A call for greater attention to individual Jewish identities in the social sciences

What is it about?

Sociological studies of Jewish identity have tended to conceptualize this subject matter in rather limited ways, in particular through efforts to somehow 'measure' and thereby reify Jewishness. In contrast, this study acknowledges the growing tendency in broader social scientific research to view identity as a process, and thereby the recognize the ways in which Jewish identities are performed and intersect with other identities, demonstrating fluidity rather than fixity. The article also calls for greater attention to individual conceptualizations of Jewishness, rather than rooting Jewish identity in collective assumptions.

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Why is it important?

In spite of significant advances in the study of identity in the social sciences, Jewish sociological research has tended to resort to restrictive understandings of Jewish identity based on normative and somewhat outdated criteria. In response, this article seeks to broaden the ways in which Jewishness is conceptualized and to recognize the highly personal ways in which individuals live and practise their Jewishness.