20·30대 남성의 개신교 탈신앙 경험에 대한 근거이론 연구

A qualitative study on the experience of men in their 20s and 30s’ deconversion in Protestantism

본 연구는 개신교 신앙을 가진 20·30대 남성들이 신앙에서 이탈하는 과정에서 어떤 경험을 하는지를 심도있게 이해하고, 이에 대한 실체이론을 제시하고자 하였다. 근거이론 방법을 활용하여 자료수집과 분석의 전 과정을 진행하였고, 의도적 표집절차에 따라 장기간 개신교에서 신앙생활을 하고 탈신앙 과정을 경험한 20·30대 남성들 총 13명을 표집하고 심층면담으로 자료를수집하였다. 자료 분석결과, 218개의 의미 단위, 75개의 하위범주, 35개의 범주가 도출되었으며, 탈신앙을 경험한 20·30대 남성 참여자들은 ‘점진적 균열 속에서 고통을 경험함’이라는 중심현상을 경험하는 것으로 나타났다. 과정분석에서 도출된 개신교 탈신앙의 과정은 ‘갈등 발견 및 중재’, ‘고립 및 소통 불가’. ‘전환 및 거리두기’, ‘적응 및 눈돌리기’의 단계들을 거치는 것으로 드러났다. 탈신앙 경험의 핵심 범주는 ‘한때는 유익했으나 내가 주체가 되지 못하는 신앙, 신과 관계맺지 못하는 신앙의 껍질을 깨고 자기만의 길을 걸으려고 함’이었다. 탈신앙 경험의 유형은 ‘실존주의적 무신앙 유형’, ‘비종교적 영성 유형’, ‘탈교회적 신앙 유형’, ‘비자발적 순응 유형’ 총 네가지 유형으로 분류되었다. 본 연구는 개신교 신앙을 가진 20·30대 남성 청년들이 신앙에서 탈피하는 과정에서 어떤 경험을 하는지를 탐구하고 이에 대한 실체이론을 제시함으로써 참여자들의 경험에 대한 심도있는 이해를 도모하고, 상담학적 관점에서 적실한 개입을 마련할 기초 자료를 제공하는 의의를 갖는다

This study was intended to deeply understand the experiences of church youth in their 20s and 30s with Protestant faith in the process of breaking away from faith, and to present a substantive theory in this process. Study participants were recruited according to the intentional sampling method. Announcements were posted on one graduate school community cafe and three or more Internet employment/study portal sites. Among those around the research director who lived a long-term religious life, those in their 20s and 30s who experienced the process of deconversion, a total of 13 males (aged 19 to 39) were recruited through snowball sampling. After that, data collection and analysis were conducted using the grounded theory methodology. As a result of the analysis of open coding, 218 semantic units, 75 subcategories, and 35 categories were derived. It was found that male participants in their 20s and 30s who went through deconversion experienced the central phenomenon of ‘Experiencing pain in gradual cracks’. As a result of the selective coding analysis, it was revealed that the young participants went through the process of ‘Conflict discovery and mediation stage - Isolation and communication inability stage - Conversion and distance stage - Adaptation and averting stage’. As a result of the selective coding analysis, the core category was derived as Faith, once beneficial, but I was not able to become a subject in it, Breaking the shell of faith that did not have a relationship with God and walking my own path.’ The study participants were classified into 4 types including ‘Existentialist atheism type,’ ‘Non-religious spirituality type’, ‘Post-church faith type’, and ‘Involuntary disguise type’. This study explores what young men in their 20s and 30s with Protestant beliefs experience in the process of breaking away from faith and presents a substantive theory to understand the meaning of the experiences of participants from the perspective of counseling and provide basic data for the counseling.