Lorne L. Dawson
Encyclopedia
Lorne L. Dawson is a Canadian scholar of the sociology of religion
who has written about new religious movements, the brainwashing controversy, and the role of the Internet
in religious conflicts.
, and an M.A.
and Ph.D.
from McMaster University
, is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Waterloo
. He was Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the university (2000-2006) and co-founder and second Director of the Lauier-Waterloo PhD in Religious Studies (2006-2009). From 2011-2015 he will be Chair of the Department of Sociology & Legal Studies at the University of Waterloo. He serves on the editorial board of Method and Theory in the Study of Religion, the journal of the North American Association for the Study of Religion, and served for six years on the editorial board of Sociology of Religion: A Quarterly Review, the journal of the Association for the Sociology of Religion
. He is also on the editorial borards of the academic journals "Nova Religio" and "Fieldwork in the Study of Religion."
Dawson has published a large number of scholarly articles on new religious movements, along with books such as Cults in Context (editor, 1998), Comprehending Cults (1998; 2nd ed. 2006), Cults and New Religious Movements: A Reader (2003, editor) and others (e.g., "Religion Online", edited with Douglas Cowan, 2004). Dawson expressed the view in 1998 that "In the late 1980s the activity of NRMs tapered off, and membership in the relatively well-established groups like Scientology, Krishna Consciousness, and the Unification Church has stabilized well below levels achieved in the early to mid-seventies", arguing that "fewer new religions are being formed now, and they are attracting fewer followers" – a view that has been contested by other more recent authors perceiving ongoing proliferation of such groups, although they acknowledge that these communities take different forms now to those that were common in the 1970s and 1980s.
Dawson's writings on brainwashing theories and the debates surrounding them were listed by scholars James A. Beckford
and Nicholas Jay Demerath as recommended background reading on the topic in The SAGE Handbook of the Sociology of Religion, along with those by David G. Bromley
, James T. Richardson, Larry Shinn
, Benjamin Zablocki
and Thomas Robbins
.
Dawson's research has also focused on the significance of new religious movements in present-day culture and the role the Internet, with sites such as YouTube
, plays in contemporary religion, including religious conflict and hate propaganda: "The antireligion perspective has been around on the Internet since its beginning, though using YouTube to express such thoughts is new. To my mind, it is a very unique scheme. In a sense, it is a new twist on a long habit of trolling, baiting and flaming people online and purposely seeking to attract attention and stir up trouble. It is in line with the culture of the Internet and the bad-boy element of the Internet." Dawson has commented that the semi-anonymous nature of the Internet makes it a medium to voice feelings that would otherwise go unexpressed: "Suppressed, maybe even truly repressed, feelings may be expressed – from anger to love. People simply will say things they would not say otherwise. Rather virulent expressions of ridicule or hatred, for example, are commonly encountered on the Internet. So are statements that would probably be too embarrassing for most of us to say in other kinds of public forums. Ironically, under conditions of technical anonymity, the sociality of the Internet offers an unparalleled opportunity for greater self-disclosure and exploration."
His most recent research and publications have also focused on the nature of charismatic authority and its role in fomenting violence behaviour in some new religious movements, and how groups respond to the failure of prophecy. The research on why some new religious movements become violent has led to work on the process of radicalization in cases of homegrown terrorism (e.g., "The Study of New Religious Movements and the Radicalization of Home-Grown Terrorists: Opening a Dialogue," Terrorism and Political Violence 22, 2010: 1-21).
Sociology of religion
The sociology of religion concerns the role of religion in society: practices, historical backgrounds, developments and universal themes. There is particular emphasis on the recurring role of religion in all societies and throughout recorded history...
who has written about new religious movements, the brainwashing controversy, and the role of the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
in religious conflicts.
Academic career
Dawson, who has an Hons. B.A. from Queen's UniversityQueen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
, and an M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
and Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
from McMaster University
McMaster University
McMaster University is a public research university whose main campus is located in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land in the residential neighbourhood of Westdale, adjacent to Hamilton's Royal Botanical Gardens...
, is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Waterloo
University of Waterloo
The University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
. He was Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the university (2000-2006) and co-founder and second Director of the Lauier-Waterloo PhD in Religious Studies (2006-2009). From 2011-2015 he will be Chair of the Department of Sociology & Legal Studies at the University of Waterloo. He serves on the editorial board of Method and Theory in the Study of Religion, the journal of the North American Association for the Study of Religion, and served for six years on the editorial board of Sociology of Religion: A Quarterly Review, the journal of the Association for the Sociology of Religion
Association for the Sociology of Religion
The Association for the Sociology of Religion is an academic association with more than 700 members worldwide. It publishes a journal, the Sociology of Religion: A Quarterly Review and holds meetings at the same venues and times as the American Sociological Association.-History:The ASR was founded...
. He is also on the editorial borards of the academic journals "Nova Religio" and "Fieldwork in the Study of Religion."
Dawson has published a large number of scholarly articles on new religious movements, along with books such as Cults in Context (editor, 1998), Comprehending Cults (1998; 2nd ed. 2006), Cults and New Religious Movements: A Reader (2003, editor) and others (e.g., "Religion Online", edited with Douglas Cowan, 2004). Dawson expressed the view in 1998 that "In the late 1980s the activity of NRMs tapered off, and membership in the relatively well-established groups like Scientology, Krishna Consciousness, and the Unification Church has stabilized well below levels achieved in the early to mid-seventies", arguing that "fewer new religions are being formed now, and they are attracting fewer followers" – a view that has been contested by other more recent authors perceiving ongoing proliferation of such groups, although they acknowledge that these communities take different forms now to those that were common in the 1970s and 1980s.
Dawson's writings on brainwashing theories and the debates surrounding them were listed by scholars James A. Beckford
James A. Beckford
James Arthur Beckford is a British sociologist of religion. He is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at the University of Warwick and a Fellow of the British Academy...
and Nicholas Jay Demerath as recommended background reading on the topic in The SAGE Handbook of the Sociology of Religion, along with those by David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley
David G. Bromley is a professor of sociology at Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA and the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA. He has written extensively about "cults", new religious movements, apostasy, and the anti-cult movement.- Education and career :Bromley received his...
, James T. Richardson, Larry Shinn
Larry Shinn
Larry Shinn is president of Berea College, Kentucky. Prior to this appointment he was Vice-President of Academic Affairs, Dean of Humanities and Head of the Religious Studies Department at Bucknell University....
, Benjamin Zablocki
Benjamin Zablocki
Benjamin Zablocki is and American professor of sociology at Rutgers University where he teaches sociology of religion and social psychology. He has published widely on the subject of charismatic religious movements and cults....
and Thomas Robbins
Thomas Robbins (sociologist)
-Life and work:Robbins obtained a B.A. in government from Harvard University in 1965, and a Ph.D. in Sociology, at the University of North Carolina in 1973. He subsequently held teaching or research positions at Queens College , the New School for Social Research, Yale University and the Graduate...
.
Dawson's research has also focused on the significance of new religious movements in present-day culture and the role the Internet, with sites such as YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, plays in contemporary religion, including religious conflict and hate propaganda: "The antireligion perspective has been around on the Internet since its beginning, though using YouTube to express such thoughts is new. To my mind, it is a very unique scheme. In a sense, it is a new twist on a long habit of trolling, baiting and flaming people online and purposely seeking to attract attention and stir up trouble. It is in line with the culture of the Internet and the bad-boy element of the Internet." Dawson has commented that the semi-anonymous nature of the Internet makes it a medium to voice feelings that would otherwise go unexpressed: "Suppressed, maybe even truly repressed, feelings may be expressed – from anger to love. People simply will say things they would not say otherwise. Rather virulent expressions of ridicule or hatred, for example, are commonly encountered on the Internet. So are statements that would probably be too embarrassing for most of us to say in other kinds of public forums. Ironically, under conditions of technical anonymity, the sociality of the Internet offers an unparalleled opportunity for greater self-disclosure and exploration."
His most recent research and publications have also focused on the nature of charismatic authority and its role in fomenting violence behaviour in some new religious movements, and how groups respond to the failure of prophecy. The research on why some new religious movements become violent has led to work on the process of radicalization in cases of homegrown terrorism (e.g., "The Study of New Religious Movements and the Radicalization of Home-Grown Terrorists: Opening a Dialogue," Terrorism and Political Violence 22, 2010: 1-21).
Personal life
In a 2007 New York Times article, Dawson self-identified as "an agnostic with a 'Buddhist world view'."Books
- Cults and New Religious Movements: A Reader, Wiley-Blackwell 2009, ISBN 9781405101813
- Comprehending Cults: The Sociology of New Religious Movements, Oxford University Press 2006, ISBN 9780195420098
- Religion Online: Finding Faith on the Internet, Routledge 2004, ISBN 9780415970228 (with Douglas E. CowanDouglas E. CowanDouglas E. Cowan is a Canadian academic in religious studies and the sociology of religion and currently holds a teaching position at Renison College, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada...
) - Cults in Context: Readings in the Study of New Religious Movements, Transaction Publishers 1998, ISBN 9780765804785
- Reason, Freedom, and Religion: Closing the Gap between the Humanistic and Scientific Study of Religion, Volume 6 of Toronto Studies in Religion, P. Lang 1988, ISBN 9780820406008
Articles and book chapters (recent)
- “Clearing the Underbrush: Moving Beyond Festinger to a New Paradigm for the Study of Failed Prophecy,” in William Swatos and Diana Tumminia, eds., How Prophecy Lives. Leiden, Holland: Brill (forthcoming).
- “Leadership and the Impact of Failed Prophecy on New Religious Movements: The Case of the Church Universal and Triumphant,” in William Swatos and Diana Tumminia, eds., How Prophecy Lives. Leiden, Holland: Brill (forthcoming, with Bradley C. Whitsel).
- “Prophetic Failure and Millennial Movements,” in Catherine Wessinger, ed., Oxford Handbook of Millennialism. New York: Oxford University Press (forthcoming).
- “Charismatic Leadership in Millennialist Movements: Its Nature, Origins, and Development,” in Catherine Wessinger, ed., Oxford Handbook of Millennialism. New York: Oxford University Press (forthcoming).
- “The Study of New Religious Movements and the Radicalization of Home-grown Terrorists: Opening a Dialogue,” Terrorism and Political Violence Vol. 21, No. 1, 2010: 1-21.
- “Church-Sect-Cult: Constructing Typologies of Religious Groups,” Chapter 29 in Peter Clarke, ed., Oxford Handbook of the Sociology of Religion. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008: 525-544.
- “Is there a ‘Renaissance’ of Religion in Canada? A Critical Look at Bibby and Beyond.” Studies in Religion Vol. 37, No. 3-4, 2008: 389-415 (with Joel Thiessen).
- “The Scandal of the Lubavitch Rebbe: Messianism as a Response to Failed Prophecy.” Journal of Contemporary ReligionJournal of Contemporary ReligionThe Journal of Contemporary Religion is a triannual peer-reviewed academic journal which covers anthropological, sociological, psychological, and philosophical aspects of religion.- History and format :...
. Vol. 23, No. 2, 2008: 163-180 (with Simon Dein). - “Civil Religion in America and in Global Context,” in James Beckford and N. J. Demerath III, eds., Handbook of Sociology of Religion. London: Sage, 2007: 251-276; reprinted in Religion, State and Politics, The Open University of Israel, 2008 (with Marcela Cristi).
- “The Meaning and Significance of New Religious Movements,”in David G. Bromley, ed., Teaching About New Religious Movements. New York: Oxford University Press, 2007: 115-134.
- “Privatization, Globalization and Religious Innovation: Giddens’ Theory of Modernity and the Refutation of Secularization,” in James A. BeckfordJames A. BeckfordJames Arthur Beckford is a British sociologist of religion. He is Professor Emeritus of Sociology at the University of Warwick and a Fellow of the British Academy...
and John Walliss, eds., Theorising Religion: Classical and Contemporary Debates. London: Ashgate, 2006: 105-119. - “Psychopathologies and the Attribution of Charisma: A Critical Introduction to the Psychology of Charisma and the Explanation of Violence in New Religious Movements.” Nova ReligioNova ReligioNova Religio is a peer-reviewed religious studies journal that focuses on New Religious Movements. The journal is published by University of California Press, in Berkeley, California...
Vol. 10, No. 2, 2006: 3-28. - “Do Virtual Religious ‘Communities’ Exist? Clarifying the Issues,” in Gorän Larson, ed., Religious Communities on the Internet. Uppsala Swedish Science Press, 2006: 30-46.
- “New Religious Movements,” in Robert Segal, ed., Blackwell Companion to the Study of Religion. Oxford and Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2006: 269-284.
External links
- Home page at the University of WaterlooUniversity of WaterlooThe University of Waterloo is a comprehensive public university in the city of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. The school was founded in 1957 by Drs. Gerry Hagey and Ira G. Needles, and has since grown to an institution of more than 30,000 students, faculty, and staff...
website