The Data Behind Church Culture | An Interview with Jeff Strong

Jun 21, 2025

In this engaging conversation, Jeff Strong, a seasoned executive and educator with a passion for understanding church dynamics, delves into the often hidden tensions within faith communities. He shares insights from a comprehensive survey on why members are leaving the Church, exploring the balance between cherished traditions and the need for change. Jeff emphasizes the importance of creating safe spaces for discussions, understanding individual experiences, and cultivating a sense of belonging to foster growth and acceptance among members.

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INSIGHT

Core Loves Unify Members

Many members love their personal testimony, community, plan of salvation, and the atonement deeply. - These shared core beliefs unite members despite cultural tensions within the church.

INSIGHT

Widespread Cultural Tension Exists

Nearly half of active members feel significant conflict in their church experience. - More than half often feel uncomfortable with church culture and lack strong belonging.

ANECDOTE

Parking Lot Exit Signals Conflict

Jeff noticed that when many cars leave right after sacrament meeting, it indicated wards with high conflict. - Members might attend sacrament but avoid other meetings due to discomfort with culture.

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Jeff Strong worked nearly 30 years in the consumer products industry as a senior executive at Procter & Gamble and global president and chief customer officer at Johnson & Johnson. He then taught in the Marriott School of Business at Brigham Young University and worked as an advisor to the Church before serving as a mission leader in the Arkansas Bentonville Mission. Jeff has since spent several years doing research on why people are leaving the Church. While not a professional researcher, his career involved a large amount of research and the research he shares in this podcast was done with the help of some of the top Latter-day Saint researchers in the world. Today, Jeff lives in Midway, Utah, and stays busy with a little lavender farm, some business consulting, and enjoying family.

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Highlights

In this conversation, Jeff dives deep into the tension between church culture and personal beliefs, and how embracing it can lead to growth and understanding within our church community. He discusses the findings from a comprehensive survey that aimed to understand disaffiliation and the tensions members experience in their church lives.

A key takeaway is the importance of understanding what members love about the Church, revealing the core values that bind members together, despite the tensions they may feel. Jeff talks about the tensions present in church culture, emphasizing the dual facets of this conflict: the tension between tradition and change, and the tension arising from our differences. He explores how members often feel a significant conflict in their church experience, with many expressing discomfort with the culture. Jeff presents data indicating that nearly half of the respondents felt a significant conflict, and more than half did not feel a strong sense of belonging in their congregations. Throughout the conversation, he emphasizes the importance of recognizing and embracing this tension rather than attempting to eliminate it.

00:02:40 – Purpose of the Survey on Disaffiliation
00:05:12 – Survey Response Insights
00:07:38 – What People Love About the Church
00:10:30 – Core Values of Church Members
00:12:33 – Strengths of the Church
00:13:10 – Tension Between Tradition and Change
00:16:00 – Navigating Cultural Differences
00:19:15 – Understanding Tension in Church Experience
00:22:10 – Data on Comfort and Belonging
00:23:38 – Recognizing Conflict in the Congregation
00:30:02 – Tension Between Personal and Cultural Values
00:35:44 – Embracing Tension in Leadership
00:40:08 – Creating a Safe Space for Tension

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