Friday, 14 January 2005 - 10:00 AM

This presentation is part of: Spirituality and Religion

Belief Systems in Faith-Based Human Service Programs

Purpose

“What makes a human service program faith-based?” is a question very much in public discourse these days. The dialogue about faith-based organizations is set within a nonprofit context in which the nature of the voluntary sector is under scrutiny (see for example Cnnan, 1999; Queen, 2000; Salamon, 2002; Sider & Unruh, 2004; Smith & Sosin, 2001; Wineburg 2001). In this paper, we present study results based on extensive interviews with persons involved in diverse service delivery roles in geographically-dispersed, exemplary faith-based programs, with the purpose to examine what makes a human service program faith-based.

Methods

Funded by The Pew Charitable Trusts, a team of researchers from four universities across the United States interviewed stakeholders from promising faith-based programs in four U.S. regions. A grounded theory design (Strauss & Corbin, 1998) was used to conduct in-depth, qualitative interviews with 65 key informants in a purposive sample of 15 organizations having “promising programs.” Semi-structured interview guides were used to ask an average of five stakeholders in each program who represented the following perspectives: administrator, staff, service provider, participant, board member, and collaborator. ATLAS.ti was used to analyze the transcribed interviews using the constant comparison method (Glaser & Strauss, 1967; O'Connor, 2002; Weiss, 1994.)

Results

Of 15 programs studied, 11 were housed in religiously affiliated 501(c) (3) organizations and 4 were located in congregations. All served persons with low incomes. Nine (9) were Protestant, 2 were Catholic, 2 were Muslim, 1 was Jewish, and 1 was Interfaith. As different and unique as each program is, respondent voices are remarkably similar in describing their calls to perform acts of service and to please God, albeit the nuances of evangelical language differ. These great traditions are reflected in study themes called (1) Moral Imperatives to Serve, and (2) Accountability to God. Tied to Accountability to God are lessons learned about the Influence of Mission on Operations, and the importance of Founders, Tradition, and Religious Writings as ways of deeply embedding these traditions in the programmatic culture. The theological-philosophical overviews produce more concrete themes which include Long Term Commitment, Connection with Faith Community, and Faith Practices.

Implications for Policy & Practice

In these programs, tensions in the faith-based debate are embedded in basic assumptions or worldviews that collide at the level of belief interpretation. To date, researchers studying faith-based organizations have focused on artifacts because they are tangible. Our study results reveal a much deeper reality – that the interpretation of beliefs form the assumptions that guide practice in faith-based organizations. If programs are offered in faith-based organizations, those “belief-based” assumptions permeate every choice made and every action taken. The deep drivers of human behavior and practice are found in the specific beliefs and interpretations of individuals who are involved either as leaders or providers of services and participants in faith-based organizations. For many of these individuals in faith-based organizations, mission and accountability to God trumps secular or professional expectations. This has incredible implications for policy and practice.

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