This volume gathers together a collection of essays applying the theory of rational choice - the theory that each individual will choose to maximize gain and minimize cost - to the study of religion. The essays address the issue of why it is that individuals are drawn to a religion, and argue that an individual's religious choice has as much to do with a demand for religious meaning as it does with the plurality of religions one can choose from today. The more religions, the contributors argue, the more likely it is that people will believe in one or more of the religions available.

Contemporary Mormonism is the first collection of sociological essays to focus exclusively on Mormons. Featuring the work of the major scholars conducting social science research on Mormons today, this volume offers refreshing new perspectives not only on Mormonism but also on the nature of successful religious movements, secularization and assimilation, church growth, patriarchy and gender roles, and other topics. This first paperback edition includes a new introduction assessing the current state of Mormon scholarship and the effect of the globalization of the LDS Church on scholarly research about Mormonism.