SOCIOLOGY OF RELIGION

GUIDELINES FOR THE RESEARCH PAPER

An important part of your grade (70 points) will be participating in a group project and writing up a 8-15 page research paper. While many students do not like group projects (it's sometimes difficult to get together with other members, someone in the group slacks off and effects the work of the rest of the group, etc.) I feel that such projects are more reflective of actual challenges that you will face outside of the college environment when you go to work at your first "real job." In short, this assignment is not just a way to earn points, but to learn valuable skills that can be put to use outside of the classroom. You will learn, for example, how to deal with conflict, how to work cooperatively to achieve goals, how to become a better communicator, and how to interact with others that may be different from you ethnically, socially, culturally, etc. Groups will consist of three members and will be formed by the instructor. No one is allowed to work independently on a research project. Below are guidelines for the paper. MAKE SURE YOU FOLLOW ALL GUIDELINES AND STEPS IN THIS HANDOUT TO THE LETTER IF YOU WANT TO MAXIMIZE YOUR LEARNING EXPERIENCE AND GAIN MAXIMUM POINTS.

ASSIGNING GROUP ROLES

Each group member will have specific roles as described below. It is up to the group to decide who will be assigned which roles. If you need my help, do not hesitate to get in touch with me. Keep in mind, however, that I am here to guide you, not do your work. If a situation should arise which cannot be resolved by the group as a whole, I will mediate by meeting with each group member and finally with the whole group. As a final result, if any group member(s) should continue to not participate or perform their agreed upon role(s) or task(s), that student(s) will be given one written warning signed by the remaining group members. If the member(s) still does not participate s/he will be removed from the group and be responsible for an individual research paper; the topic, page length and format of the paper will be chosen by the instructor.

1.Meeting Coordinator- Schedules meeting times and places keeping in mind each members’ school/work schedule.

2.Discussion Leader- Keeps the group on task by leading and structuring group meetings.

3.Recorder/Intermediary/Processor- Keeps minutes of each meeting (paying particular attention to work assigned to members) and distributes the record to the rest of the group members and the instructor by email. Also meets with or emails instructor periodically to report on group progress, team work, etc. I should receive an update at least once a week. This group member is also responsible for integrating members' rough drafts into a group paper (this responsibility is expected to be shared by other members). The processor should be the final check to make sure that the paper is free from grammatical, spelling, and any structural errors. S/he should also make sure that the ASA style is followed and that the paper “flows” well.

CHOOSING A RELIGIOUS GROUP FOR PRESENTATION

Groups will choose one of the following religious groups to research and present material on:

1.The Amish8.Shinto

2.The Mormons9.Jainism

3.Seventh Day Adventists10.Sikhism

4.The Jehovah’s Witnesses11. United Methodists

5.The Mennonites12.Presbyterian USA

6.Assemblies of God13.Episcopalians

7.Zoroastrainism14.United Church of Christ

FORMAT OF THE PAPER

  • Your paper should be 8-15 pages, typed, double spaced, using a regular 11 or 12 point font with one inch margins on all four sides. Page numbers should be included on all pages except the cover page. Proper grammar, spelling, and sentence structure are expected. Make sure you use formal English. Do not use slang unless you are quoting someone else. Be sure to quote material that is either quoted directly or paraphrased (failure to do so will be considered plagiarism and all group members will be held accountable).
  • You must use at least 10 references in your paper (they can be the same used in your presentation). Your sources must follow the following guidelines:
  • At least 4 scholarly written sources must be collected and used in your paper. These sources must be taken either from scholarly articles or books. Magazine articles do not count in this category.
  • At least 4 popularly written sources must be collected and used in your paper. These sources can be taken either from popular books, newspapers, or magazine articles.
  • At least 2 separate sources from the internet must be collected and used in your paper.
  • You paper should be broken up into the following sections:
  • Quick Facts Page (Include the name of the founder(s), nationality of the founder, the date and location the group was founded, the number of adherents, and the group’s ultimate concern
  • Introduction (about ½ to 1 page)
  • History of the founder and group (about 2-4 pages)
  • The doctrine of the group (along with any religious influences) (about 2-4 pages)
  • Analysis of the group (about 2-6 pages) Here you analyze the role of beliefs, practices, rituals, etc. of the group. Use these and any other terms and ideas that we have studied, and apply them to your group.
  • Conclusion (about ½ to 1page)

CITING SOURCES WITHIN THE PAPER

Correct citations are important. Failure to correctly cite a source is considered plagiarism and is punishable by immediate failure of the course and expulsion from the university. Simply put, it's not worth it. Not only are there negative ramifications to your academic status, but you won't be challenged to think for and express yourself. Below are guidelines for correctly citing sources within your paper. The next section details how sources should be listed in your bibliography.

1.Quotes less than four lines in length

Quotes less than four lines in length are not separated from the regular text. Quotation marks are used to identify which words are quoted, and the quote is followed by the author's last name, the year, and the page number. Below is an example:

For over 40 years, television has played an important role in American society. Several have commented on it's impact, especially on younger viewers. One researcher even went so far as to say, "I believe that television is probably the most insidious invention because it effects the young in such a negative fashion" (Donaldson 1995:231).

Notice that the period goes after the citation, not directly after the word "fashion" in the quote.

2.Quotes over four lines in length

Quotes over four lines in length are set apart from the regular text. Each line should be indented five spaces and the author's last name, the year, and the page number should be included after the quote. The lines in this quote should be SINGLE SPACED! Below is an example where the first two lines are double spaced (as they would be in your paper), and the quote is single spaced:

Cone suggests that blues music must be understood as a creative response to the feelings of pain and suffering which African Americans sing about in the music.

The blues are not art for art's sake, music for music's sake. They are a way of life, a lifestyle of the black community; and they came into being to give expression to black identity and the will for survival. Thus to seek to understand the blues apart from the suffering that created them is to misinterpret them and distort the very creativity that defines them (Cone 1972:124).

Notice that the indented quote: (1) does not use quotation marks; (2) has a period after the cited source.

3.Paraphrasing an author's idea

You must give an author credit if you paraphrase h/her idea. Basically, anytime you take a quote and reword it in your own words or you have an idea about something that you got from someone else, you should give h/her credit. Below is an example:

According to Wuthnow (1988), a restructuring has occurred across denominational lines, forcing a split between religious liberals and conservatives over moral and political issues in the United States.

Unlike quotes, you do not provide the page number when you paraphrase (unless you are using the MLA reference style). Instead, you use the author's last name and the year in parentheses.

ASA STYLE GUIDE

FOR A JOURNAL ARTICLE:

Gerson, Walter M. & Saunder H. Lund. 1967. "Playboy Magazine: Sophisticated Smut

or Social Revolution?" Journal of Popular Culture. 1(3): 218227.

FOR A MAGAZINE ARTICLE:

McGrath, Peter. 1997. "The Web: Infotopia or Marketplace?" Newsweek. January 27,

Pp. 8284.

FOR A NEWSPAPER ARTICLE:

Antonucci, Mike. 1997. "Conspiracy Theorists Tackle Diana's Death." San Jose

Mercury News, September 3, P. A12.

FOR A BOOK:

Bell, Daniel. 1976. The Cultural Contradictions of Capitalism. New York: Basic

Books.

FOR CHAPTERS TAKEN FROM A BOOK:

Gans, Herbert. 1974. "The Critique of Mass Culture." Pp. 1764 in Popular Culture

and High Culture. New York: Basic Books.

FOR EDITED BOOKS:

Hubbard, Rita C. 1992. "Magic and Transformation: Relationships in Popular Romance

Novels, 19501980's" Pp. 476488 in Popular Culture: An Introductory Text, edited by Jack Nachbar and Kevin Lause. Bowling Green, OH: Bowling GreenStateUniversity Popular Press.

FOR A SOURCE FROM THE INTERNET:

Johnson, James. 1997. "Babylon 5 and XFiles Tap Into Conspiracy Fears: What's Next,

A Full Blown Revolution?." September 2,

GRADING THE PAPER

Grades will be determined by (1) instructor's grade (worth 60 pts.) and (2) group member's grade (worth 10 pts.). Group members will grade each other (but not themselves) on a 10 point scale. So, for example, if you are in a group with Jose and Bob, and Jose gives you a grade of 10, and Bob gives you a grade of 7, I will average these out {(10+7 divided by 2) = 8.5 or 9} and add that average to my grade for your paper. Thus, if I grade the group paper a 50, then, in this case, you would receive 59 points total (50 pts. + 9 = 59 points).

TURNING THE ASSIGNMENT IN

Three things need to be accomplished:

1.The secretary is responsible for emailing me a copy in MS WORD as an email

attachment. Please DO NOT email me a copy in ANY OTHER FORMAT!

2.The secretary should also upload a copy of the paper in MS WORD to turnitin.com.

Again, it MUST NOT be in ANY OTHER FORMAT.

3.Each group member must email me the same day that the paper is due with the number

of points you give to each group member on a scale from 0-10 (Do not grade yourself).

The email should look something like this:

John Sheridan: 8

Laura Smith: 6

NOTE: Your group members should not see, nor should they be told, the grade that you are assigning them.

GUIDELINES FOR THE GROUP PRESENTATION

An important part of your grade will be participating in a group presentation on a new religious movement not studied in class. While many students do not like group projects (it's sometimes difficult to get together with other members, someone in the group slacks off and effects the work of the rest of the group, etc.) I feel that such projects are reflective of the actual challenges you will face when you go to work at your first "real job." In short, this assignment is not just a way to earn points, but to learn valuable skills that can be put to use outside of the classroom. You will learn, for example, how to deal with conflict, how to work cooperatively to achieve goals, how to become a better communicator, and how to interact with others that may be different from you ethnically, socially, culturally, etc. Groups will consist of four members and will be formed by the instructor. No one is allowed to do an independent presentation. Groups will be expected to put together a 15 minute presentation worth 20 points on their chosen group. You should feel free to use several types of media and techniques in your presentation (e.g. Powerpoint, costumes, plays, etc.). In short, be creative as well as informative. You will be required to do your own research and compile a list of all materials you drew from for your presentation.

WHAT YOU WILL PRESENT

You should include the following information in your presentation:

  • Name of your religion
  • Founder of the religion
  • Nationality of Founder
  • Date and Location founded
  • Number of members in the group
  • Founder’s history
  • The group’s doctrine (In other words, what do they believe?)
  • What other religions have influenced this religion and how?
  • A short history of the emergence of the group
  • The ultimate concern of the group
  • The role of beliefs, practices, and rituals.
  • How has secularization influenced the group.
  • Any other information you find interesting or pertinent

I would recommend breaking the presentation/research up into four parts:

1. History of the founder and the group

2. The Doctrine, religious influences, etc.

3. An analysis of the beliefs, practices, and rituals of the group, the influence of

secularization, etc.

GRADING THE PRESENTATION

Here are some things that I am looking at when I assign you a grade:

1.Inclusion of all pertinent information

2.Clear and accurate explanation of the material

3.Presentation style (too much reading from the screen or off notes will lose points quickly)

Final Words of Important Advice

I’m sure we’ve all seen some very poor (not to mention boring) presentations. What can you do to make sure your presentation isn’t one of them?

First, DO NO RELY ON READING your notes, note cards, or the slides. Your audience can read and it’s exceptionally boring to hear someone read their presentation verbatim. It’s okay to read a little, but only a little.

Second, add a little life to your presentation (i.e. bring a little excitement and energy to the table). No one wants to listen to someone who sounds like they don’t care about their own topic. Also, no one wants to listen to someone who talks in monotone or sounds like they’re about to fall asleep. On the other hand, listening to someone who brings too much energy and excitement to the table can be annoying as well. Keep it balanced.

Third, be mindful of your body language and where you are standing when presenting. I don’t know how many times I’ve seen students stand in front of their projected notes blocking the view of the audience. Body language is also important! For example, stay relaxed, don’t fold your arms or legs while talking, look like you’re interested in what you’re saying, make eye contact with your audience, etc.

Fourth, make the fonts on your slides readable. Don’t use strange colors or backgrounds and fonts that make the text difficult to read. Use the appropriate sized fonts (fonts too small quickly kill a presentation).

Fifth, do not overwhelm your audience with lots of information on your slides. Also, do not include too many slides. This is one of the biggest mistakes that people make when presenting. Use bulleted points when necessary and use points sparingly. We’re not taking notes and you only have 15 minutes; there simply isn’t enough time to whip through 20 slides or include slides with lots of text. One way to minimize the amount of material is to focus your material. For example, one could easily spend 15 minutes alone talking about the beliefs of the group. Identify the most important three or four beliefs and focus on them instead. Covering three or four beliefs in some detail is much better than trying to rush through 15 beliefs with little detail.

Finally, spend most of your time analyzing the group, not regurgitating history or doctrine. How should you perform this analysis? The analysis section is where you actually apply many of the principles that we’ve learned about in class. For example, what kind (if any) of millennial group is this (e.g. assaulted, fragile, etc.)? Which (if any) of the three features that have been linked to religious violence can be found in your group (e.g. apocalyptic beliefs, etc.)? Given your research what models of conversion or leaving might be applicable? How might the new paradigm and/or old paradigm explain the emergence and continuance of your group? Answering questions such as these will earn you points.