A Phenomenological Analysis of Spiritual Seeking: Listening to Quester Voices

摘要

Prominent scholars have appealed for the use of diverse research methodologies to enhance ongoing work in the psychology of religion and spirituality. This article represents, to our knowledge, the first phenomenological investigation into quest religiosity. Results confirm earlier suggestions by Klaassen and McDonald (2001) that multiple, complex pathways or manifestations of quest are conceivable. Expressions of quest were identified by descriptions of spiritual and/or religious experience from questers who also retained varying degrees of faith commitments. Results suggest that several dimensions of quest religiosity have not been sufficiently understood, including its relational costs and a dialectic between making and abandoning commitments. We suggest that these results build on ideological surround analysis of religious orientation by confirming key elements of the quest model while identifying biased assumptions that limit the adequacy of current quest conceptualization. Further qualitative and longitudinal investigations are needed to understand the nuanced, socially embedded expressions of quest religiosity.