Problematizing Christian Hegemony in Higher Education Research: A Systematic Review of Large-Scale Survey Measures

• In Event: Problematizing Power, Politics, and Hegemony in the Campus Environment

Abstract

This paper critically examines several large-scale surveys used to understand religion, spirituality, and secularity in U.S. higher education. While the types of learning and development as well as contextual dimensions measured in these surveys relate to particular intercultural knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors, these tools are not theorized and operationalized inclusively or in ways that attend to systemic power imbalances. As such, they fail to illuminate religious and secular marginality or dismantle the hegemonic Christian worldview, excluding many religious and secular minorities from our understanding and consideration of cultural diversity issues in higher education. This paper invites scholars interested in religion, spirituality, and secularity in higher education to join and maintain a formal research collective grounded in a critical functionalist perspective.

Authors

• Sachi Edwards, Soka University, Japan

• Jeremy T. Snipes, Southern Illinois University - Edwardsville

• Lisa Davidson, Loyola University Chicago