J Wollschleger
Biographic Data
| ID | 20208 |
|---|---|
| NAME | J Wollschleger |
| GIVEN NAMES | J |
| FAMILY NAME | Wollschleger |
| SIGNATURE | WOLLSCHLEGER J |
| AFFILIATIONS | Whitworth University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-4031-9396 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 16 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 47 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 16 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2011 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2022 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Roller Derby as a Secular Alternative to Religion
Drawing on interviews with skaters on teams from all over the country in the women's flat track roller Derby association (wftda), this article argues that roller Derby can be viewed as a secular alternative to religion for its participants. Following Stolz et al.'s ((Un)Believing in Modern Society: Religion, Spirituality, and Religious-Secular Competition, Surrey, England: Ashgate Publishing, 2016) argument that social and cultural change has led…
Religious Certainty as Social Capital
Background Recent scholarship on the social embeddedness of religion indicate that religious choices are often best explained through social ties, and religious belief and practice is influenced by congregational embeddedness. Berger's theory of secularization argued that plausibility structures were maintained by interactions with others with the same worldview, and that outgroup ties can reduce one's certainty in religion and be detrimental to …
Examining the Institutional Features Influencing Sexual Assault at Small Colleges and Universities
This article explores the relationships between institutional features of small college and university campuses and the levels of reported sexual assault. Using the mandated reporting of crime on campus through the Clery Act, we look at the combined levels of reported sexual assault for the years 2012 and 2013 at the main campuses of all accredited non-profit, four-year, residential, undergraduate colleges and universities in the United States th…
Religious Interaction Ritual: The Microsociology of the Spirit, by SCOTT DRAPER
The best books I have read have been generative; they lead me to new places, ideas, and research projects. These books have dog-eared pages, lots of underlining, scribbling in the margins (often in multiple directions), and the blank pages at the back of the book are filled with hurried notes and page references. Based on this metric alone, this is probably one of the best books I have read in the past decade. In Religious Interaction Ritual, Dra…
Making It Count: Using Real-World Projects for Course Assignments
Previous scholarship has demonstrated the value of high-impact practices of community engagement, inquiry-based pedagogy, and collaborative learning for engagement and learning in sociology courses, especially undergraduate research methods and statistics. This article explores the changes made to an upper-division undergraduate course focused on applied research practices and community-level interventions. After teaching the course once as a lec…
Beyond strictness: Mainline protestant religious participation
In an effort to move beyond strictness as an explanation, this article employs a most-similar case study of two congregations in order to explore the organizational features of mainline, liberal congregations that influence religious participation. Four key organizational features emerged through field research and subsequent analysis: the use of staff versus committees, provision of distinctively religious goods and services, evangelism, and the…
Pastoral Leadership and Congregational Vitality
This research note presents unexpected findings on the role of pastoral leadership styles on congregational vitality. Drawn from a most-similar case study of two mainline congregations, one that has experience growth and vitality the other significant decline, the results indicate that leadership style is an under-studied contributing factor in congregational vitality. The findings demonstrate that pastoral style that is collaborative but decisiv…
The rite way: Integrating emotion and rationality in religious participation
This article employs a most-similar case study of two congregations in order to explore the organizational features of congregations that impact religious participation. The congregations were as similar as possible in terms of theology, organizational history, denominational affiliation, market location, and adherent demographics. However, they differed in one key aspect: one was thriving and the other declining. Two key organizational features …
Disengaged and indistinct: The subcultural identity of the Emerging Church Movement
Drawing on participant observation, pastor interviews, congregant focus groups, and the website content of an emerging congregation in Seattle, this article explores the ECM (Emerging Church Movement) as a religious subcultural movement utilizing Smith et al.’s (1998) subcultural identity theory. The study views the ECM movement as a unique religious subculture and locates it along the two dimensions of distinctiveness and engagement. The results…
Church government and religious participation
In this article religion is viewed as a collectively produced good. Religious groups must, therefore, overcome collective action problems, namely, coordination. This problem is usually alleviated by entering into an agency relationship with an organizer whose job is to ensure efficient production of religious goods. This will lead to an increase in participation from congregants and an increase in quality of the religious goods. However, this rel…
Religious chameleons: Exploring the social context for belonging without believing
Following previous discussions of objective religious hypocrisy, we now explore the concept of subjective religious hypocrisy; that is, belonging to a religious group but not believing in its tenets. In exchange terms, subjective hypocrisy can be understood as cheating on one's subjective religious commitments (belief) in order to gain access to otherwise unavailable social incentives. Drawing on existing literature, we specify the social structu…
Interaction Ritual Chains and Religious Participation1
This article explores congregational-level influences on religious participation by adding a distinctively sociological approach to the debate through the application of Collins's interaction ritual chain theory-a reinterpretation and integration of Durkheim and Goffman-at a congregational level of analysis. Arguing that the congregational worship service can be understood as an interaction ritual, this article offers an initial exploration of th…
Off the Map? Locating the Emerging Church: A Comparative Case Study of Congregations in the Pacific Northwest
This article seeks to clear up the conceptual confusion around the identity and practices of congregations labeled as Emerging. This research is motivated in part by Chaves (J Sci Study Relig 49(1):1-14, 2010 ) recent diagnosis of the social scientific study of religion literature as suffering from a religious congruence fallacy in which behavior is assumed to follow one's religious label; rather than assume similarity as a result of the Emerging…
American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us by Robert D. Putnam and David E. Campbell
A cucumber for a cow: A theoretical exploration of the causes and consequences of religious hypocrisy
This paper offers a first step in a theory of religious hypocrisy. Religious hypocrisy is shown to be a rational strategy at the individual level through which the individual maximizes his/her religious gain by accessing religious rewards and minimizing the costs through selective non-compliance to the religion's objective commitments. The pervasiveness of religious hypocrisy is argued to be a result of group level characteristics, namely the ext…
A 'WalMartization' of Religion? The Ecological Impact of Megachurches on the Local and Extra-Local Religious Economy
This study explores the impact megachurches have on local and extra-local congregations. Arguing that the two commonly held theories concerning the effect of megachurches on local congregations-that they are either harmful because they undercut local competition, or are beneficial because they increase local competition-are under-specified, we add the concept of religious niches to an organizational ecology model to predict how megachurches will …
Interaction Ritual Chains and Religious Participation1
This article explores congregational-level influences on religious participation by adding a distinctively sociological approach to the debate through the application of Collins's interaction ritual chain theory-a reinterpretation and integration of Durkheim and Goffman-at a congregational level of analysis. Arguing that the congregational worship service can be understood as an interaction ritual, this article offers an initial exploration of th…
The rite way: Integrating emotion and rationality in religious participation
This article employs a most-similar case study of two congregations in order to explore the organizational features of congregations that impact religious participation. The congregations were as similar as possible in terms of theology, organizational history, denominational affiliation, market location, and adherent demographics. However, they differed in one key aspect: one was thriving and the other declining. Two key organizational features …
Making It Count: Using Real-World Projects for Course Assignments
Previous scholarship has demonstrated the value of high-impact practices of community engagement, inquiry-based pedagogy, and collaborative learning for engagement and learning in sociology courses, especially undergraduate research methods and statistics. This article explores the changes made to an upper-division undergraduate course focused on applied research practices and community-level interventions. After teaching the course once as a lec…
A 'WalMartization' of Religion? The Ecological Impact of Megachurches on the Local and Extra-Local Religious Economy
This study explores the impact megachurches have on local and extra-local congregations. Arguing that the two commonly held theories concerning the effect of megachurches on local congregations-that they are either harmful because they undercut local competition, or are beneficial because they increase local competition-are under-specified, we add the concept of religious niches to an organizational ecology model to predict how megachurches will …
Off the Map? Locating the Emerging Church: A Comparative Case Study of Congregations in the Pacific Northwest
This article seeks to clear up the conceptual confusion around the identity and practices of congregations labeled as Emerging. This research is motivated in part by Chaves (J Sci Study Relig 49(1):1-14, 2010 ) recent diagnosis of the social scientific study of religion literature as suffering from a religious congruence fallacy in which behavior is assumed to follow one's religious label; rather than assume similarity as a result of the Emerging…
A cucumber for a cow: A theoretical exploration of the causes and consequences of religious hypocrisy
This paper offers a first step in a theory of religious hypocrisy. Religious hypocrisy is shown to be a rational strategy at the individual level through which the individual maximizes his/her religious gain by accessing religious rewards and minimizing the costs through selective non-compliance to the religion's objective commitments. The pervasiveness of religious hypocrisy is argued to be a result of group level characteristics, namely the ext…
Roller Derby as a Secular Alternative to Religion
Drawing on interviews with skaters on teams from all over the country in the women's flat track roller Derby association (wftda), this article argues that roller Derby can be viewed as a secular alternative to religion for its participants. Following Stolz et al.'s ((Un)Believing in Modern Society: Religion, Spirituality, and Religious-Secular Competition, Surrey, England: Ashgate Publishing, 2016) argument that social and cultural change has led…
Religious Certainty as Social Capital
Background Recent scholarship on the social embeddedness of religion indicate that religious choices are often best explained through social ties, and religious belief and practice is influenced by congregational embeddedness. Berger's theory of secularization argued that plausibility structures were maintained by interactions with others with the same worldview, and that outgroup ties can reduce one's certainty in religion and be detrimental to …
Pastoral Leadership and Congregational Vitality
This research note presents unexpected findings on the role of pastoral leadership styles on congregational vitality. Drawn from a most-similar case study of two mainline congregations, one that has experience growth and vitality the other significant decline, the results indicate that leadership style is an under-studied contributing factor in congregational vitality. The findings demonstrate that pastoral style that is collaborative but decisiv…
Church government and religious participation
In this article religion is viewed as a collectively produced good. Religious groups must, therefore, overcome collective action problems, namely, coordination. This problem is usually alleviated by entering into an agency relationship with an organizer whose job is to ensure efficient production of religious goods. This will lead to an increase in participation from congregants and an increase in quality of the religious goods. However, this rel…
Examining the Institutional Features Influencing Sexual Assault at Small Colleges and Universities
This article explores the relationships between institutional features of small college and university campuses and the levels of reported sexual assault. Using the mandated reporting of crime on campus through the Clery Act, we look at the combined levels of reported sexual assault for the years 2012 and 2013 at the main campuses of all accredited non-profit, four-year, residential, undergraduate colleges and universities in the United States th…
Beyond strictness: Mainline protestant religious participation
In an effort to move beyond strictness as an explanation, this article employs a most-similar case study of two congregations in order to explore the organizational features of mainline, liberal congregations that influence religious participation. Four key organizational features emerged through field research and subsequent analysis: the use of staff versus committees, provision of distinctively religious goods and services, evangelism, and the…
Religious chameleons: Exploring the social context for belonging without believing
Following previous discussions of objective religious hypocrisy, we now explore the concept of subjective religious hypocrisy; that is, belonging to a religious group but not believing in its tenets. In exchange terms, subjective hypocrisy can be understood as cheating on one's subjective religious commitments (belief) in order to gain access to otherwise unavailable social incentives. Drawing on existing literature, we specify the social structu…
American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us by Robert D. Putnam and David E. Campbell
A cucumber for a cow: A theoretical exploration of the causes and consequences of religious hypocrisy
This paper offers a first step in a theory of religious hypocrisy. Religious hypocrisy is shown to be a rational strategy at the individual level through which the individual maximizes his/her religious gain by accessing religious rewards and minimizing the costs through selective non-compliance to the religion's objective commitments. The pervasiveness of religious hypocrisy is argued to be a result of group level characteristics, namely the ext…
A 'WalMartization' of Religion? The Ecological Impact of Megachurches on the Local and Extra-Local Religious Economy
This study explores the impact megachurches have on local and extra-local congregations. Arguing that the two commonly held theories concerning the effect of megachurches on local congregations-that they are either harmful because they undercut local competition, or are beneficial because they increase local competition-are under-specified, we add the concept of religious niches to an organizational ecology model to predict how megachurches will …
Interaction Ritual Chains and Religious Participation1
This article explores congregational-level influences on religious participation by adding a distinctively sociological approach to the debate through the application of Collins's interaction ritual chain theory-a reinterpretation and integration of Durkheim and Goffman-at a congregational level of analysis. Arguing that the congregational worship service can be understood as an interaction ritual, this article offers an initial exploration of th…
Off the Map? Locating the Emerging Church: A Comparative Case Study of Congregations in the Pacific Northwest
This article seeks to clear up the conceptual confusion around the identity and practices of congregations labeled as Emerging. This research is motivated in part by Chaves (J Sci Study Relig 49(1):1-14, 2010 ) recent diagnosis of the social scientific study of religion literature as suffering from a religious congruence fallacy in which behavior is assumed to follow one's religious label; rather than assume similarity as a result of the Emerging…
Church government and religious participation
In this article religion is viewed as a collectively produced good. Religious groups must, therefore, overcome collective action problems, namely, coordination. This problem is usually alleviated by entering into an agency relationship with an organizer whose job is to ensure efficient production of religious goods. This will lead to an increase in participation from congregants and an increase in quality of the religious goods. However, this rel…
Religious chameleons: Exploring the social context for belonging without believing
Following previous discussions of objective religious hypocrisy, we now explore the concept of subjective religious hypocrisy; that is, belonging to a religious group but not believing in its tenets. In exchange terms, subjective hypocrisy can be understood as cheating on one's subjective religious commitments (belief) in order to gain access to otherwise unavailable social incentives. Drawing on existing literature, we specify the social structu…
Disengaged and indistinct: The subcultural identity of the Emerging Church Movement
Drawing on participant observation, pastor interviews, congregant focus groups, and the website content of an emerging congregation in Seattle, this article explores the ECM (Emerging Church Movement) as a religious subcultural movement utilizing Smith et al.’s (1998) subcultural identity theory. The study views the ECM movement as a unique religious subculture and locates it along the two dimensions of distinctiveness and engagement. The results…
The rite way: Integrating emotion and rationality in religious participation
This article employs a most-similar case study of two congregations in order to explore the organizational features of congregations that impact religious participation. The congregations were as similar as possible in terms of theology, organizational history, denominational affiliation, market location, and adherent demographics. However, they differed in one key aspect: one was thriving and the other declining. Two key organizational features …
Pastoral Leadership and Congregational Vitality
This research note presents unexpected findings on the role of pastoral leadership styles on congregational vitality. Drawn from a most-similar case study of two mainline congregations, one that has experience growth and vitality the other significant decline, the results indicate that leadership style is an under-studied contributing factor in congregational vitality. The findings demonstrate that pastoral style that is collaborative but decisiv…
Making It Count: Using Real-World Projects for Course Assignments
Previous scholarship has demonstrated the value of high-impact practices of community engagement, inquiry-based pedagogy, and collaborative learning for engagement and learning in sociology courses, especially undergraduate research methods and statistics. This article explores the changes made to an upper-division undergraduate course focused on applied research practices and community-level interventions. After teaching the course once as a lec…
Beyond strictness: Mainline protestant religious participation
In an effort to move beyond strictness as an explanation, this article employs a most-similar case study of two congregations in order to explore the organizational features of mainline, liberal congregations that influence religious participation. Four key organizational features emerged through field research and subsequent analysis: the use of staff versus committees, provision of distinctively religious goods and services, evangelism, and the…
Religious Interaction Ritual: The Microsociology of the Spirit, by SCOTT DRAPER
The best books I have read have been generative; they lead me to new places, ideas, and research projects. These books have dog-eared pages, lots of underlining, scribbling in the margins (often in multiple directions), and the blank pages at the back of the book are filled with hurried notes and page references. Based on this metric alone, this is probably one of the best books I have read in the past decade. In Religious Interaction Ritual, Dra…
Religious Certainty as Social Capital
Background Recent scholarship on the social embeddedness of religion indicate that religious choices are often best explained through social ties, and religious belief and practice is influenced by congregational embeddedness. Berger's theory of secularization argued that plausibility structures were maintained by interactions with others with the same worldview, and that outgroup ties can reduce one's certainty in religion and be detrimental to …
Examining the Institutional Features Influencing Sexual Assault at Small Colleges and Universities
This article explores the relationships between institutional features of small college and university campuses and the levels of reported sexual assault. Using the mandated reporting of crime on campus through the Clery Act, we look at the combined levels of reported sexual assault for the years 2012 and 2013 at the main campuses of all accredited non-profit, four-year, residential, undergraduate colleges and universities in the United States th…
Roller Derby as a Secular Alternative to Religion
Drawing on interviews with skaters on teams from all over the country in the women's flat track roller Derby association (wftda), this article argues that roller Derby can be viewed as a secular alternative to religion for its participants. Following Stolz et al.'s ((Un)Believing in Modern Society: Religion, Spirituality, and Religious-Secular Competition, Surrey, England: Ashgate Publishing, 2016) argument that social and cultural change has led…
Sociology (15 works) · Religion and Society Interactions (13 works) · Political science (11 works) · Religion, Society, and Development (11 works) · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology (11 works) · Law (9 works) · Psychology (9 works) · Epistemology (7 works) · Philosophy (6 works) · Social Psychology (6 works)