Research Findings
By providing fresh socio-demographic data and qualitative findings from 257 American female converts to Islam, this research offers an accurate portrait that may remind Americans of themselves — and may begin to lessen the fear and misrepresentation that currently defines public discourse about Muslim Americans.
Core Finding
When asked whether there is a difference between becoming Muslim — the formal declaration of faith known as the shahada — and feeling Muslim, 73.15% of respondents affirmed yes. Many gave rich, detailed descriptions of the subtle nuances between being, becoming, and feeling Muslim.
One major theme that emerged: feeling Muslim is a gradual process, a transition — marked by the ebb and flow of positive and negative experiences. In other words, feeling Muslim does not always feel good, but sometimes it feels great.
The data presented here come from 257 anonymous American female converts to Islam who completed the full survey in 2014. Responses were gathered via Qualtrics and analyzed using both manual techniques and QDAMiner with WordStat (CAQDAS) for qualitative data analysis.
Core finding
73%say there is a difference between becoming Muslim and feeling Muslim
Key Statistics
257 respondents · IRB-approved · University of Georgia · 2014
The question is: are Muslim communities in America ready to accept their contributions?
When did you begin to feel Muslim?
Respondents manually recorded their responses to this open-ended question. 15 themes occurred more often than others. Many converts fit into more than one category — which is why the percentage sum exceeds 100%.
In Their Own Words
On the distinction between being & feeling Muslim
"When I took the shahada I became Muslim, and had the intention to live my beliefs. I would say feeling Muslim is much more of a process. The more Islam became a part of my daily life the more I felt Muslim."
— Nicole · Feeling Muslim Study · 2014On feeling Muslim as a process
"Just a state of being, an acceptance of how things are in the world metaphysically and physically. It's been an evolving process though — sincerity in a wide range of beliefs didn't come all at once but progressed over time."
— Sharon · Feeling Muslim Study · 2014On being "othered" as a Muslim American
"Sometimes Muslims think Americans can't be Muslim, so I'm not accepted by the Americans because I'm Muslim and I'm not accepted by the Muslims because I'm American. This varies by community."
— Roberta · Feeling Muslim Study · 2014On community and belonging
"Born Muslims generally don't know the convert experience — the loneliness, isolation, what it's like to be fasting Ramadan alone and having Eid be just another day. Creating infrastructure for converts is not a priority for over 90% of masajid."
— Gwen · Feeling Muslim Study · 2014Outside Influences
80.54% of respondents answered yes — there were outside influences that either nurtured or hindered their feelings of Muslimness, with some reporting influences doing both. Only 15.18% reported no outside influence. The strongest theme to emerge as hindering: lack of community, acceptance, education, and belonging. The strongest theme as nurturing: having community, being accepted, being educated, and feeling a sense of belonging.
Nurturing factors
Hindering factors
Deep Dive
10 annotated data figures — geography, race & ethnicity, education, prior belief, age at conversion, marital status, branches of Islam, and more — all grounded in the thesis.
View Demographic Portraits →Demographics
"A new moon teaches gradualness and deliberation, and how one gives birth to oneself slowly."
— Rumi