SOURCES OF RELIGIOUS INVOLVEMENT: ISSUES FOR FUTURE EMPIRICAL INVESTIGATION

Noting that the dominant interpretation of religious involvement is a deprivation-compensation framework, the authors point out that other possibly important sources such as socialization, accommodation, and cognition need to be considered. Findings from secondary data on 416 converts to 20 Canadian churches illustrate the authors' argument that, in addition to deprivation, these three sources may be salient determinants of initial and ongoing religious involvement. Finally, it is concluded that more attention has to be given to the roles of the various sources, their correlates, and their relationship to religious organization.