The Optimal Level of Strictness and Congregational Growth

Religions

关键词: strict church thesis;    congregational growth;    niches;    religious organizations;    Protestant Christianity;    quantitative methodology;   

DOI  :  10.3390/rel5030703

来源: mdpi

【 摘 要 】

Beginning with Kelley’s and Iannaccone’s foundational studies, scholars have examined how strictness impacts congregational outcomes. This paper seeks to further develop the strict church thesis by examining Iannaccone’s concept of “optimal level of strictness”, an idea that there are limits to strictness. Using Stark and Finke’s theoretical framework of religious niches and data from the 2005 Baylor Religion Survey and the 2000 Faith Communities Today survey, I find that only prohibitions that are in line with a congregation’s religious niche have an impact on growth. To be beneficial, prohibitions must match the pool of potential members’ preferences.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© 2014 by the authors; licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.