Redefinition of Secularization and Finding Its Indices in Islamic Resources

Today few sociologists deny the necessity of paying attention to the issue of secularization in Iran as the most important cultural threat to the society. Secularization involves several complexities and ambiguities, part of which stems from conceptual considerations. These ambiguities have inevitably led to disarray in empirical research about secularization and have challenged their validity. This paper offers two steps for more explanation of the concept of secularization and to pave the way for its application in empirical studies. In the first step, attempts have been made – through rational and logical investigation of the existing definition – to offer an acceptable definition of secularization. The most important result of the research in this step is attainment of some explanations about the distinction of the levels and domains of secularization as well as distinction between its positive and negative aspects. In the second step, which deals with the operational definition of secularization, more than seventy indices through induction of the religious texts (the Holy Quran and Shi’a traditions) have been extracted and developed within a conceptual framework. This framework can solve the problem of shortage of rich and valid measures in indigenous studies about secularization.