Religion is the conceptual framework and the recognized institution within which a society’s deep moral values and the rules governing what is defined as correct behavior for individuals are generally associated. Religion is the term most frequently used by Americans and in the popular media as well as in scholarly analyses to encompass the complexity of beliefs and practices delineated by established denominational institutions and framed through defined doctrines, theology, and historical narratives or myths accounting for the establishment of these doctrines and practices. In the past fifty years a major transformation has occurred in the definitions and practices of religion among the American population. No longer comfortable with the constraints associated with organized religion, many Americans are now focused on a more personal experience of religious faith and practice and prefer to define their experiences as spiritual rather than religious.

Although religion has most frequently been defined in terms of established institutional beliefs and practices, the experience of religion and spirituality is ultimately personal and varies in relation to an individual’s cognitive, social, and emotional characteristics, as well as his or her personal narrative. Beginning in the early twentieth century with William James’s groundbreaking work, The Varieties of Religious Experience, a range of scholars and scholarly disciplines has developed a variety of theories and models to better understand the religious experience of individuals as one of the basic elements of human existence.