Analyzing the Determinants of Everyday Conversion

Abstract

Traditionally, sociologists studying religious conversion have focused primarily on radical realignments of belief occurring on the religious fringe. This article reexamines and questions this strategy, arguing that previous analyses have tended to obscure the role of less dramatic affiliation shifts, which are the dominant form of religious mobility in the American mainstream. Using organizational theory to highlight the theoretical and practical significance of such "everyday" conversions, this article extends theories from the sociology of deviance to form a conceptual framework for understanding these events. A preliminary quantitative examination offers support for this approach and further delineates the nature of the affiliation process.