A literature review. Nova Religio, 10(4), 17-37.
  • Namini, S. & Murken, S. (2008). Familial antecedents and the choice of a new religious movement: Which person in which religious group? Nova religio, 11(3), 83-103.
  • Nişancı, Z. (2023). Sayılarla Türkiye’de inanç ve dindarlık. İstanbul: Mahya Yayıncılık. https://iiit.org/en/book/turkish-sayilarla-turkiyede-inanc-ve-dindarlik-faith-and-religiosity-in-turkiye/
  • Norris, P. & Inglehart, R. (2004). Sacred and secular: Religion and politics worldwide. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Rambo, L. R. (1993). Understanding religious conversion. New Haven: Yale University Press.
  • Richardson, J. T. (1985). The active vs. passive convert: paradigm conflict in conversion/recruitment research. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 24(2), 163–179.
  • Snook, D. W., Williams, M. J. & Horgan J. G. (2019). Issues in the sociology and psychology of religious conversion. Pastoral Psychology, 68, 223-240.
  • Snow, D. A. & Phillips, C. L. (1980). The Lofland-Stark conversion model: A critical reassessment. Social Problems, 27(4), 430–447.
  • Stark, R. & Fince, R. (2000). Acts of faith: Explaining the human side of religion. Los Angeles: University of California Press.
  • Straus, R. A. (1979). Religious conversion as a personal and collective Accomplishment. Sociology of Religion, 40(2), 158–165.
  • Tezokur, M. H. (2007). Diyarbakır İncil topluluğu ve misyonerlik. Journal of Islamic Research, 20(2), 192-205.
  • Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu. (2022). “Medeni durum [dataset]”. Ankara: Yazar https://nip.tuik.gov.tr/?value=MedeniDurum [01.03.2024]
  • Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu. (2023). “İstatistiklerde kadın”, 49668. Ankara: Yazar. https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Istatistiklerle-Kadin-2022-49668 [01.03.2024]
  • Ullman, C. (1989). The transformed self: The psychology of religious conversion. New York: Plenum Press.
  • Yang, F & Abel, A. (2014). Sociology of religious conversion. L. Rambo (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of religious conversion içinde (s. 140-163) Oxford: Oxford Unv. Press
  • Yılmaz, S. & Balamir, F. (2023). Din değiştirme fenomeni: Ankara’da bir Protestan kilisesi bağlamında Hristiyanlığa geçişin sosyolojik izdüşümleri. Dini Araştırmalar, 26(65), 459-489.
  • Zavalsız, Y. (2011). Türkiye’de Hristiyan olan Müslümanlar: Psiko-sosyolojik bir araştırma (Doktora tezi). https://tez.yok.gov.tr/UlusalTezMerkezi/giris.jsp

Din Değiştirmenin Demografik ve Deneyimsel Önkoşulları: Türk Protestanlar Örneği

Year 2024, Issue: 52, 317 - 344

Abstract

Bu çalışmada Türkiye’de Müslüman ailelerde yetişip, Protestan mezhebi üzerinden Hristiyanlığa geçmiş kişilerin demografik profillerinin ortaya çıkarılıp, bu profil bağlamında din değiştirme süreçlerini koşullandıran yaygın deneyim kalıplarının etkinliğinin tespiti amaçlanmıştır. Karma yöntemli araştırmanın veri seti Türkiye’de 7 şehirde yerleşik 80 katılımcının, bir Hristiyan televizyon kanalında yayımlanan din değiştirme öykülerinin içerik analizi yöntemiyle çözümlenmesi ile elde edilmiştir. Bu öyküler üzerinden katılımcıların demografik özellikleri, aile öyküleri ve din değiştirme sürecinde deneyimledikleri koşullara dair 16 ana değişken kodlanmış, bu değişkenlerin Türkiye geneliyle farklılaşma düzeyi ile kendi aralarındaki bağıntılarının anlamlılığı iki kuyruklu test ve tek-örneklem t-testi ile ölçümlenmiştir. Çalışmada örneklemin demografik özelliklerinden, erkek olma, tek ebeveynli ailede yetişmiş olma, Alevi kökenli olma ve din değiştirmezden önce dinen kayıtsız bir yaşam sürdürme değişkenleri itibariyle Türkiye geneliyle istatistiki olarak anlamlı düzeyde farklılaştığı tespit edilmiştir. Katılımcıların din değişimi süreçlerini önceleyen en yaygın deneyim kalıbı ise yeni dinin tebliğine muhatap oldukları zamanın hemen öncesinde deneyimledikleri göç ve boşanma benzeri deneyimlerdir. Çalışmada bu deneyimlerle ebeveynlerle ilişkiler kaynaklı mutsuz çocukluk öyküleri arasında bir örüntü oluşturacak sıklıkta gerçeklemiş anlamlı bağıntılar tespit edilmiştir. Çalışmada din değişimini koşullandırabilecek dinamikler, Sosyal Ağ ve Bağlanma Kuramları’nın teorik çerçevesi bağlamında çözümlenmiştir.

References

  • Asan, S. (2023). Diyarbakır İncil Topluluğu üzerine sosyolojik bir araştırma (Doktora tezi). https://tez.yok.gov.tr/UlusalTezMerkezi/giris.jsp
  • Beit-Hallahmi, B. & Argyle, M. (1997). The psychology of religious behaviour, belief and, experience. London: Routledge.
  • Buchbinder, J., Bilu Y. & Witzum, E. (1997). Ethnic background and antecedents of religious conversion among Israeli Jewish outpatients. Psychological Reports, 81(3), 1187-1202.
  • Bromley, D. G. (2012). The sociology of new religious movements. O. Halmer (Ed.) The Cambridge Companion to New Religious Movements İçinde (s. 13-28) Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Buxant, C., Saroglou, V., Casalgfiore, S. & Christians L. L. (2007). Cognitive and emotional characteristics of new religious movement members: New questions and data on the mental health issue. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 10(3), 219-238.
  • Çayır, C. (2008). Türkiye’de din değiştirip Hristiyanlığa geçişin psiko-sosyal etkenleri (Doktora Tezi). https://tez.yok.gov.tr/UlusalTezMerkezi/giris.jsp
  • Cragun, R., & Lawson, R. (2010). The secular transition: The worldwide growth of Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh-Day Adventists. Sociology of Religion (71/3)
  • Dawson, L. (2007). Comprehending cults: The sociology of new religious movements. Oxford: Oxford Univ. Press.
  • Esen Y. (2019). Türkiye aile yapısı araştırması, 2016. T.C. Aile, Çalışma ve Sosyal Hizmetler Bakanlığı Aile ve Toplum Hizmetleri Genel Müdürlüğü. https://www.aile.gov.tr/media/35811/taya-2016.pdf
  • Glock, C. Y. & Stark, R. (1970). Religion and society in tension. London: Rand McNally
  • Granqvist,P. & Hagekull, B. (1999). Religiousness and perceived childhood attachment: Profiling socialized correspondence and emotional compensation. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. 21(2), 254-273.
  • Granqvist, P. (2002). Attachment and religiosity in adolescence: Cross-sectional and longitudinal evaluations. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28, 260-270.
  • Granqvist, P. & Kirkpatrck, L. A. (2004). Religious conversion and perceived childhood attachment: A meta-analysis. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion. 14(4), 223-250.
  • Granqvist, P. (2020). Attachment in religion and spirituality: A wider view. Boston: Guilford Publications.
  • Halama, P., Gasparikova, M. & Sasbo, M. (2013). Relationship between attachment styles and dimensions of the religious conversion process. Studia Psychologica, 55(3), 195.
  • Jindra, I. W. (2014). A new model of religious conversion: Beyond network theory and social constructivism. Leiden: Brill.
  • Kanal Hayat. (2012a). Dar Kapıdan Gelenler: [Neden Hristiyan Oldum?] https://www.kanalhayat.com/s/MeqXLBFM?r=SnOlZJ2F
  • Kanal Hayat. (2012b). Dar Kapıdan Girenler: Neden Hristiyan Oldum? [Video]. Youtube. https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQfi14V3hH0LbhGFHWgN17D9Vu8BzGXw5
  • Kaya, A. (2020). Diyarbakır İncil topluluğu üzerine sosyolojik bir inceleme. Şarkiyat İlmi Araştırmalar Dergisi, 28/2
  • Kilbourne, B. & Richardson, J. T. (1989). Paradigm conflict, types of conversion, and conversion theories. Sociology of Religion, 50(1), 1–21.
  • Köse, A. (1996). Conversion to Islam: A study of native British converts. London: Keegan Paul
  • Lofland, J. & Stark, R. (1965). Becoming a world-saver: A theory of conversion to a deviant perspective. American Sociological Review, 30(6), 862–875.
  • Long, T. & Hadden, J. (1983). Religious conversion and socialization. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 24, 1–14.
  • Murken, S. & Namini, S. (2007). Childhood familial experiences as antecedents of adult membership in new religious movements: A literature review. Nova Religio, 10(4), 17-37.
  • Namini, S. & Murken, S. (2008). Familial antecedents and the choice of a new religious movement: Which person in which religious group? Nova religio, 11(3), 83-103.
  • Nişancı, Z. (2023). Sayılarla Türkiye’de inanç ve dindarlık. İstanbul: Mahya Yayıncılık. https://iiit.org/en/book/turkish-sayilarla-turkiyede-inanc-ve-dindarlik-faith-and-religiosity-in-turkiye/
  • Norris, P. & Inglehart, R. (2004). Sacred and secular: Religion and politics worldwide. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Rambo, L. R. (1993). Understanding religious conversion. New Haven: Yale University Press.
  • Richardson, J. T. (1985). The active vs. passive convert: paradigm conflict in conversion/recruitment research. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 24(2), 163–179.
  • Snook, D. W., Williams, M. J. & Horgan J. G. (2019). Issues in the sociology and psychology of religious conversion. Pastoral Psychology, 68, 223-240.
  • Snow, D. A. & Phillips, C. L. (1980). The Lofland-Stark conversion model: A critical reassessment. Social Problems, 27(4), 430–447.
  • Stark, R. & Fince, R. (2000). Acts of faith: Explaining the human side of religion. Los Angeles: University of California Press.
  • Straus, R. A. (1979). Religious conversion as a personal and collective Accomplishment. Sociology of Religion, 40(2), 158–165.
  • Tezokur, M. H. (2007). Diyarbakır İncil topluluğu ve misyonerlik. Journal of Islamic Research, 20(2), 192-205.
  • Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu. (2022). “Medeni durum [dataset]”. Ankara: Yazar https://nip.tuik.gov.tr/?value=MedeniDurum [01.03.2024]
  • Türkiye İstatistik Kurumu. (2023). “İstatistiklerde kadın”, 49668. Ankara: Yazar. https://data.tuik.gov.tr/Bulten/Index?p=Istatistiklerle-Kadin-2022-49668 [01.03.2024]
  • Ullman, C. (1989). The transformed self: The psychology of religious conversion. New York: Plenum Press.
  • Yang, F & Abel, A. (2014). Sociology of religious conversion. L. Rambo (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of religious conversion içinde (s. 140-163) Oxford: Oxford Unv. Press
  • Yılmaz, S. & Balamir, F. (2023). Din değiştirme fenomeni: Ankara’da bir Protestan kilisesi bağlamında Hristiyanlığa geçişin sosyolojik izdüşümleri. Dini Araştırmalar, 26(65), 459-489.
  • Zavalsız, Y. (2011). Türkiye’de Hristiyan olan Müslümanlar: Psiko-sosyolojik bir araştırma (Doktora tezi). https://tez.yok.gov.tr/UlusalTezMerkezi/giris.jsp
There are 40 citations in total.

Details

Primary Language Turkish
Subjects Sociology (Other)
Journal Section Articles
Authors

Barış Başaran 0000-0001-7048-7713

Early Pub Date December 16, 2024
Publication Date
Submission Date March 15, 2024
Acceptance Date November 6, 2024
Published in Issue Year 2024 Issue: 52

Cite

APA Başaran, B. (2024). Din Değiştirmenin Demografik ve Deneyimsel Önkoşulları: Türk Protestanlar Örneği. Selçuk Üniversitesi Edebiyat Fakültesi Dergisi(52), 317-344.

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