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Seeking Former CoS Members to Interview for Sociological Dissertation Study

Sean Currie

New Member
Dear all:

I'm a sociology doctoral candidate at the University of South Florida conducting a research study on disaffiliation from the Church of Scientology and the Watch Tower Society (Jehovah’s Witnesses) and am seeking adults 18 years of age or older in the Central or South Florida areas who would like to take part in a confidential interview with me about their experiences in leaving these organizations. I am also interested in learning about former members’ current religious affiliations or spiritual pursuits, if any. The interview should last from one to three hours.

My study specifically looks at how and why people leave “closed” religious communities that demand much of their members. By participating in this interview, you will be contributing to an important area of academic study of which little research has been done.

The interview will be recorded using an audio-recorder, and I will transcribe the interview so I may compare it with interviews of other former members. I will be the only person conducting and transcribing the interviews. The interview will be strictly confidential and I will remove all identifying information when I discuss these interviews in my study.

If you or anyone you know may be interested in participating or learning more about this study, please contact me via email at [email protected].

Thank you for your time and consideration, and I hope to hear from you.

Sincerely,

Sean Currie
Ph.D. Candidate/Graduate Assistant
Department of Sociology
University of South Florida
4202 E. Fowler Ave., CPR 107
Tampa, FL 33620
 

Purple Rain

Crusader
Dear all:

I'm a sociology doctoral candidate at the University of South Florida conducting a research study on disaffiliation from the Church of Scientology and the Watch Tower Society (Jehovah’s Witnesses) and am seeking adults 18 years of age or older in the Central or South Florida areas who would like to take part in a confidential interview with me about their experiences in leaving these organizations. I am also interested in learning about former members’ current religious affiliations or spiritual pursuits, if any. The interview should last from one to three hours.

My study specifically looks at how and why people leave “closed” religious communities that demand much of their members. By participating in this interview, you will be contributing to an important area of academic study of which little research has been done.

The interview will be recorded using an audio-recorder, and I will transcribe the interview so I may compare it with interviews of other former members. I will be the only person conducting and transcribing the interviews. The interview will be strictly confidential and I will remove all identifying information when I discuss these interviews in my study.

If you or anyone you know may be interested in participating or learning more about this study, please contact me via email at [email protected].

Thank you for your time and consideration, and I hope to hear from you.

Sincerely,

Sean Currie
Ph.D. Candidate/Graduate Assistant
Department of Sociology
University of South Florida
4202 E. Fowler Ave., CPR 107
Tampa, FL 33620

Great that you're doing this. Good luck with it!
 

TG1

Angelic Poster
Sean,

Must your interviewees identify themselves, or can they remain completely anonymous?

TG1
 

Sean Currie

New Member
Sean,

Must your interviewees identify themselves, or can they remain completely anonymous?

TG1

Hi TG1,

Thanks for responding. It's completely up to you. I'm using pseudonyms for anyone I refer to in my study, so everyone will be anonymous, regardless. However, you are more than welcome to use a pseudonym with me as well. I will also remove any identifying information that could be linked back to the interviewee, since some experiences are unique enough to be recognized by others in one's community.

Please feel free to contact me at my email address if you have any questions or concerns, or if you'd like to hear more about what I'm doing in my study.

Best,
Sean Currie
 

TG1

Angelic Poster
Sean,

I don't know if you know this, but the answers you get from your interviewees about how "closed" Scientology was, will depend on a number of things, including:

1. When they joined Scientology

2. When they left Scientology

3. What role they had in Scientology - staff member, Sea Org member, public member

4. How much training and auditing they sought out and obtained (and at what pace)

5. Whether they were first or second (or even third) generation Scientologists

6. Whether they were married to a Scientologist (or not)

7. Whether they worked in a company owned by Scientologists

etc.

There were times and places and roles that Scientologists "enjoyed" that were much more open or closed, depending on these and other factors.

Best wishes to you.

TG1
 

AnonyMary

Formerly Fooled - Finally Free
This seems to me to be a very important project, and I hope exes in the area will contribute to it.

Chuck Beatty will be excited!
 

Purple Rain

Crusader
Do you think you can get enough participants when limiting your response pool to that geographical area? What size sample do you need?
 

Free to shine

Shiny & Free
Hi Sean,

You are asking from people from Florida, have you considered doing long distance interviews as well, perhaps by skype?

Many members here are from all over the world and you may get some interesting input from a global perspective. :)
 

Telepathetic

Gold Meritorious Patron
Hey Sean,

I'm glade you're here! I'm the anarchist you interviewed. But, don't give my name away! :biggrin:

For the people of this Board:

Sean is a great guy! Help him out, he is not an OSA spy! I know personally, at least, 4 other Exes who been interviewed by him. Including our own, EVIL TWIN!

Good luck Sean, you're doing a great job! If you need anything, you have my #.

Peace brother,

TP
 
Good luck, Sean, on your research project! :)

I'm sure you will learn a lot! Will it be published anywhere after it is completed and you have written up your conclusions? Could you let us know about it here or post a link later on...we are curious! :biggrin:

Sorry that I cannot help you personally with this (have never been a Scientologist) but I do wish you and all your interview contributors all the best! :thumbsup:
 

Kookaburra

Gold Meritorious Patron
Yes, please post the results of your study. We are interested!

If you decide to do long distance interviews by Skype, let me know, and I'll do one. I'm in Australia.
 
Go Bulls!

I love USF.

It's a great school.

I would love to do this interview with you.

However, there will be certain conditions.

Like not putting it on tape and you are never to write down my name.

I would also have to get the permission of two other people before I do discuss anything with you because there could be unpleasant consequences for them too.

The reason for this is that when you dissertation gets published and read the Church will want to know who you spoke to.

They might get tough with you legally or they might even offer you a big fat check for the names.

I would also recommend you run this buy your thesis advisor that there may be a possibility of legal hassles if you write it.

I hope he suggests you do it and defend your first amendment rights.

But you should realize from the start that the Church may well find out (they have Church members attending USF) and may make things unpleasant for you.

The Anabaptist Jacques
 

Gib

Crusader
Dear all:

I'm a sociology doctoral candidate at the University of South Florida conducting a research study on disaffiliation from the Church of Scientology and the Watch Tower Society (Jehovah’s Witnesses) and am seeking adults 18 years of age or older in the Central or South Florida areas who would like to take part in a confidential interview with me about their experiences in leaving these organizations. I am also interested in learning about former members’ current religious affiliations or spiritual pursuits, if any. The interview should last from one to three hours.

My study specifically looks at how and why people leave “closed” religious communities that demand much of their members. By participating in this interview, you will be contributing to an important area of academic study of which little research has been done.

The interview will be recorded using an audio-recorder, and I will transcribe the interview so I may compare it with interviews of other former members. I will be the only person conducting and transcribing the interviews. The interview will be strictly confidential and I will remove all identifying information when I discuss these interviews in my study.

If you or anyone you know may be interested in participating or learning more about this study, please contact me via email at [email protected].

Thank you for your time and consideration, and I hope to hear from you.

Sincerely,

Sean Currie
Ph.D. Candidate/Graduate Assistant
Department of Sociology
University of South Florida
4202 E. Fowler Ave., CPR 107
Tampa, FL 33620

I decline.

I'm not a fuk'in brainwahed idiot that you can use for your studies. LOL
 

Good twin

Floater
I am very curious about the information that is uncovered and any conclusions that are discovered about our community.
 

Sean Currie

New Member
Go Bulls!

I love USF.

It's a great school.

I would love to do this interview with you.

However, there will be certain conditions.

Like not putting it on tape and you are never to write down my name.

I would also have to get the permission of two other people before I do discuss anything with you because there could be unpleasant consequences for them too.

The reason for this is that when you dissertation gets published and read the Church will want to know who you spoke to.

They might get tough with you legally or they might even offer you a big fat check for the names.

I would also recommend you run this buy your thesis advisor that there may be a possibility of legal hassles if you write it.

I hope he suggests you do it and defend your first amendment rights.

But you should realize from the start that the Church may well find out (they have Church members attending USF) and may make things unpleasant for you.

The Anabaptist Jacques

Hi Jacques,

Since I'm comparing interview responses (between former CoS and former JWs), I need to record the interviews and transcribe them (for my use only). Otherwise, I'll be restricted to my own memory and scratch notes for an interview lasting an hour-and-a-half on average.

I take privacy and confidentiality very seriously. I'm using pseudonyms for everyone who participates in an interview and I'm editing out all identifiable information before I include quotes in my dissertation. No one will have access to the audio files but me, and I keep them stored on a secured external hard drive. My dissertation advisor is the only person besides me reading the transcriptions and he doesn't know the real name of the interviewees, since I assigned them with a pseudonym before he reviews them.

I appreciate your concern about the CoS' possible interest in my study. They're already aware of it and have been supportive of my research goals. As a doctoral candidate and a sociologist, my interest in this study is to contribute to the scholarly knowledge of disaffiliation and organizational dynamics. I am bound by ethical protocols--both as a USF researcher and as a professional academic--regarding how I handle the research data and the privacy of those who participate in my study, so I would never share names or interviews with anyone.

I hope this answers your--or anyone else's--concerns. Please feel free to contact me if you would like to talk about my study and possibly set up an interview.

Sean Currie
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 813-435-0332
 

Lermanet_com

Gold Meritorious Patron
Here is a Master's Thesis you might find helpful, it is well documented

Lafayette Ronald Hubbard's policy and practice in media and public relations

By Joseph Cisar

A Thesis
Submitted to the Department of
Communication and Journalism and the Graduate Council
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of
Master of Science

LINK
 

chipgallo

Patron Meritorious
Hi Jacques,

... I appreciate your concern about the CoS' possible interest in my study. They're already aware of it and have been supportive of my research goals.

Sean Currie
Email: [email protected]
Phone: 813-435-0332

Scientology, inc. would have an interest in steering your research toward conclusions favorable to their corporate goals. Ask popular news and media outlets how "interested" the group was in supporting *their* research into forced abortion, billion year contracts, disconnection from family members and the like. Be sure to ask former members about "The Hole."
 

Reasonable

Silver Meritorious Patron
i would like to be interviewed but I'm not in FLorida. Why so limited when you have Skype or other audio recording
 
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