Evaluation as a Development in Religious Research

Abstract

The development of religious research, as this has occurred in home missions departments of major denominations, is traced through a sample of church research documents. The early phase (from the 1920s to 1950) was characterized by an interest in describing the church as a social institution. An implicit need of the researcher seemed to be the development of his stature within the social science community. The development phase (1950s) was one in which church research needs were dictated by an institutional development philosophy within denominations. An action research phase (1960s) was characterized by increasing questioning of the effectiveness of programs and a need for a rational basis for allocating resources. Implications of evaluative research for the church may include attempts at specific goal and objective setting for programs; a closer working relationship between program developers, researchers, and clients, and some efforts at interdisciplinary or interagency research work. Religious research of the denominational type generally has been identified as materials produced by studies conducted in the tradition of Harlan Paul Douglass. These research materials have consisted primarily of descriptive information regarding churches, communities, and church members. The studies have generally relied on demographic data to chart various characteristics of religiosity as this could be measured by church and church school attendance, attendance at church organizations, and leadership in the church. The analyses in the studies have relied upon social scientific theory as a background for projections and inter-