Reimagining Fowler’s Stages of Faith: shifting from a seven stage to a four step framework for faith development

ABSTRACT Since 1981, James Fowler’s stage model of faith development has provided researchers with a framework for understanding the ways in which people develop belief systems over the course of their lives. Despite its helpfulness, there are several notable areas of critique that can be levelled against the model, including its lack of parsimony, heavy reliance on structural-developmental design, and lack of responsiveness to diversity. This article revises Fowler’s stage model into a process model, reducing the seven stages of his original design into four process steps that occur during belief formation and re-evaluation. These four steps – religious socialisation, early questioning, exploration and engagement, and refinement – can offer researchers a meaningful and parsimonious path for understanding the process of belief formation, transition, and maintenance. Implications and future directions are discussed.