The Withdrawal Process and the Its Consequences : Cases of Dropouts from the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Japan

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  • INOSE Yuri
    北海道大学大学院文学研究科博士後期課程:日本学術振興会

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Other Title
  • 脱会プロセスとその後 : ものみの塔聖書冊子協会の脱会者を事例に
  • ダッカイ プロセス ト ソノゴ モ ノミ ノ トウ セイショ サッシ キョウカイ ノ ダッカイシャ オ ジレイ ニ

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Abstract

Many researches that focused on the process and conditions of conversion to the new religious groups are presented from the 1970s to the 1980s. However, there is relatively little research on withdrawal firm the new religious.groups. This research is the empirical study about withdrawal from a religious group. This research analyzed 39 dropouts from "The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Japan." Especially in this research, case analysis was performed on voluntary dropouts, focusing on the problem of withdrawal of second-generation believers. This research considers that this religious group is marked by the falt that, "withdrawal produces many problems for the believer." As an analytic key, this research focused on the processes of "disillusionment" and "disaffiliation", and the achievement of the "redefinition of social reality" that is needed after withdrawal. As requirements for the achievement of "disaffiliation" and the "redefinition of social reality", this research observes the importance of" information from. outside the religious group", and "human relations outside the religious group." As a result of case analysis, when "disaffiliation" comes before "disillusionment", it was shown that the process of withdrawal and the achievement of "redefinition of social reality" progress comparatively smoothly. For the achievement of "disaffiliation" and the "redefinition of social reality", it was shown that "information from outside the religious group" and "human relations outside the religious group" are also indispensable. An important result is that the character of the information and human relations that is required for withdrawal are different for first-generation believers and second-generation believers. Second-generation believers need to be analyzed as dropouts with a different background from first-generation believers. The results of this research are very tentative. The reason is that this research was made of a limited sample obtained by limited means from only one religious group, "The Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Japan". In the future, research targeting a comparative study with other religious groups and a larger number of dropouts.

Journal

  • Religion and Society

    Religion and Society 8 (0), 19-37, 2002

    The Japanese Association for the Study of Religion and Society

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