The Mormon Social Science Association (MSSA) exists for the purpose of promoting and sharing the scholarly study of Mormon life. Any person with an interest in the study of the social, cultural, or religious life of Mormons is eligible to join. MSSA provides contact and association among researchers and educators working in both academic and applied settings. It is interdisciplinary and international in scope and purpose. The association participates in the annual joint meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR) and the Religious Research Association (RRA). MSSA also publishes and distributes a semi-annual newsletter to its members.

Spring 2009 Newsletter

Sat, 2009-05-23 13:22 — admin

The Spring 2009 MSSA Newsletter is now available online (see link below). If you were a member, you would have received this a month ago.

Mormon Media Studies Interest Group Listserve

Mon, 2009-05-11 11:19 — admin
MORMON MEDIA STUDIES INTEREST GROUP LISTSERVE:
INFORMATION AND INVITATION TO JOIN
The Mormon Media Studies Interest Group was formed 26 February 2009 by a group of faculty members in the Department of Communications at Brigham Young University. The group’s e-mail distribution list was launched 9 March 2009. It moved to a listserve format on 28 April 2009.

2008 Business Meeting Minutes

Thu, 2009-04-16 14:28 — admin

Attached find the 2008 Business Meeting Minutes

Ask an Expert: Best sources on Mormon myth and sacred narrative

Tue, 2009-02-24 14:38 — admin

Q: I will begin a PhD program soon on the subject of Mormon myth and sacred narrative. I wonder if I could be pointed toward any research which might have been done previously on the place of myth as stories with culturally formative power that might be categorized broadly under headings like Restoration, Revelation, Missionary Stories, and stories of healing and encouragement. These would include stories on the Pre-Existence/Pre-Mortal Life, the First Vision, the Westward Trek/Pioneer Narrative, The Plan of Salvation/Personal missionary narratives, etc.

Ask an Expert: funding sources for graduate school and research on Mormonism

Tue, 2009-02-24 14:30 — admin

Q: I wonder if you might have some thoughts on something. I'm beginning graduate school in religious studies and am looking at ways to raise funds for my research degree on Mormonism, Mormon sacred narratives, and their place in Mormon-evangelical dialogue. I am aware of the Fellowship Applications for visiting faculty through the Tanner Humanities Center, but do you have any suggestions as to possible funding, scholarship, or fellowship sources for a scholar looking to earn a PhD through research and a dissertation that adds something unique to Mormon studies and interreligious?

Ask an Expert: Alcohol use among the FLDS?

Tue, 2009-01-27 11:44 — admin
Q: I know that the LDS Church proscribes against alcohol consumption and I would like to know more about use of alcohol among the FLDS.  Could you point me in the right direction, please?

A: Thanks to the MSSA network, we have access to several people who are qualified to answer this question.  Our first response comes from Janet Bennion, who has conducted extensive fieldwork among polygamists and the FLDS:

Mormon Studies Fellowship at the University of Utah

Sat, 2009-01-17 19:06 — admin
The Tanner Humanities Center is pleased to announce it has been awarded a grant from the George S. and Dolores Doré Eccles Foundation for $36,000 to establish the Eccles Fellowship in Mormon Studies.  The award has been designated to support two doctoral students in researching and writing their dissertations ($18,000 stipend for each), one in 2009 and one in 2010. This fellowship targets Ph.D.

Applied Social Science Position

Sat, 2008-11-01 17:21 — admin

Two Full-Time Positions

Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
Salt Lake City, UT

Fall 2008 Newsletter

Sat, 2008-10-11 17:43 — admin

The latest newsletter is attached. Inside is a list of SSSR sessions with Mormonism-related themes or articles. The feature is a novel piece of research on how LDS and other religious groups think about the Nauvoo Temple.

(If you'd like to receive the newsletter when it comes out, make sure you are up to date on your dues by contacting Michael McBride - details in the newsletter.)

Ask an Expert: Retention Rates and Future Missionaries

Thu, 2008-10-09 18:55 — admin
Q: I am researching the recent changes in missionary work and am trying to find out how to get a hold of retention rates for the church as a whole.  Do you have any idea how I might find this type of information?  I am also trying to figure out how to get numbers of potential missionaries, that is, the number of young men ages 19 that are the right age to serve missions so that I might be able to compare percentages before and after raising the bar on missionary standards.  Finally, I want to make sure I have not missed any recent works
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