Modernization and Secularization: The Case of Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam University

Authors : Ömer Faruk Darende
Pages : 277-310
Doi:10.33460/beuifd.1766987
View : 50 | Download : 81
Publication Date : 2025-12-30
Article Type : Research Paper
Abstract :Modernization is the process of social change that begins with industrialization and this process is an important movement that affects many aspects of daily life. Modernization is not only limited to economic or technological changes, but also leads to radical transformations in socio-cultural areas. Therefore, it is necessary to consider modernity in a comprehensive framework that includes all the changes that occur in a society with the introduction of industrial technology. In analyzing this situation, secularization also emerges as an important element and is a key concept in the sociology of religion, which generally refers to the declining influence of religion in the modern world. Therefore, this research was conducted in the sample of Kahramanmaraş Sütçü İmam University students in order to examine the effects of modernization and secularization processes on individuals in depth. Conducted in Kahramanmaraş, which has an important place in Turkey\\\'s socio-cultural diversity, this research aims to understand how young individuals perceive the concepts of modernization and secularization and how these concepts interact with their daily life, belief and worship practices. In the research, the survey technique was used as a quantitative data collection method; the data obtained in this way were analyzed with the SPSS program. The questions addressed to the participants were compiled in detail under headings such as perception of modernity, secular life tendencies, levels of religious belief and worship, and daily life practices. In this context, both modernity and secularity scales were used and the views of the participants were systematically analyzed. Correlation analyses conducted on the data obtained from a total of 343 students revealed that there were significant relationships between these four variables. According to the findings, a positive and significant relationship was observed between modernity and secularization (r = 0.273, p < 0.01). Similarly, statistically significant relationships were found between modernity and daily life practices (r = 0.261) and levels of faith and worship (r = 0.238). One of the most striking results is the presence of very strong positive correlations between secularization and daily life (r = 0.922) and faith-worship (r = 0.911). This shows that secularization is not experienced in the classical sense of opposition to or distancing from religion, but rather as a transformation in individual practices and lifestyles. It has been observed that the participants are generally both open to modern values and able to maintain their religious beliefs and practices. The research shows that secularization can be considered not as a one-way religious dissolution in society, but rather as the emergence of individual interpretations and alternative lifestyles. Another striking result of the research is the high correlation between secularization and religious practices. This can be interpreted as a tendency towards individualization of religious life rather than disappearance of religious values in the Turkish context. Moreover, modernity was found to be more weakly correlated with other variables. This finding suggests that modern values operate relatively independently of religious life. The fact that the majority of the participants come from low-educated families and inequalities in income distribution is an important finding that reveals the intersection of modernization and secularization processes with socioeconomic factors. The fact that health sciences and vocational schools are predominantly included in the sample constitutes a limitation in terms of the generalizability of the findings. In conclusion, this study points to a process of social transformation in which modernization and secularization can coexist in the context of university youth in Turkey. The research reveals the need to rethink the sociological concepts of modernization and secularization and the importance of addressing these processes together with local cultural dynamics.
Keywords : Din Sosyolojisi, Modernleşme, Sekülerleşme, İnanç, İbadet

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