The current state of religious conversion research
theories, empirical findings, and future directions
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.59531/ots.2025.3.2.49-58Keywords:
metanoia, global Christianity, deconversion, non-religious people, Pentecostal growth, Vaishnavism, ecological spirituality, digital religionAbstract
This review article examines religious conversion from theological, psychological, sociological and religious-geographical perspectives, with a brief focus on ecological conversion. Based on post-2010, peer-reviewed publications indexed in Google Scholar, Web of Science and Scopus, as well as recent data from the Pew Research Center and the Center for the Study of Global Christianity, the study summarises major theoretical models (Rambo, Gooren, Lofland & Skonovd), longitudinal research on personality and behavioural change, and global patterns of religious switching. Findings suggest that conversion primarily reshapes religious practice and community involvement, while deep personality traits change only modestly. Globally, the main direction of change is towards non-religion: Christianity experiences net losses, whereas Islam and Hinduism show high retention, and Pentecostal and other neo-Protestant movements grow rapidly in the Global South. The paper also introduces “ecological conversion” as a spiritually grounded shift towards care for creation and outlines future research needs concerning non-Western contexts, digital pathways to faith and the empirical study of ecological transformation.
References
Barro, R., Hwang, J., & McCleary, R. (2010): Religious Conversion in 40 Countries. – Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 49(1): 15–3. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5906.2009.01490.x
Bleidorn, W., Lenhausen, M. R., Schwaba, T., Hopwood, C. J. (2023): Psychological change before and after religious conversion and deconversion. – Journal of Personality, 92(4): 1193–1210. https://doi.org/10.1111/jopy.12881
Das, D. (2017): Understanding the phenomena of religious conversion: A study among the Mishings of Assam, India. – National Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Development, 2(3): 83-86.
Gooren, H. (2007): Reassessing conventional approaches to conversion: toward a new synthesis. – Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 46(3): 337–353. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5906.2007.00362.x
Hackett, C., Stonawski, M., Tong, Y., Kramer, S., Fengyan Shi, A. Fahmy, D. (2025): Front matter. – In: How the Global Religious Landscape Changed From 2010 to 2020. Muslims grew fastest; Christians lagged behind global population increase (p. [i]-[i]). Pew Research Center. http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep70858
Howell, N. (2021): Scientific data, ecological conversion and transformative affect. – HTS Teologiese Studies / Theological Studies, 77(3). https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v77i3.6518
Jehovah’s Witnesses (2024): Service Year Report of Jehovah’s Witnesses Worldwide.
Jensen, E. (2020): Ecological Conversion and the Spiritual Exercises. – The Way, 59(2): 7-18.
Kling, D. W. (2022): Conversion. – In: Brendan N. Wolfe (ed.): St Andrews Encyclopaedia of Theology. University of St Andrews, St Andrews
Lesage, K.; Starr, K. Miner, W. (2025): Around the World, Many People Are Leaving Their Childhood Religions. Pew Research Center, Washington. https://doi.org/10.58094/xt5h-b241
Lofland, J., Skonovd, N. (1981): Conversion motifs. – Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 20(4): 373. https://doi.org/10.2307/1386185
Longo, G. S., Kim-Spoon, J. (2014): What drives apostates and converters? The social and familial antecedents of religious change among adolescents. – Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 6(4): 284–291. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0037651
Office of Archives, Statistics and Research (2024): Annual Statistics Report. Seventh-day Adventist Church.
Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life (2006): Spirit and Power. – Pew Research Center.
Pop, M. R., Pop, C. M. (2024): Antecedents and Perceived Benefits of Religious Conversion—An Exploratory Study within a Protestant Congregation. – Religions, 15(2): 156. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel15020156
Rambo, L.R. (1993): Understanding Religious Conversion. – Yale University Press, New Haven
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (2025): 2024 Statistical Report of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Trepanier, L., Newswander, L., Newswander, C. (2015): Mormonism. – In: Lyden, J.C., Mazur, E. M. (eds.) The Routledge Companion to Religion and Popular Culture, Routhledge, London
Zurlo, G. A., Johnson, T. M., Crossing, P. F. (2025): World Christianity 2025: Regional Perspectives. – International Bulletin of Mission Research, 49(1): 62-74. https://doi.org/10.1177/23969393241283291
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
OTS articles are subject to the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivates 4.0 International Licenses Copyright Terms.
