Corey J Colyer
Biographic Data
| ID | 242725 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Corey J Colyer |
| GIVEN NAMES | Corey J |
| FAMILY NAME | Colyer |
| SIGNATURE | COLYER C J |
| AFFILIATIONS | West Virginia University |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-9223-5445 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 22 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 38 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 22 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2002 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2025 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Perceptions of Group Boundaries between Amish and Non-Amish during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Social environments shape group identity. Environmental changes force adaptation in varying ways. Disruptions created by the COVID-19 pandemic provide an opportunity to empirically study how group identities form, transform, and establish and reinforce collective boundaries. All social groups discern between “us,” referencing in-group members from “them,” referring to outsiders. High-tension religious communities tend to reinforce pre-defined gro…
Easy targets: Religious vulnerability to predatory crime
Most prior research on religion and crime focuses on predictors of criminal behavior and neglects victimization. Studies of religion and victimization generally examine religion-based hate crimes. We present a theory of religion-based victimization drawing on routine activities theory, emphasizing how particular religious beliefs and practices may increase one's vulnerability to predatory crime victimization due to opportunity, not hate. We draw …
A Clash of Powers: Church and State
Sociologists define power as one party's capacity to influence another's action. Thus, power is a relational property of interpersonal interaction. However, its dynamics embed within institutions such as the church and the state. This paper explores power dynamics using a case study of the conflict between an Old Order Amish church and the civil law of Ohio. The church excommunicated a member for violating community rules. The member countered by…
Religious Ritual Compliance with Covid-19 Mandates in Plain Communities: A Case Study of Amish Obituaries and Funeral Practices
Measures to limit COVID-19's spread were vital at the pandemic's onset. While some churches complied with public health mandates, others resisted them. Some religious ceremonies depend on third parties independent of the church. Funerals may require mortuary services overseen by funeral directors. Religious groups that may otherwise resist public health directives may comply when they depend on a third party. Extending street-level bureaucracy th…
Pathways to Immunity: Patterns of Excess Death Across the United States and Within Closed Religious Communities
Echo Chambers in a Closed Community: Vaccine Uptake and Perceived Effectiveness among the Amish and Old Order Mennonites
Recent scholarship finds linkages between religiosity and vaccination practices but neglects the role of religious, social structural influences. The relationship between religious beliefs and immunization in the context of closed religious communities remains understudied. We use a survey of Amish and Old Order Mennonite parents to explore relationships between religious belief, group closure, perceived vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine uptake.…
Rituals of Contagion in Closed Religious Communities: A Case Study of Amish and Mennonite Communities in the USA During the Beginning of the Covid-19 Pandemic
Closed but Not Protected: Excess Deaths Among the Amish and Mennonites During the Covid-19 Pandemic
Familial Ties, Location of Occupation, and Congregational Exit in Geographically-Based Congregations: A Case Study of the Amish
Background While many studies have examined the relationship between social ties and joining social movements and religious groups, few studies have investigated the relationship between social ties and the likelihood of exiting such groups. Additionally, research has not considered how geography affects the membership dynamics of geographically-based congregations, specifically whether factors associated with residential mobility may also affect…
Global Contexts: How Countries Shape the Covid-19 Experience of Amish and Mennonite Missionaries Abroad
Across the globe, governments restricted social life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Several conservative Protestant sects resisted these policies in the United States. We do not yet know if theology shaped the resistance or if it was more a product of a polarized national political context. We argue that the country context likely shapes how conservative Protestants' moral worldview affects their perceptions of the pandemic and government restri…
When the Waves Roll High: Religious Coping among the Amish and Mennonites during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Religious beliefs, practices, and social support facilitate coping with psychologically distressful events and circumstances. However, COVID-19 and governmental mandates for social distancing and isolation make in-person communal forms of religious coping difficult. While some congregations began holding virtual rituals, this was not an option for Amish and conservative Mennonite groups that restrict communication and media technologies as a reli…
Unmasking Bad Faith: The Enduring Potential of Peter Berger’s Sociology
Congregational Cohesion, Retention, and the Consequences of Size Reduction: A Longitudinal Network Analysis of an Old Order Amish Church
Congregations depend on their members for their success and survival. Yet there is a lack of research examining congregational retention or exit. Social networks are key to understanding religious group dynamics including retention; however, research on religious communities using network analysis is limited. We use Amish directories to compile longitudinal census data on intracongregational familial ties in our case study. We theorize and find t…
Constructing Christianity’s “Clear Voice”: The Creation of Christianity Today Magazine
Elites play a significant role in the life of social and intellectual movements. This article draws on archival materials and the theory of Scientific and Intellectual Movements to present a case study of the founding of Christianity Today magazine in 1956. Christianity Today was a key intellectual resource used by elites in the evangelical movement to promote a new version of Protestant Christianity in the mid-20th century. The author argues tha…
Student Accountability in Team-based Learning Classes
Team-based learning (TBL) is a form of small-group learning that assumes stable teams promote accountability. Teamwork promotes communication among members; application exercises promote active learning. Students must prepare for each class; failure to do so harms their team’s performance. Therefore, TBL promotes accountability. As part of the course grade, students assess the performance of their teammates. The evaluation forces students to rank…
W.I. Thomas and the Forgotten Four Wishes: A Case Study in the Sociology of Ideas
Preventing the residential placement of young children: A multidisciplinary investigation of challenges and opportunities in a rural state
Country Road Bureaucracy: The Challenges of Social Service Delivery in an Economically Disadvantaged Rural State
The devolution of state authority embedded in the 1996 federal welfare reform law (since reaffirmed in the 2006 reauthorization of this law) has enormous implications for economically disadvantaged adults and their families as well as those responsible for the local management and delivery of these welfare services. Although over a decade of welfare reform “impact” research currently exists, the majority of this literature focuses primarily on we…
Roofies, Mickies and Cautionary Tales: Examining the Persistence of the 'Date-Rape Drug' Crime Narrative
This article examines the origins and persistence of the "roofies" story, a crime narrative that emerged during the mid 1990s, warning women to guard their drinks against lurking predators seeking to incapacitate and rape them. The article explores both the construction of this crime story as a panic over club drugs and its persistence as a women's cautionary tale. We argue that the roofies narrative has endured long beyond the typical crime stor…
Delayed placement: An analysis of the interstate compact for the placement of children in West Virginia
Providing Spatial Data for Secondary Analysis: Issues and Current Practices Relating to Confidentiality
Habitat for Humanity: Building Private Homes, Building Public Religion
Student Accountability in Team-based Learning Classes
Team-based learning (TBL) is a form of small-group learning that assumes stable teams promote accountability. Teamwork promotes communication among members; application exercises promote active learning. Students must prepare for each class; failure to do so harms their team’s performance. Therefore, TBL promotes accountability. As part of the course grade, students assess the performance of their teammates. The evaluation forces students to rank…
Roofies, Mickies and Cautionary Tales: Examining the Persistence of the 'Date-Rape Drug' Crime Narrative
This article examines the origins and persistence of the "roofies" story, a crime narrative that emerged during the mid 1990s, warning women to guard their drinks against lurking predators seeking to incapacitate and rape them. The article explores both the construction of this crime story as a panic over club drugs and its persistence as a women's cautionary tale. We argue that the roofies narrative has endured long beyond the typical crime stor…
Familial Ties, Location of Occupation, and Congregational Exit in Geographically-Based Congregations: A Case Study of the Amish
Background While many studies have examined the relationship between social ties and joining social movements and religious groups, few studies have investigated the relationship between social ties and the likelihood of exiting such groups. Additionally, research has not considered how geography affects the membership dynamics of geographically-based congregations, specifically whether factors associated with residential mobility may also affect…
Congregational Cohesion, Retention, and the Consequences of Size Reduction: A Longitudinal Network Analysis of an Old Order Amish Church
Congregations depend on their members for their success and survival. Yet there is a lack of research examining congregational retention or exit. Social networks are key to understanding religious group dynamics including retention; however, research on religious communities using network analysis is limited. We use Amish directories to compile longitudinal census data on intracongregational familial ties in our case study. We theorize and find t…
Religious Ritual Compliance with Covid-19 Mandates in Plain Communities: A Case Study of Amish Obituaries and Funeral Practices
Measures to limit COVID-19's spread were vital at the pandemic's onset. While some churches complied with public health mandates, others resisted them. Some religious ceremonies depend on third parties independent of the church. Funerals may require mortuary services overseen by funeral directors. Religious groups that may otherwise resist public health directives may comply when they depend on a third party. Extending street-level bureaucracy th…
When the Waves Roll High: Religious Coping among the Amish and Mennonites during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Religious beliefs, practices, and social support facilitate coping with psychologically distressful events and circumstances. However, COVID-19 and governmental mandates for social distancing and isolation make in-person communal forms of religious coping difficult. While some congregations began holding virtual rituals, this was not an option for Amish and conservative Mennonite groups that restrict communication and media technologies as a reli…
Providing Spatial Data for Secondary Analysis: Issues and Current Practices Relating to Confidentiality
Echo Chambers in a Closed Community: Vaccine Uptake and Perceived Effectiveness among the Amish and Old Order Mennonites
Recent scholarship finds linkages between religiosity and vaccination practices but neglects the role of religious, social structural influences. The relationship between religious beliefs and immunization in the context of closed religious communities remains understudied. We use a survey of Amish and Old Order Mennonite parents to explore relationships between religious belief, group closure, perceived vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine uptake.…
A Clash of Powers: Church and State
Sociologists define power as one party's capacity to influence another's action. Thus, power is a relational property of interpersonal interaction. However, its dynamics embed within institutions such as the church and the state. This paper explores power dynamics using a case study of the conflict between an Old Order Amish church and the civil law of Ohio. The church excommunicated a member for violating community rules. The member countered by…
Global Contexts: How Countries Shape the Covid-19 Experience of Amish and Mennonite Missionaries Abroad
Across the globe, governments restricted social life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Several conservative Protestant sects resisted these policies in the United States. We do not yet know if theology shaped the resistance or if it was more a product of a polarized national political context. We argue that the country context likely shapes how conservative Protestants' moral worldview affects their perceptions of the pandemic and government restri…
Habitat for Humanity: Building Private Homes, Building Public Religion
Providing Spatial Data for Secondary Analysis: Issues and Current Practices Relating to Confidentiality
Delayed placement: An analysis of the interstate compact for the placement of children in West Virginia
Country Road Bureaucracy: The Challenges of Social Service Delivery in an Economically Disadvantaged Rural State
The devolution of state authority embedded in the 1996 federal welfare reform law (since reaffirmed in the 2006 reauthorization of this law) has enormous implications for economically disadvantaged adults and their families as well as those responsible for the local management and delivery of these welfare services. Although over a decade of welfare reform “impact” research currently exists, the majority of this literature focuses primarily on we…
Roofies, Mickies and Cautionary Tales: Examining the Persistence of the 'Date-Rape Drug' Crime Narrative
This article examines the origins and persistence of the "roofies" story, a crime narrative that emerged during the mid 1990s, warning women to guard their drinks against lurking predators seeking to incapacitate and rape them. The article explores both the construction of this crime story as a panic over club drugs and its persistence as a women's cautionary tale. We argue that the roofies narrative has endured long beyond the typical crime stor…
Preventing the residential placement of young children: A multidisciplinary investigation of challenges and opportunities in a rural state
W.I. Thomas and the Forgotten Four Wishes: A Case Study in the Sociology of Ideas
Student Accountability in Team-based Learning Classes
Team-based learning (TBL) is a form of small-group learning that assumes stable teams promote accountability. Teamwork promotes communication among members; application exercises promote active learning. Students must prepare for each class; failure to do so harms their team’s performance. Therefore, TBL promotes accountability. As part of the course grade, students assess the performance of their teammates. The evaluation forces students to rank…
Constructing Christianity’s “Clear Voice”: The Creation of Christianity Today Magazine
Elites play a significant role in the life of social and intellectual movements. This article draws on archival materials and the theory of Scientific and Intellectual Movements to present a case study of the founding of Christianity Today magazine in 1956. Christianity Today was a key intellectual resource used by elites in the evangelical movement to promote a new version of Protestant Christianity in the mid-20th century. The author argues tha…
Unmasking Bad Faith: The Enduring Potential of Peter Berger’s Sociology
Congregational Cohesion, Retention, and the Consequences of Size Reduction: A Longitudinal Network Analysis of an Old Order Amish Church
Congregations depend on their members for their success and survival. Yet there is a lack of research examining congregational retention or exit. Social networks are key to understanding religious group dynamics including retention; however, research on religious communities using network analysis is limited. We use Amish directories to compile longitudinal census data on intracongregational familial ties in our case study. We theorize and find t…
Closed but Not Protected: Excess Deaths Among the Amish and Mennonites During the Covid-19 Pandemic
Familial Ties, Location of Occupation, and Congregational Exit in Geographically-Based Congregations: A Case Study of the Amish
Background While many studies have examined the relationship between social ties and joining social movements and religious groups, few studies have investigated the relationship between social ties and the likelihood of exiting such groups. Additionally, research has not considered how geography affects the membership dynamics of geographically-based congregations, specifically whether factors associated with residential mobility may also affect…
Global Contexts: How Countries Shape the Covid-19 Experience of Amish and Mennonite Missionaries Abroad
Across the globe, governments restricted social life to slow the spread of COVID-19. Several conservative Protestant sects resisted these policies in the United States. We do not yet know if theology shaped the resistance or if it was more a product of a polarized national political context. We argue that the country context likely shapes how conservative Protestants' moral worldview affects their perceptions of the pandemic and government restri…
When the Waves Roll High: Religious Coping among the Amish and Mennonites during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Religious beliefs, practices, and social support facilitate coping with psychologically distressful events and circumstances. However, COVID-19 and governmental mandates for social distancing and isolation make in-person communal forms of religious coping difficult. While some congregations began holding virtual rituals, this was not an option for Amish and conservative Mennonite groups that restrict communication and media technologies as a reli…
Rituals of Contagion in Closed Religious Communities: A Case Study of Amish and Mennonite Communities in the USA During the Beginning of the Covid-19 Pandemic
Pathways to Immunity: Patterns of Excess Death Across the United States and Within Closed Religious Communities
Echo Chambers in a Closed Community: Vaccine Uptake and Perceived Effectiveness among the Amish and Old Order Mennonites
Recent scholarship finds linkages between religiosity and vaccination practices but neglects the role of religious, social structural influences. The relationship between religious beliefs and immunization in the context of closed religious communities remains understudied. We use a survey of Amish and Old Order Mennonite parents to explore relationships between religious belief, group closure, perceived vaccine effectiveness, and vaccine uptake.…
A Clash of Powers: Church and State
Sociologists define power as one party's capacity to influence another's action. Thus, power is a relational property of interpersonal interaction. However, its dynamics embed within institutions such as the church and the state. This paper explores power dynamics using a case study of the conflict between an Old Order Amish church and the civil law of Ohio. The church excommunicated a member for violating community rules. The member countered by…
Religious Ritual Compliance with Covid-19 Mandates in Plain Communities: A Case Study of Amish Obituaries and Funeral Practices
Measures to limit COVID-19's spread were vital at the pandemic's onset. While some churches complied with public health mandates, others resisted them. Some religious ceremonies depend on third parties independent of the church. Funerals may require mortuary services overseen by funeral directors. Religious groups that may otherwise resist public health directives may comply when they depend on a third party. Extending street-level bureaucracy th…
Perceptions of Group Boundaries between Amish and Non-Amish during the Covid-19 Pandemic
Social environments shape group identity. Environmental changes force adaptation in varying ways. Disruptions created by the COVID-19 pandemic provide an opportunity to empirically study how group identities form, transform, and establish and reinforce collective boundaries. All social groups discern between “us,” referencing in-group members from “them,” referring to outsiders. High-tension religious communities tend to reinforce pre-defined gro…
Easy targets: Religious vulnerability to predatory crime
Most prior research on religion and crime focuses on predictors of criminal behavior and neglects victimization. Studies of religion and victimization generally examine religion-based hate crimes. We present a theory of religion-based victimization drawing on routine activities theory, emphasizing how particular religious beliefs and practices may increase one's vulnerability to predatory crime victimization due to opportunity, not hate. We draw …
Sociology (20 works) · Political science (16 works) · Law (12 works) · Psychology (12 works) · Medicine (10 works) · Agriculture and Farm Safety (9 works) · Pandemic (7 works) · Religion and Society Interactions (7 works) · Business (6 works) · Social Psychology (6 works)