From Revelation to Reality: How Converts to the Latter-Day Saints Church Reshape Their Belief Systems in Response to Doctrine

This research investigates how converts to The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS) come to accept the LDS doctrine as truth and how they integrate this doctrine into their belief systems. It focuses on how individuals go from having no prior knowledge of LDS teachings to developing personal belief in their truth, and the psychological processes that facilitate belief change. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with eleven converts, the research investigates how individuals reconcile prior beliefs with a new theological belief system through cognitive, emotional, social, and spiritual mechanisms. The findings reveal that doctrinal acceptance is a multifaceted process involving diverse reasoning strategies, openness to new beliefs, validating emotional and spiritual experiences, supportive social interactions, and doctrine that fulfills fundamental existential needs. Acceptance of doctrine consistently centered on three major themes: the interconnected nature of LDS teachings; the doctrine’s ability to provide meaning and order through its rich and distinctive theological framework; and its power to create a deep sense of community and belonging. These findings reveal that understanding belief change in religious conversion requires close attention to the specific doctrines and communal dynamics of a given faith, offering a framework that can be applied to belief transformation across other religious and ideological contexts.