Sociology research paper on religion
Essay writing is a common practice in colleges and online universities. As students, you may have to write essays on something as sensitive as religion. To write such an essay, a student must select topics that are interesting and current to make a convincing research statement. For this reason, we present ten excellent religion topics for essays, including some argumentative essay topics on religion. Weber argued that there are more subtle effects of religion and religious doctrine on human behavior and institutions. The Protestant ethic, most importantly perhaps, served to legitimate social changes that preceded the transition from feudalism to capitalism. Besides innovations in banking practices, which allowed for the necessary accumulation of capital for investment, the Protestant ethic encouraged individuals to engage in a lifestyle of hard work, sobriety, and saving. Brownfield and Sorenson, in an analysis of the Seattle Youth Study, examined the effects of religion on several types of drug use, including alcohol, marijuana, amphetamines, barbiturates, and cocaine. Using three measures of religion (religious affiliation, church attendance, and religiosity), Brownfield and Sorenson find that all three are significant, inverse correlates of all types of drug use measured.
Egoistic suicide would be prevented, Durkheim argued, when individuals participated in social institutions and rituals such as those sponsored by religion. Durkheims theory of social integration might be simplified or reduced to the basic idea that we are moral beings to the extent we are social beings. The more that individuals become involved in community life, particularly though the family and religious institutions, the less likely that they will become selfcentered and inclined to commit criminal or deviant acts. Cochran et al. conducted one of the most comprehensive examinations of whether religion is a spurious correlate of delinquency. They used measures derived from both arousal theory (a risk-taking theoretical perspective) and control theory. Cochran et al. conclude that religion still had a significant deterrent effect on tobacco and alcohol use, controlling for measures derived from both theoretical perspectives. The consensus among most researchers to date seems to be that the effects of religion, particularly on drug and alcohol use, are not spurious.
Elaborating Hirschis social control theory, Hirschi and Stark forged theoretical links between religiosity and internalized intrapersonal sources of conformity to the normative sociolegal order. They predicted that church attendance would have a direct negative effect on crime and would affect intervening variables that were associated with criminal/delinquent activities: amoral attitudes (to get ahead, you have to do some things that are not right; suckers deserve to be taken advantage of); disdain for the law (it is all right to get around the law if you can get away with it); rejection of a positive view of the police (I have a lot of respect for the police). They also predicted that church attendance would be associated with beliefs in supernatural sanctions that could deter delinquency: there is a life beyond death; the devil actually exists. Hirschi and Stark assessed their hypotheses with data from a survey (Richmond Youth Study) of over four thousand students from a working-class town in the San Francisco Bay Area. Self-reports of delinquency (property crimes and violent offenses) were validated using official or police data. Anomic suicide referred to suicide caused by disruptions in the normative order (or anomie) that are exemplified by extreme changes in the business cycle (Liska and Messner).
Religion topic for research paper - Questioning religion in transparent, critical, respectful, and meaningful dialogue is a practice that should be encouraged. Religion discussion topics give people the chance to truly understand certain aspects of religion and similarities or differences between religions. Here are some religion debate topics that allow for meaningful and productive debates.
About Pew Research Center Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of The Pew Charitable Trusts. All three of the grand master theorists in sociologyMarx, Weber, and Durkheim predicted that religion would have significant effects on human behavior in general and on conformity and deviance in particular (Jensen and Rojek). Marxs famous dictum that religion is the opium of the masses meant that he regarded religious beliefs in a hereafter as a suppressor of discontent and revolt among the proletariat. The property of capitalists is protected, according to Marxists, by diverting the attention of the working class to the hereafter rather than to their exploitation on earth (Liska and Messner, 1999). Major studies of the link between religion and crime in the 1970s concluded with Jensen and Ericksons analysis of the Arizona Community Tolerance Study and their reanalysis of the Richmond Youth Study.
The Arizona study gathered data from over three thousand high school students attending schools in metropolitan and small town contexts in southern Arizona. Church attendance had a significant impact on thirteen of eighteen delinquency items. The effects of involvement in church-related youth activities and beliefs were less pronounced. Among serious offenses, church attendance had the most impact. Among less serious offenses, both church attendance and youth activities had the most impact. Over the next decade, a number of studies examined the effect of religion on crime and delinquency. Some of Rhodes and Reisss findings were consistent with those reported by Hirschi and Stark. There were no significant differences in delinquency rates across denominational lines in either Hirschi and Stark or Rhodes and Reiss. On the other hand, although it was not highlighted by them, the data in Rhodes and Reiss did show a negative relationship between church attendance and delinquency thus contravening Hirschi and Stark. Durkheims classic monograph on suicide, however, probably details most clearly the normative and integrative role of religious institutions.
Suicide rates were predicted to rise during both times of economic depression and economic expansion or growth. In a 1995 study, Benda reports that the effects of religiosity on so-called antiascetic behaviors (such as alcohol use) are not mediated by other dimensions of social control. We might hypothesize that the effects of religiosity are mediated through factors such as parental supervision, but Benda does not conclude that this is the case. Similarly, in a 1993 study, Burkett reports that adolescent alcohol use remains directly affected by religiosity holding constant another measure of parental social control. Burkett concludes that drinking is still directly affected by religiosity, controlling for measures of conformity to parental wishes. Although strain theorists have not emphasized the role of religious institutions in promoting conformity, the logic of the theory is compatible with predictions that religion should inhibit crime and delinquency. Merton argued that cultures which became so focused on economic goals and values to the exclusion of noneconomic institutions and values (e. g. , linked to child rearing and the family) were more likely to have higher crime rates (Liska and Messner). Religious institutions that might foster greater emphasis on the acceptable or legitimate means to become financially successful should help reduce crime.
So-called malintegrated cultures that legitimate an ethical standard of the ends justify the means have long been predicted by strain theorists to have high rates of crime. Benda and Corwyn (1997) analyzed data collected from two southern states to assess the relationship between religion and drug use among adolescents. They conclude that church attendance is inversely correlated with drinking, controlling for demographic factors such as race, social class, age, and family structure. Lee and others conducted a large-scale survey of SeventhDay Adventist youth in grades six to twelve. More than seven thousand completed questionnaires were obtained from a stratified random sample of the United States and Canada. Lee and colleagues report that youth who did not follow worship practices were most likely to report higher levels of alcohol and drug use. View sample criminology research paper on religion and crime. Browse other research paper examples for more inspiration. If you need a thorough research paper written according to all the academic standards, you can always turn to our experienced writers for help. This is how your paper can get an A! Feel free to contact our writing service for professional assistance.
Philosophical study of the nature and meaning of religion is termed the Philosophy of religion. It encompasses the explorations of religious concepts, arguments, beliefs, terms, and practices of people that adhere to a religion. Here are some mind-blowing philosophy of religion topics! Provides you various easy essay topics that are well written and scholarly research paper that is capable of giving you all related requirements. The writers in the website are well versed and are capable of writing high quality research paper based on the client requirement. The client requirements are fully satisfied. There are various online options available where you get online support for 24 hrs which purely gives good customer satisfactions. Topics to consider for research on fashion include children's fashion, history, materials, design and the influence of fashion icons on society. Good research topics on fashion create a context within which to explore and discuss the different aspects of fashion.