Mon mémoire porte sur le développement personnel. Par le biais de la sociologie des religions mise de l’avant par Thomas Luckmann dans The Invisible Religion (1970 [1967]), je l’appréhende comme une « “nouvelle” forme sociale de religion » (“new” social form of religion). Dans cet ouvrage, le sociologue avance que la religion est devenue, dans les sociétés modernes, une quête de sens existentiel animée par le thème de la réalisation personnelle (self-realization). Définissant la religion comme un système de significations et liant sa forme contemporaine au thème de la réalisation personnelle, l’approche de Luckmann me sert de cadre théorique pour entrevoir le développement personnel comme une manifestation de la religion invisible. N’étant pas rattachée à aucune institution religieuse officielle et se manifestant dans la sphère privée des individus, la religion contemporaine ne serait pas perçue comme telle par les individus et deviendrait — selon Luckmann — invisible. Dans le cadre de mon mémoire, j’interroge l’omniprésence du développement personnel dans le monde contemporain sous l’angle de son « [in]visibilité ». L’enjeu du mémoire est de mener une étude empirique sur le développement personnel afin de rendre visible une manifestation de la religion invisible dans nos vies. À cette fin, j’élabore une méthode permettant d’en discerner la présence dans le monde contemporain. Après une revue de littérature sur le développement personnel, je présente dans le premier chapitre l’ouvrage de Luckmann ainsi que les questions qui se trouvent au cœur de ma recherche. Dans le second chapitre, j’expose la méthode retenue pour saisir une manifestation contemporaine de la religion, c’est-à-dire une analyse de discours de type analytique. Dans le troisième chapitre, je m’attarde à découvrir le ou les modèles de connaissances de cette manifestation souvent associée au domaine du non religieux à partir de lectures des livres de développement personnel sélectionnés pour mon corpus : Le chemin le moins fréquenté (1987 [1978]), Écoute ton corps (1991 [1987]), Les quatre accords Toltèques (1999 [1997]) et Le secret (2007 [2006]). Une fois un « schéma du développement personnel » délinéé, je me consacre, dans le quatrième chapitre, à mettre en exergue la religion invisible dans une religion visible, c’est-à-dire un regroupement qui se considère « religion ». Prenant pour cas d’étude le Mouvement raëlien, je procède à une seconde analyse de discours de trois de ses livres : La méditation sensuelle (1980), Le Message donné par les Extra-Terrestres (1997) et Le Maitraya : extraits de son enseignement (2003). Ce faisant, j’évalue la place de la religion invisible dans des contextes qui se veulent expressément non religieux et religieux. Je conclus mon mémoire en abordant les enjeux liés à la visibilité de la religion et suggère, sur la base de mes résultats, de nouvelles perspectives de recherche pour la sociologie des religions. / My master thesis focuses on personal development. Drawing on the sociology of religion put forward by Thomas Luckmann in his book The Invisible Religion (1970 [1967]), I understand personal development as a “new” social form of religion. In this book, the sociologist argues that religion has become, in modern societies, a quest for existential meaning driven by the theme of self-realization. Defining religion as a system of meanings and linking its contemporary form to self-realization, Luckmann’s approach allows for the development of a theoretical framework that apprehends personal development as one manifestation of the “invisible religion.” Because it is not be perceived as religion, contemporary religion would be—according to Luckmann—be invisible. Not being tied to any official religious institution, the new form of religion would manifest itself in the private sphere. In my thesis, I question the ubiquity of personal development in the contemporary world in terms of its visibility/invisibility. The present thesis is an empirical study on personal development; it aims to make visible one invisible manifestation of religion in our lives. To this end, I develop a method that enables to identify its presence in the contemporary world. After a review of the literature on personal development in the first chapter, I present in my second chapter Luckmann’s book and the questions at the heart of the thesis. In the third chapter, I discuss the method used to capture a contemporary manifestation of religion, a discourse analysis. In the fourth chapter, I seek to uncover the knowledge paradigms of the personal development, often associated with the field of non-religious, by reading a selection of books from this literature : Le chemin le moins fréquenté (1987 [1978]), Écoute ton corps (1991 [1987]), Les quatre accords Toltèques (1999 [1997]) et Le secret (2007 [2006]). After delineating their “meaning system of personal development”, I dedicate myself, in the fifth chapter, to highlight the invisible religion in a “visible” one; a group whose members consider religious, the Raelian Movement. For this purpose, I undertake to a second discourse analysis with sources published by the Movement: La méditation sensuelle (1980), Le Message donné par les Extra-Terrestres (1997) et Le Maitraya: extraits de son enseignement (2003). In doing so, I assess the place of the invisible religion in contexts that are specifically perceived as non-religious and religious. I conclude my thesis by addressing issues related to the visibility of religion and, based on my results, suggest new research perspectives for the sociology of religion.

In this study, religiosity in prison is investigated. What opportunities are there for those detained to practice their religion and how did their religiosity change after they were detained? Six interviews were conducted to gain a better perspective of religiosity in prison. The focus is on Correctional Institution in Kalmar, where surveys have been conducted over a longer period but also the monastery at the Correctional facility in Kumla is discussed. Most interviews were conducted in the prison of Kalmar, in a room where religious conversations are conducted. The inmates’ and the prison guard´s name have been changed to protect their identity. A common thread throughout the interviews is that the religious group often talks about much more than religion. Detainees also talk about their involvement in these talks as an opportunity of breaking the everyday routines that occur in prisons. This strengthens Peter Berger and Thomas Luckmann´s theory that religion is a group phenomenon created, among other things, to feel a social connectedness.

This interview study examined the religiosity of eight Ukrainian refugees. The aim of the bachelor thesis was to study how religiosity and religious commitment are affected as a result of war and flight. The data was collected through eight semi-structured interviews and then analyzed based on previous research and theories, like Charles Glock´s theory of deprivation and Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmanns theory of plausibility structure. The results of the study showed that no one lost their faith in God due to the war, the escape and the arrival in Sweden. For some of the refugees, faith in God had become stronger and religious commitment had increased. This can be explained by the theories about deprivation and change in plausibility structure. The distinguishing feature of the study was that the bomb shelters in Ukraine became a place for faith in God, even for people who had not been religious believers before. The confined place, the physical proximity to other people, the collective in prayer created an important community for the affected people. People who were not believers before the war did not develop a religious faith after the escape. The conclusion of the study was that faith in God becomes tangible in war-torn situations where people fear for their lives. Religious affiliation and community was important for the Ukrainian refugees and was shown for example through increased church involvement in Sweden to find comfort and meaning.

Syftet med studien är att skapa en ökad förståelse inom berörda yrkes- och studentgrupper för hur individer, som blivit rullstolsburna senare i livet, upplever sin identitet och eventuella identitetsförändringar. Resultatet tolkades utifrån Anthony Giddens teorier om senmodernitet och identitet samt Peter L. Berger och Thomas Luckmanns kunskapssociologiska perspektiv. Den tidigare forskningen har berört funktionshinder och identitet utifrån olika aspekter, dock har inte syftet för denna studie behandlats i sin helhet i andra studier. Semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes med sex stycken respondenter för att nå deras upplevelser. Utifrån det material som inkommit genom intervjuerna har åtta stycken kategorier framträtt: självbild, yttre attribut, vanor och rutiner, arbete och fritid, relationer, bemötande från andra, drömmar och planer samt handikappanpassning. I studien framkommer att respondenterna använder framträdande och uppträdande för att påverka den spegling de får av omgivningen. Studien visar även att det har skett en förändring av respondenternas regimer och rutiner. En identitetsförändring har därmed skett hos respondenterna. I studien diskuteras även det faktum att respondenterna själva inte framhåller den identitetsförändring som påvisas i studien. Detta tyder på att respondenterna inte själva tänker på förändringen i sig, de tänker mer indirekt på förändringen genom att denna påverkat dem i olika situationer. I studien framkommer även vikten av det omgivande samhällets attityd gentemot den funktionshindrade när det gäller speglingen av individen. Detta är av relevans för de instanser i samhället som arbetar med frågor rörande funktionshinder.

<p>Syftet med studien är att skapa en ökad förståelse inom berörda yrkes- och studentgrupper för hur individer, som blivit rullstolsburna senare i livet, upplever sin identitet och eventuella identitetsförändringar. Resultatet tolkades utifrån Anthony Giddens teorier om senmodernitet och identitet samt Peter L. Berger och Thomas Luckmanns kunskapssociologiska perspektiv. Den tidigare forskningen har berört funktionshinder och identitet utifrån olika aspekter, dock har inte syftet för denna studie behandlats i sin helhet i andra studier. Semistrukturerade intervjuer genomfördes med sex stycken respondenter för att nå deras upplevelser. Utifrån det material som inkommit genom intervjuerna har åtta stycken kategorier framträtt: självbild, yttre attribut, vanor och rutiner, arbete och fritid, relationer, bemötande från andra, drömmar och planer samt handikappanpassning. I studien framkommer att respondenterna använder framträdande och uppträdande för att påverka den spegling de får av omgivningen. Studien visar även att det har skett en förändring av respondenternas regimer och rutiner. En identitetsförändring har därmed skett hos respondenterna. I studien diskuteras även det faktum att respondenterna själva inte framhåller den identitetsförändring som påvisas i studien. Detta tyder på att respondenterna inte själva tänker på förändringen i sig, de tänker mer indirekt på förändringen genom att denna påverkat dem i olika situationer. I studien framkommer även vikten av det omgivande samhällets attityd gentemot den funktionshindrade när det gäller speglingen av individen. Detta är av relevans för de instanser i samhället som arbetar med frågor rörande funktionshinder.</p>

The purpose of this essay is to analyze the ideology of the cultural phenomenon, that is as political as it is controversial, the new atheism. By studying the ideas and values of four prominent new atheists, commonly referred to as the ‘four horsemen of the new atheism’, Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris, Christopher Hitchens, and Daniel Dennett, this study aims to, in some ways challenge, and in others, nuance, the categorization of the movement. Its adherents have often been labeled as, for example: ‘secular fundamentalists’, ‘evangelical’ and ‘radical secularists’. None of these designations are inherently wrong. But I think there is a more fitting term available: ‘societal secular maximalist’. This term is a modified version of ‘religious maximalism’, coined by the historian of religion at the University of Chicago, Bruce Lincoln. I argue that the new atheist ideology is not fundamentalistic because it admits fallibility if another theory where to disprove it within its own scientific discourse. Considering this fact, it does not hold is central ideological feature, most commonly a Darwinist theory of evolution, as absolute. Due to this, and some other factors, I argue that the societal secular maximalist categorization is more fitting because the scientific and humanistic views of the ‘four horsemen’ lay claim to all aspects of human existence, private and public, emotional, and factual along with the morals, ethics and aesthetics of our societies.