7.2.3

New Age Movements

Test yourself

New Age Movements

New Age movements are an alternative to traditional religion.

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New Age movements

  • New Age movements are an alternative to traditional religion.
  • These movements promote self-spirituality, meaning that the individual can customise their own experience rather than be dictated to by an established hierarchy.
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 Examples

  • Examples of popular New Age movements include:
    • Yoga.
    • Reiki.
    • Feng Sui.
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Heelas et al.

  • Heelas et al. conducted research into the rise of New Age movements within the rural community of Kendal in the Lake District.
  • This is known as the Kendal Project.
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The Kendal Project

  • Kendal was selected as church attendance was double the national average, showing that religion was still relevant in the area. 
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Conclusions

  • Although traditional church attendance was still the dominant religious experience, they claimed that New Age movements reflected the self-interested nature of our society and therefore are more relevant to the contemporary individual.
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Subjectivisation

  • According to Heelas et al., this process signifies the increasing ‘subjectivisation’ of spiritual belief. 
  • Meaning that individuals will pick and choose elements of beliefs systems they want to adhere to.   

Jump to other topics

1Theory & Methods

2Education with Methods in Context

3Option 1: Culture & Identity

4Option 1: Families & Households

5Option 1: Health

6Option 1: Work, Poverty & Welfare

7Option 2: Beliefs in Society

8Option 2: Global Development

9Option 2: The Media

10Crime & Deviance

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