Faith from Infancy through Adolescence: Reflections on Three Decades of Faith Development Theory

Faith development theory was pioneered originally in the 1970s (Fowler, 1974) and 1980s (Fowler, 1981) as a framework for understanding the evolution of how human beings conceptualize God, or a Higher Being, and how the influence of that Higher Being has an impact on core values, beliefs, and meanings in their personal lives and in their relationships with others. Because of the formative influence of this theoretical work in both religious and spiritual development (including multiple references in this volume), it merits full articulation and a recounting of its origins. This chapter gives the early history of the author’s faith development theory and introduces readers to its key concepts, with special emphasis on those stages most commonly seen in children and adolescents. It also reviews some of the critical and constructive assessments of faith development theory by scholars in the field, through the lenses of several volumes of collected articles.