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CONNECTING THE DOTS BETWEEN FAITH AND LIFE: A NARRATIVE STUDY OF EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN EMERGING ADULTS AFTER COLLEGE by NATHAN COOK BYRD, III Under the Direction of Wendy E. A. Ruona ABSTRACT The purpose of this narrative study was to gain understanding into the faith development of Christian emerging adults after graduation who were leaders in a Christian collegiate ministry while undergraduates at a large southern university. Three questions guided the narrative interview process and data analysis. First, how does the faith of Christian emerging adults change after college graduation? Second, how do emerging adults negotiate the relationship between faith and identity? Third, what happens in the experience and expression of faith during emerging adulthood? Two face-to-face interviews were conducted with each of the fourteen participants seeking to elicit narratives of faith development and experience. Participants were also asked to select and bring an artifact, representative of their faith or faith journey, to the first interview. After the initial interview, narrative analysis was conducted and initial findings were discussed with each participant in a second interview. Narrative analysis of the data revealed five key findings: (a) faith was influenced by each participant’s relationship with others; (b) faith was influenced by “the bubble” constructed by each participant. The bubble is the cultural environment that gives meaning to one’s life and experiences while providing insulation from influences contrary to one’s chosen or preferred perspective; (c) the significance of faith was indicated and influenced by each participant’s activities; (d) each participant’s faith was influenced by mystical experiences; and (e) faith development was influenced and motivated by his or her hopes and dreams for the future. Four conclusions were derived from the themes. First, the participants in this study operationalized their faith. Second, faith remained vital through emerging adulthood. Third, participants negotiated faith and identity within the bubble; the culturally situated, holistic, worldview that serves as the lens through which each participant viewed and made meaning of the world. The bubble was also an insulator from unwanted “differences.” Fourth, self-authorship was a continuous narrative process mediated through experience and relationships. INDEX WORDS: Faith development, emerging adulthood, narrative analysis, narrative identity, self-authorship CONNECTING THE DOTS BETWEEN FAITH AND LIFE: A NARRATIVE STUDY OF EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN EMERGING ADULTS AFTER COLLEGE by NATHAN COOK BYRD, III B.A., Georgia Southern College, 1985 MDiv., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 1989 A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of The University of Georgia in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY ATHENS, GEORGIA 2011 © 2011 Nathan Cook Byrd, III All Rights Reserved CONNECTING THE DOTS BETWEEN FAITH AND LIFE: A NARRATIVE STUDY OF EVANGELICAL CHRISTIAN EMERGING ADULTS AFTER COLLEGE by NATHAN COOK BYRD, III Major Professor: Wendy E. A. Ruona Committee: Robert Hill Juanita Johnson-Bailey Karen Massey Electronic Version Approved: Maureen Grasso Dean of the Graduate School The University of Georgia May 2011 iv DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to Karen Fields Byrd, my partner in life, without whose love, support, and encouragement I would not have finished the course; and to Nathan C. Byrd, Jr. (1922-2004), who taught me that the foundation for successful campus ministry is to “love God and love students.” v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Many people have influenced the writing of this dissertation. Numerous professors in the Adult Education program at The University of Georgia expanded my horizons while teaching me to research and write. I have also learned volumes from my classmates over the past six years of class work and research. Study participants – Thank you for giving me access into your lives. Talking with you and working with your narratives has been holy work for me. Your transparency has helped me become a better campus minister. Dr. Wendy Ruona – Thank you for coaching me through this process. Even though the subject was out of your expertise, you were willing to work with me. Your demand for clarity in my writing pushed me to produce better work than I thought was possible. Your constant encouragement and gentle reminders will always be appreciated. Dr. Juanita Johnson-Bailey – Thank you for filling a gap in my committee and serving as my methodologist. You taught me how to conduct narrative research while honoring the stories as holy representations of people’s lives. Dr. Bob Hill – Your attention to nuances of philosophy, spirituality, and language has provided me with hours of thoughtful inquiry and introspection. Thank you for asking tough questions that have forced me to examine my biases and to be more open to each individual’s construction of faith and spirituality. Dr. Karen Massey – Thank you for driving to Athens from the McAfee School of Theology of Mercer University to bring a Christian educator’s perspective to this vi committee. Your challenges to my assumptions helped me to dive deeper into understanding emerging adult faith development. Fred Prasuhn – Thank you for the many ways you have helped me over the past six years. Your knowledge of Christian education literature, qualitative methods, , research skills, and Christian ministry has assisted me on countless occasions. Thank you for serving as a peer debriefer and forcing me to look more closely at my subjectivity in this research. The respites at the farm and conversations over meals have made the stress more manageable. I am honored to have you as a colleague and to know you as a friend. Sherri Lawless and Walt McBride – your friendship and encouragement since my first class at UGA have enabled me to complete this research. Our conversations in class and at lunches along the way kept me sane. Franklin Scott, Karen Shumaker, and Dr. Joe Graham, colleagues at the Baptist Center – thank you for giving me the time, space, and resources to do this work. Our conversations about the subject of emerging adult faith development helped me process my thoughts. I pray collegiate ministry at UGA and around the state will be strengthened because of this research. Dr. Warren C. Fields – Thank you for your willingness to proof my drafts of each chapter and to edit the final document. Your thoughtful critiques and attention to verbiage and grammar has made this dissertation much stronger. The quiet support and helpful conversations over the past six years have inspired me to do the hard work to “earn” a doctorate in philosophy. Karen Fields Byrd – Without your encouragement, I would have never finished this degree. Your patience has been amazing. Your love and support of me during this vii arduous process has been tremendous. Thank you for picking up my slack at home while I worked on evenings and weekends. The help you provided editing multiple drafts of my papers and of this document was invaluable! I feel like this has been a family project. Natalie, Nick, and Karlie, my amazing children – Thank you for giving me time to research and write over the past six years. Karlie, I will never forget your comment earlier this year, “Some daddies work and get finished, but you don’t.” Karlie, I am finished working now. Let’s go play! viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................ xii LIST OF FIGURES ......................................................................................................... xiv CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................1 Lack of Participation in Religious Organizations .........................................2 The Postmodern Milieu .................................................................................4 The Problem of Categorizing Faith Development ........................................5 Problem Statement ......................................................................................13 Purpose of Study .........................................................................................14 Significance of Study ..................................................................................14 Definitions of Terms .................................................................................117 2 REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE .................................................................20 Conceptualizing Spirituality, Religion, and Faith .......................................24 Conceptualizing Change in Faith, Human Development, and Education ...39 Human Development ...................................................................................47 Faith Development ......................................................................................88 Chapter Summary ......................................................................................125 3 METHODOLOGY ........................................................................................126 ix Research Design ........................................................................................127 Pilot Study .................................................................................................137