RELIGIOUS CONVERSION IN NARRATIVES OF MUSLIMS: EXPIRIENCE OF THE EMPIRICAL RESEARCH

Study of psychological content of the process of religious conversion is one of the main fields of research in the psychology of religion. If the factors of religious development of a person carried out by the religious upbringing and education are clear enough, the factors and stages of sudden and unpredicted changes of religious consciousness and behavior in psychological science are poorly described in psychological science at present time. The main problem is that it is impossible to create a universal scheme of religious conversion without taking into account specifics of the religious institute where a neophyte is directly “introduced”. Specifics of religious conversion in Islam are insufficiently described.

This paper describes empirical research of religious conversion of Muslims. The narrative analysis was applied as a research method throughout the study. Respondents who included representatives of the young age were offered to write a story how they gained their faith. The analysis of the texts shows that conversion into Islam is characterized by a high degree of the search activity of the persons and rational reasoning of their choice. In most cases, the new Muslim converts are characterized by a negative attitude toward Islam before the process of conversion, which they associate with insufficient life experience and social stereotypes. The structure of the narrative of “turning” to Islam contains three consecutive constituents: search for the Truth, insight, and life according to the Truth. It is possible to make a conclusion that this type of religious conversion should be considered as a cognitive process. Among the factors initializing “turning” to Islam are reading of religious literature and interaction with Muslims.