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Publication Date

2022-6

First Advisor

Kathryn Basham

Second Advisor

Jean LaTerz

Third Advisor

Susan Donner

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy

Department

School for Social Work

Keywords

secular Jewish women, Orthodox Judaism, Teshuvah, religious motivation, religious conversion

Abstract

Counter to the prevailing trend in the United States of people moving away from formal religion, many secular Jewish women have adopted Orthodox Judaism. Based on open-ended interviews with twenty such women, this dissertation study explored the factors that played a role in their decision to adopt Orthodox Judaism. The change from a secular lifestyle to Orthodox Judaism is a major life transforming decision that encompasses all aspects of the life of the individual. For the women in this study, the process was gradual and deliberate. In fact, this dissertation study identified four phases in the adoption of Orthodox Judaism by the study participants: background, exposure, transition, and commitment. The findings highlighted and emphasized factors that were given minimal weighting in prior studies based on women who adopted Orthodox Judaism in the 1960s through the 1980s. Likewise, the findings of this study gave less weighting to many of the primary motivational factors in those prior studies. Specifically, the findings in this dissertation study highlighted the active agency of the women in their decision to adopt Orthodox Judaism, the overwhelming prevalence of intrinsic factors motivating their decision, the role of a pre-existing Jewish identity, and the importance of psychological and ideological factors. Conversely, the findings in this dissertation study pointed to the lesser role of personal crisis, seekership, social life, and femininity as factors in the adoption of Orthodox Judaism. The findings of this dissertation study showed that the ongoing commitment to Orthodox Judaism of the study participants was supported by an array of intellectual, spiritual, psychological, emotional, and social factors, as well as a sense of return to their Jewish roots.

Rights

©2022 Sarah L. Ossey. Access limited to the Smith College community and other researchers while on campus. Smith College community members also may access from off-campus using a Smith College log-in. Other off-campus researchers may request a copy through Interlibrary Loan for personal use.

Language

English

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