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Series:   Elements in New Religious Movements

Fieldwork in New Religious Movements

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 December 2023

George D. Chryssides
George D. Chryssides
Affiliation:
York St John University

Summary

New religious movements are often described as bizarre and sinister. Direct acquaintance, however, often gives a different impression from media portrayals and even from some academic writing. After decades of undertaking fieldwork, the author George Chryssides discusses his experiences, as well as studies by other scholars, and the issues that fieldwork involves. How do one's personal beliefs and lifestyle impinge on field research? How involved should a participant–observer become? How should we assess what we are told by insiders and ex-members? What ethical problems does field research create? How should we engage in online fieldwork, arising from the increasing use of the Internet, accelerated by the Covid pandemic? These are among the issues which this Element explores, and which will be of interest both to field researchers and to those who read about the fieldwork of others.
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Keywords

cultsfieldworknew religious movementsreligion onlineparticipant–observationresearch ethics
Type
Element
Information
Series: Elements in New Religious Movements
Online ISBN: 9781009278713
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication: 22 February 2024

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