Sex Differences in Secularity in Iran

The qualitative study of declining religious influence in society, or secularization, has been conducted almost exclusively in Western societies. As a result, our theoretical understanding of the social psychological and institutional mechanisms driving sex differences in secularity are over-reliant...

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Main Authors: Kevin McCaffree, Anondah Saide, Farinaz Basmechi
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Ubiquity Press 2025-03-01
Series:Secularism and Nonreligion
Online Access:https://account.secularismandnonreligion.org/index.php/up-j-sn/article/view/193
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author Kevin McCaffree
Anondah Saide
Farinaz Basmechi
author_facet Kevin McCaffree
Anondah Saide
Farinaz Basmechi
author_sort Kevin McCaffree
collection DOAJ
description The qualitative study of declining religious influence in society, or secularization, has been conducted almost exclusively in Western societies. As a result, our theoretical understanding of the social psychological and institutional mechanisms driving sex differences in secularity are over-reliant on a relatively small subset of societies. In this study, one of the first of its kind, we examine the process of secularization amongst a sample of men and women raised Muslim in Iran. We draw from 21 in-depth interviews (52% female) to identify three themes central to individuals’ uncertainty about religion. In doing so, we uncover several unexpected findings with little precedence in Western secularization research. Given the dearth of research on sex differences in secularization amongst people raised Muslim in Muslim-majority countries, our results provide new and novel directions for scholars to pursue in future work.
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spelling doaj-art-96e7e784a6a94b5aa29af260f8ce60d72025-08-20T02:27:35ZengUbiquity PressSecularism and Nonreligion2053-67122025-03-01142210.5334/snr.193189Sex Differences in Secularity in IranKevin McCaffree0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8021-5049Anondah Saide1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8409-3464Farinaz Basmechi2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6387-8406University of North TexasUniversity of North TexasUniversity of OttawaThe qualitative study of declining religious influence in society, or secularization, has been conducted almost exclusively in Western societies. As a result, our theoretical understanding of the social psychological and institutional mechanisms driving sex differences in secularity are over-reliant on a relatively small subset of societies. In this study, one of the first of its kind, we examine the process of secularization amongst a sample of men and women raised Muslim in Iran. We draw from 21 in-depth interviews (52% female) to identify three themes central to individuals’ uncertainty about religion. In doing so, we uncover several unexpected findings with little precedence in Western secularization research. Given the dearth of research on sex differences in secularization amongst people raised Muslim in Muslim-majority countries, our results provide new and novel directions for scholars to pursue in future work.https://account.secularismandnonreligion.org/index.php/up-j-sn/article/view/193
spellingShingle Kevin McCaffree
Anondah Saide
Farinaz Basmechi
Sex Differences in Secularity in Iran
Secularism and Nonreligion
title Sex Differences in Secularity in Iran
title_full Sex Differences in Secularity in Iran
title_fullStr Sex Differences in Secularity in Iran
title_full_unstemmed Sex Differences in Secularity in Iran
title_short Sex Differences in Secularity in Iran
title_sort sex differences in secularity in iran
url https://account.secularismandnonreligion.org/index.php/up-j-sn/article/view/193
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