Call for papers: MSSA annual meeting in Pittsburgh, PA, October 18-20, 2024

Our main MSSA meeting is held conjointly each year with the SSSR + RRA annual meeting.

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania skyline

Image by C. Klein from Pixabay.

The Mormon Social Science Association welcomes paper submissions for its annual meeting, held conjointly with the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion + Religious Research Association annual meeting. The event will take place at the Westin Convention Center, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, from October 18 to 20, 2024.

We invite contributions on all topics relevant to the social scientific study of Mormonism, with special interest in those featuring multiculturalism, gender/sexuality, post-colonialism, generational change, and questions of disaffiliation/retention. The theme of the 2024 SSSR+RRA annual meeting is “Religion: Past, Present, and Future.”

Submissions Close: March 15, 2024

The MSSA invites proposals for:

  • Individual papers
  • Session proposals
  • Book panel proposals

Submit proposals through this link by Friday March 15th, 2024

Join the MSSA

As an interdisciplinary and international association, the MSSA promotes the social scientific study of Mormonism and facilitates communication and collaboration among researchers, educators and students. Membership is open to all. We sponsor scholarly conferences, publications, panel discussions, paper sessions,  and the biennial Glenn M. Vernon Lecture. Join us today

Call for Papers: April 18, 2024 MSSA One-Day Conference at Utah Tech University in Saint George, Utah

Photo: Utah Tech University photo database

The Mormon Social Science Association welcomes paper submissions for our One-Day Conference at Utah Tech University in St. George, Utah on Thursday, April 18, 2024. In addition to paper sessions, there is time and space for research posters from undergraduate and graduate students. Poster proposals should include a title and abstract and specify that it is a poster proposal. Title and abstract should be 150 to 250 words.

Submissions close March 19, 2024.

The MSSA invites submissions on all topics relevant to the social scientific study of Mormonism:

  • Individual Papers
  • Session Proposals
  • Panels
  • Author-Meets-Critics sessions
  • Posters

Submit proposals by March 19th through this link.

2023 SSSR + RRA Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City Utah

Angel Moroni statue; engraved doorknob, Salt Lake City Mormon temple

The annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR) and the Religious Research Association (RRA) will take place in Salt Lake City, Utah from October 20-22, 2023. During the event, the MSSA will host numerous sessions devoted to Mormon Studies. The Salt Lake Tribune’s Senior Religion Reporter Peggy Fletcher Stack will deliver our biennial Glenn M. Vernon Lecture.

We look forward to welcoming you to Utah!

Explore the full SSSR+RRA preliminary program.

Mormon Social Science Association Program

Friday, October 20th

1: 10 – 2:40 PM | Session C-9 SSSR – Mormonism and Disaffiliation

  • Mormonism In Extremis: Threats Along the Covenant Path
  • Beyond disenchantment and disaffiliation: Meaning-making for women after Mormonism
  • Garments and the Construction of Mormon Bodies

2:50 – 4:20 PM | Session D-10 SSSR Far-Right Conservative Mormonism in the United States

  • This is Not an Official Site”: Theological Speculation and Discussion on the LDS Freedom Forum
  • Navigating Boundaries in Mormon Spaces on Far-Right Social Media
  • Far-Right Sympathies Among US Mormons: Demographic and Ideological Factors That Predict Support for DezNat and Christian Nationalism
  • Fissures, Factions, and Fault Lines? Death Penalty Support among Latter-day Saints Reconsidered

5:00 PM | Salt Lake City Cemetery Tour – with historian Matthew Bowman. Spaces are limited; MSSA members and guests should RSVP as soon as possible.

Saturday, October 21st

9:00 – 10:30 AM | Session E-2 SSSR – Glenn M. Vernon Lecture by Peggy Fletcher Stack

  • Covering an Evolving Mormonism: A Journalist’s Barometer of Prophets, Problems, and Progress

10:40 – 12:10 | Session F-6 SSSR – On the Genesis of the Sociology of Mormonism and the University of Utah

  • Panel discussion

10:40 – 12:10 | Session F-11 SSSR – Latter-day Saint Self-Reliance and Social Justice

  • The Self-Reliance Initiative: A Method of Revelatory Liberal Capitalism
  • How Mormons Are Building Zion Among the Poor Worldwide: Sustainable Grassroots Strategies with Social Impacts
  • The LDS Self-Reliance Initiative in Peru and Utah

12:15 | MSSA Business Meeting and pizza lunch – room TBA, all members welcome

6:00 | Informal MSSA dinner – details to be announced during the business meeting, all members welcome

Sunday, October 22nd

9:00 – 10:30 | Session I-1 SSSR: Envisioning Empowerment and Oppression

  • Neophytes and Lamanites: Handsome Lake and the Book of Mormon
  • Joseph’s Adventures in Dream Land: utilizing psychobiology and ascription theory to explore visionary experiences and their contested narrative descriptions
  • Oh! slavery how I hate thee!’: Perspectives of European Latter-day Saint emigrants on American slavery

9:00 – 10:30 | Session I-10 SSSR – Latter-day Saint Sexual Minorities: When Is Religion Helpful? When Is It Harmful? How Does It Work?

  • The Various Ways Being Latter-day Saint Relates to Health for Sexual Minorities
  • How Religiousness Promotes (and Does not Promote) Flourishing among Latter-day Saint Sexual Minorities
  • Establishing the Temporal Relationship Between Religious Commitment, Sexual Identity Struggles, and Religious Struggles Among Sexual Minority Latter-day Saints

2023 Glenn M. Vernon Lecture: Peggy Fletcher Stack

This year, the Glenn M. Vernon Lecture will be given by award-winning journalist Peggy Fletcher Stack, who will reflect on over 30 years of covering Mormonism for the Salt Lake Tribune. Stack has received a lifetime achievement award from the Religion Newswriters Association as well as many other awards for specific news stories. She is the interim executive director of the International Association of Religion Journalists (IARJ), author of the book “A World of Faiths,” and co-host of the Salt Lake Tribune’s popular “Mormon Land” podcast.

About the Vernon Lectures

Every two years, the association invites a distinguished thinker in Mormon Studies to present the Glenn M. Vernon Lecture. The lecture honors the legacy of Glenn M. Vernon, a pioneer in Mormon studies, and the first president of the Society for the Sociological Study of Mormon Life, which later became MSSA. It is intended to be an original contribution to the study of Mormon life and an edited version of the lecture is stored in the MSSA archive.

Join the MSSA

As an interdisciplinary and international association, the MSSA promotes the social scientific study of Mormonism and facilitates communication and collaboration among researchers, educators and students. Membership is open to all. We sponsor scholarly conferences, publications, panel discussions, paper sessions,  and the biennial Glenn M. Vernon Lecture. Join us today.

Give to the MSSA

The Armand Mauss Founders’ Fund supports the costs of the Vernon Lecture, honoraria for other invited speakers, student paper awards, student travel assistance, MSSA sponsored publications and other organizational expenses deemed appropriate by the Board of Directors.

Mormon Social Science Association One-day Conference, Utah Tech University, April 15, 2023

Campus building Utah Tech University

Revived after several years of pandemic-related hiatus, our One-Day MSSA conference is hosted by Dr. Nancy Ross of Utah Tech University. The event takes place on the Utah Tech campus, in the College of Education building (COE), Room 121, on April 15th, 2023 in St. George, Utah.

Join the conversation on social media and include the hashtag: #MormonStudies

Twitter /X @MormonMSSA

Facebook: MormonMSSA

Program


10:00 AM  Mormonism, Gender, and Power: Considering New Frontiers, Spaces, and Frameworks

“Understanding Spousal Power in Latter-day Saint Marriages”

“LDS Women in Interfaith Spaces”

“Researching Global Mormon Women: Reflections on Ethics, Methods, and Challenges”

1:00 PM Studies with Interviews

“The Hymns of Kolob: Affective Secularism and Entheogenic Spirituality”

“Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints accepting a transgender or gender diverse (TGD) child”

“Secret Combinations: Unique Formations within Mormon QAnon”

2:15 PM Material Culture and History

“Heterotopian Sacroscape: Cemeteries in Short Creek and Centennial Park”

“Conceptualizing Emigrant Motives Of British Latter-day Saints, 1840-60”

“Garments and Secrecy”

October 20­-22, 2023 SSSR + RRA Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah

The Mormon Social Science Association welcomes paper submissions for its annual meeting, held conjointly with the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion + Religious Research Association annual meeting in Salt Lake City from October 20 to 22, 2023.

Given the Salt Lake City location this year, we are hoping to have a robust slate of programming, which will include multiple MSSA sessions, journalist Peggy Fletcher Stack as the Glenn Vernon lecturer, and at least one off-site event. 

We invite contributions on all topics relevant to the social scientific study of Mormonism, with special interest in those featuring multiculturalism, gender/sexuality, post-colonialism, generational change, and questions of disaffiliation/retention. The theme of the 2023 SSSR+RRA annual meeting is Religion: Empowering or Oppressing People and Communities?”

The MSSA invites proposals for:

  • Individual Papers
  • Session Proposals
  • Panels
  • Author-Meets-Critics sessions

Submissions Open: February 1, 2023
Submissions Close: March 24, 2023

Submit paper proposals through this link by March 24.

Questions: Dr. Jana Riess, flunkingsainthood@admin

DOWNLOAD CONFERENCE POSTER PDF

Join the MSSA

As an interdisciplinary and international association, the MSSA promotes the social scientific study of Mormonism and facilitates communication and collaboration among researchers, educators and students. Membership is open to all. We sponsor scholarly conferences, publications, panel discussions, paper sessions,  and the biennial Glenn M. Vernon Lecture. Join us today.

April 15, 2023 MSSA One-day Conference at Utah Tech University in St. George, Utah

Our One-Day MSSA conference is being revived after several years of pandemic-related hiatus, and we are delighted that Dr. Nancy Ross of Utah Tech University, has agreed to coordinate the event. Rather than having competing breakout sessions, we will all be meeting in the same room, with plenty of time for discussion.

The MSSA invites submissions for:

  • Individual Papers
  • Session Proposals
  • Panels
  • Author-Meets-Critics sessions
  • Posters

Submit paper proposals through this link by March 20, 2023.

Submissions Open: February 1, 2023
Submissions Close: March 20, 2023

Questions: nancy.ross@utahtech.edu

DOWNLOAD CONFERENCE POSTER PDF

C. William Campbell wins 2021 Gordon and Gary Shepherd Graduate Student Paper Award

Congratulations to C. William Campbell, winner of the 2021 Gordon and Gary Shepherd Graduate Student Paper Award. This annual competition supports and promotes student research in the social scientific study of Mormon life. The winning paper, “There are never too many miles to travel”: A Case for LDS Temple Attendance as Pilgrimage, was recognized for its excellence and contributions to the field of Mormon Studies.    C. William Campbell is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Victoria.

Read the abstract:

The existing scholarly literature that examines pilgrimage practices amongst members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) is limited to pilgrimage to historical sites and Salt Lake City’s Temple Square. Otherwise, the literature states that pilgrimage is not an important aspect of LDS practice. This essay challenges this, arguing that pilgrimage is an integral aspect of regular LDS practice manifest in the form of temple attendance. I draw on official rhetoric, lay understanding, and scripture to make the case that LDS temple attendance constitutes pilgrimage. Furthermore, I draw attention to the way the conceptual tool of pilgrimage can direct the attention of social sciences to the ways Latter-day Saints move across religious landscapes and the impact of those movements.

About the award:

The Gordon and Gary Shepherd Graduate Student Paper Award recognizes and supports the work of graduate students who are doing significant social scientific research in Mormon Studies. It also encourages their active participation in the Mormon Social Science Association (MSSA).

Eligibility and Submission Requirements

To be eligible for the award, individuals must be enrolled as graduate students in a master’s or doctoral program at a certified public or private college or university.

Student papers must address a topic relevant to the scholarly understanding of Mormon life, including either the social, cultural, or religious dimensions of Mormonism. Learn more at mormonsocialscience.org.

In Remembrance of Armand L. Mauss, 1928-2020 | Mormon Social Science Association Pioneer, Patron and Mentor

Armand Mauss, honorary plaque

Armand L. Mauss, MSSA pioneer, patron, and mentor, passed away at his home in Irvine, California August 1, 2020, concluding a long struggle with cancer at age 92. The immediate cause of his death was heart failure.  Armand placed himself in home hospice care just a little over a year ago and survived far longer than initial expectations.  His yearlong vigil was blessed with an absence of pain and retention of a clear mind. He communicated regularly with family, friends, and colleagues through phone calls, emails, and letters, and he  welcomed visitors to his Irvine condo.  During this time Armand maintained a typically detached and pragmatic view of himself and his circumstances. He confronted his dying with equanimity and, although certainly not a conventional believer, did fondly anticipate reuniting with his beloved Ruth, who had passed away a few months prior to Armand’s own entry into hospice care.

Perhaps Armand’s greatest satisfaction during his final year of life derived from his capacity to continue fully engaging in multiple conversations with others.  He stayed current on events religious and political; dispensed sage advice and spot-on suggestions to colleagues working on a wide range of scholarly projects that interested him; and offered assessments of his personal involvements and  encounters with significant people and events over his lifetime that were fascinating and insightful without lapsing into self-aggrandizement. 

Most MSSA members are well aware of Armand’s many signal accomplishments and contributions.  In subsequent days, a number of eulogistic accounts of his life and work will no doubt appear in newspapers, social media, and various scholarly venues.  Our own on-line virtual MSSA conference proceedings in late October will include an Armand Mauss in memoriam session. For those who would like to see immediate summaries of some of Armand’s contributions, we offer below Gary Shepherd’s assessment of Armand’s specific contributions to Mormon Studies  at the 2002 Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (SSSR) meetings and Gordon Shepherd’s review of Armand’s 2012 autobiography, Shifting Borders and a Tattered Passport: Intellectual Journeys of a Mormon Academic.

MORMON SOCIAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATION 2020 CALL FOR PAPERS

October 23-25, 2020 | Westin Convention Center | Pittsburgh, PA

The Mormon Social Science Association (MSSA) invites proposals for individual papers, panels or author meets critics sessions for the 2020 annual conference, held conjointly with the meetings of the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion and the Religious Research Association (SSSR). We invite contributions on all topics relevant to the social scientific study of Mormonism, with special interest in those featuring multiculturalism, gender/sexuality, post-colonialism, generational change, and questions of disaffiliation/retention. Proposals should include a paper/panel title, a 250-word abstract, and the names, contact information, and institutional affiliation of all participants.

Submissions Open: January 10, 2020
Submissions Close: April 20, 2020
Decision Notification: April 30, 2020

Please submit proposals to Janna Riess flunkingsainthood@gmail.com and Gordon Shepherd at: gordons@uca.edu

As an interdisciplinary and international association, the MSSA promotes the social scientific study of Mormon­ism and facil­itates communication and collaboration among re­searchers, edu­cators and students. Membership is open to all. We sponsor scholarly conferences, publi­ca­tions, panel discussions, paper sessions, and the biennial Glenn M. Vernon Lecture. Join us today.

Download a printable PDF of the Call for Papers

MSSA Annual Meeting 2018 | Tropicana Hotel | Las Vegas, Nevada | October 26-28

MSSA_SSSR + RRA Speakers_2018 LAS VEGAS 2

Mormon Social Science Association Annual Meeting

#MormonStudies

Join us for the Annual Meeting of the MSSA, October 26-28, 2018 at the Tropicana Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Click on the PDF link above for an “At a Glance” conference line-up.

The MSSA gathering is held annually in conjunction with the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion and the Religious Research Association  (SSSR + RRA). The full program for #SSSR2018LV is available online here.