Understanding Faith-Based Ecological Citizenship: A Case Study of Korea Soka Gakkai International (KSGI)

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

This is an original and worthy research and author(s) should be commended for performing it. However the paper should be revised by clearly explaining what different attitudes the research found in Korean Soka Gakkai compared with other religious groups, particularly other new religions such as Won Buddhism, Chondogyo, and Daesoon Jinrihoe. One may presume that this comparison would reinforce the author(s)’ conclusions and be one of the strength of the research, yet it is not clearly presented in the article and it should be.

Also, the author(s) should consider that some literature on Soka Gakkai’s attitude to COVID-19 in other countries exist and engage with it, particularly https://cesnur.net/turning-the-poison-into-medicine-soka-gakkai-in-italy-and-covid-19/

and

https://cesnur.net/the-response-of-soka-gakkai-to-the-covid-19-pandemic-personhood-interiority-and-a-civil-society-in-crisis-mode/

 

Comments on the Quality of English Language

English language can use some  professional editing but is generally acceptable.

Author Response

Comparative sociology of religions is a central focus of our research, and we made a deliberate effort to infuse our comparative insights into the survey design. However, when composing this article, our intention was to maintain a singular focus on faith-based ecological religiosity within the KSGI community, treating it as an exploratory case study. This decision stemmed from our fascination with the remarkably high environmental awareness exhibited by KSGI members. We believed that delving into ecological religiosity and ecological citizenship among KSGI members could enhance our understanding of faith-based ecological citizenship before embarking on a (more) comprehensive comparative study. Presently, we are in the process of planning research that will explore the development of faith-based ecological citizenship across various religious traditions from a comparative perspective. We anticipate that this new research will commence in the near future. Two references you suggested are added. Thank you.

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The article is a valuable contribution to the theme of ecology based on religious faith, which is a prerequisite for transnational active citizenship. It is well-structured and presents the research design and synthesis of the main results clearly. The analysis of the specific case of Soka Gakkai serves as an exemplary model for studying the evolution of this movement in relation to ecological themes. Overall, this article makes an important cognitive contribution to the field.

Author Response

Thank you for good commenting. 

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Thank you for sharing your research and findings on faith based ecological citizenship.

First a general comment: you measure attitude with a Likert 5 scale. This however does not give information about the affective commitment. For example the item

The COVID-19 pandemic is a clear manifestation of the climate crisis.

might be given a score of 5, but this might be the conclusion of a strong (!) negative commitment. I'd recommend for futher research the Self Confrontation Method as research method to measure the affective commitment of the attitudes of the respondents (Hermans & Hermans-Jansen, 1995).

Some aspects in the text need to be changed/improved:

1. the answers on the research questions (lines 82-86) need more elaboration;

2. line 91: you criticize 'measurment by the frequene of prayer', at the same time including an item on frequency of prayer. Please explain.

3. line 95, ... because  For me the reasoning behind 'because' is not clear;

4. line 178, you work with a Likert 5 scale, how to interpret (1 if very strong; 0 otherwise );

 

Author Response

We are grateful for introducing us to the self-confrontation method. When we initiated our current study, our primary objective was to underscore the catalytic role of COVID-19. Because our particular focus laid in understanding the varying perceptions of COVID-19 among KSGI members, we categorized ecological religiosity into three distinct dimensions: (1) COVID-19 as a religious experience, (2) COVID-19 as an ecological concern, and (3) COVID-19 as an ominous event. However, we are convinced that we can consider a redefinition of ecological religiosity as a collection of cognitive, behavioral, and emotional commitments in our future research. Thank you for your intriguing comment.

Round 2

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

Your revisions are OK. There is a "complimentary" page 4 that should really be "complementary"