The Data · Every Figure

All Charts

The figures of the thesis, Figures 1 through 24, presented for all 257 American female converts to Islam who completed both the quantitative and qualitative portions of the study in full.

257Complete U.S. female convert responses
40Mixed-methods survey questions
23Figures presented here
2014IRB-approved · University of Georgia

Companion Annex

Owning Islam: the 66 Blackamerican women within the study, charted in full.

View the annex →

Figure 5

Geographic Distribution

257 Respondents
40+
States & territories
represented
257
Women across the U.S.
and worldwide
1
Nation, many
voices, one study
Respondents came from across the continental United States, plus Hawaii and Puerto Rico, reflecting the geographic breadth of Muslim women's conversion experiences nationwide.
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure numbering follows the thesis. Figures 1 and 2, a visual summary from the Runnymede Trust Report and the convergent-design flowchart adapted from Creswell, are reproduced works of other authors and appear only in the thesis itself; the survey figures begin at Figure 3.

Figure 3

Gender

257 Respondents
All 257 respondents in the analyzed cohort self-identified as female. The survey offered the options of male or female; the thesis notes that future studies will include categories beyond the traditional dichotomy.
Respondents
Female
100%n=257
Male
0%n=0
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 4

Are You an American Convert to Islam?

257 Respondents
Of the 459 women who participated, 281 completed both the quantitative and qualitative portions of the study. Of those 281, 24 were converts born outside the United States and were excluded from the final study, leaving 257 complete quantitative-and-qualitative responses, the cohort analyzed throughout the thesis. Counting every participant who completed the quantitative portion in full, the total quantitative cohort is n = 400.
Respondents
Yes
100%n=257
No
0%n=0
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 5

Geographic Distribution

233 Residing in the U.S.
90.7% of the 257 respondents resided in the United States across 40+ states and territories; the remaining 9.3% resided in 18 countries around the world and were not mapped, out of an abundance of caution for anonymity. The full geographic presentation, including the world map first published in the foreword to Project Lina (2020), appears on the Demographics page.
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 6

Race & Ethnicity

257 Respondents
Respondents
Caucasian or White
53%n=136
African American or Black
20%n=51
2+ Races or Ethnicities
14%n=37
Hispanic or Latina
7%n=17
Other
4%n=9
Asian
2%n=6
Native American
<1%n=1
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 7

Highest Level of Education Completed

257 Respondents
A highly educated group, 62% hold a Bachelor's degree or higher, including 30% with a Master's or Ph.D.
Respondents
B.A. / B.S.
32%n=81
M.A. / M.S.
26%n=68
Some College
16%n=42
A.A. / A.S.
11%n=29
High School or GED
5%n=13
Trade School
6%n=15
Ph.D.
4%n=9
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 8

Belief Prior to Conversion

257 Respondents
76.3% identified as Christian before converting, making prior Christian belief the overwhelming majority experience.
Respondents
Christian
76.3%n=196
Agnostic
5%n=13
Other
7%n=18
Atheist
2.7%n=7
Jewish
3.9%n=10
None
3.9%n=10
Buddhist
1.2%n=3
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 9

Branches of Christianity
Prior to Conversion

196 Christian respondents
Respondents
Protestant
63.26%n=124
Roman Catholic
29.6%n=58
Anglican
2.55%n=5
Mormon
1.53%n=3
Unitarian Universal
1.53%n=3
Seventh Day Adventist
1.02%n=2
Jehovah's Witness
0.51%n=1
Total
100%n=196
Of 196 prior Christians · Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 10

Age at the Time of Conversion

257 Respondents
The majority of women converted in their twenties and thirties, 63% between ages 20 and 34.
Respondents
25 to 34
35%n=90
20 to 24
28%n=72
16 to 19
16%n=42
35 to 44
10%n=26
45 to 54
5%n=12
55 to 64
3%n=8
Less than 16
2%n=6
65+
<1%n=1
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 11

Marital Status at Time of Conversion

257 Respondents
55% were single, never married at the time of their conversion, the majority converting as single women.
Respondents
Single, never married
55%n=141
Married w/ children
9%n=23
Divorced
9%n=22
Divorced w/ children
9%n=23
Married w/out children
7%n=18
Single w/ children
5%n=13
Engaged
4%n=11
Separated
2%n=6
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 12

Current Marital Status

257 Respondents
At the time of the survey, 57% were married, a significant shift from the 55% who were single at the time of conversion.
Respondents
Married w/ children
39%n=101
Single, never married
14%n=35
Married w/out children
18%n=46
Divorced w/ children
10%n=26
Divorced
10.5%n=27
Single w/ children
3%n=8
Engaged
4%n=10
Widow
0.75%n=2
Separated
0.75%n=2
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 13

Length of Time as a Muslim

257 Respondents
Respondents represent a wide range of experience, from new converts to women who have been Muslim for 20+ years.
Respondents
0 to 3 years
25%n=66
4 to 7 years
22%n=56
20+ years
18%n=46
12 to 15 years
14%n=36
8 to 11 years
13%n=33
16 to 19 years
8%n=20
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 14

Branches of Islam

257 Respondents
Over half of respondents identify as Sunni. Nearly 1 in 4 blend traditions, Sunni-Sufi, Sufi, or other combinations.
Respondents
Sunni
51.75%n=133
Other
13.25%n=34
Sunni-Sufi
11.28%n=29
Sufi
10.5%n=27
Shi'a
6.25%n=16
Nation of Islam
2.33%n=6
Shi'a-Sunni
1.55%n=4
Shi'a-Sufi
1.55%n=4
Nation of Islam-Sunni
0.77%n=2
Shi'a-Sunni-Sufi
0.77%n=2
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 15

Being, Becoming, Feeling

257 Respondents
By a wide margin, 73.15% of the 257 affirmed a difference between being or becoming Muslim by taking the shahada and feeling Muslim. This distinction is the heart of the thesis.
Respondents
Yes, there is a difference
73%n=188
No, one and the same
19%n=49
N/A
8%n=20
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 16

Instant Feeling

257 Respondents
A slight majority did not instantly feel Muslim upon conversion. The follow-up question of when feeling began (Figure 17) opens the answers the yes-or-no format could not hold.
Respondents
Yes, instantly felt Muslim
47%n=122
No
53%n=135
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 17

When Did You Begin to Feel Muslim?

257 Respondents
Fifteen themes emerged across the open-ended responses; many women fit more than one category, so the percentages sum to more than 100%. The largest theme by far describes feeling Muslim as gradual, a continual process rather than a moment.
Respondents
Over time, gradual process
42%n=107
Growth in knowledge
16%n=41
Community, acceptance, belonging
16%n=40
At the time of shahada
16%n=40
Practice
15%n=38
Pre-conversion
14%n=37
Rites of passage
14%n=37
N/A
7%n=18
Accepting Islam as true
5%n=14
Self-directed ownership of faith
5%n=13
Connecting to God
4%n=10
Applying Islam to a life event
4%n=9
Hearing Qur'an or adhan
3%n=8
Being "othered"
3%n=7
Never
3%n=7

Respondents could select more than one answer, so the percentages do not total 100.

Correction · September 2026

In preparing this page I returned to the original coded data and found a discrepancy in my own thesis. Rites of passage was reported there as 12.5% (n = 32). Verified against the coded source data, the correct figure is 14.4% (n = 37), which is what appears above. The remaining fourteen themes match the source data as originally published. I am grateful for the chance to set it right.

Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 18

Outside Influences

257 Respondents
An overwhelming majority reported outside influences on their feelings of Muslimness, some nurturing, some hindering, and some both.
Respondents
Yes, nurtured or hindered
81%n=207
No
15%n=39
N/A
4%n=11
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 19

Gender Roles

257 Respondents
A majority of the 257 stated that Islamic gender roles play no part in their feelings of Muslimness. Read alongside Figure 21, where 73% wear outwardly identifying attire, this complicates assumptions that visibility and gender-role frameworks travel together.
Respondents
Yes, gender roles play a part
45%n=116
No
55%n=141
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 20

Satisfaction with Feelings of Muslimness

257 Respondents
Respondents
Yes, satisfied or content
72%n=185
No
28%n=72
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 21

Outwardly Identifiable

257 Respondents
Respondents
Yes, attire identifies as Muslim
73%n=188
No
27%n=69
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 22

Attire & Muslimness

257 Respondents
Respondents
Yes, attire is related
60%n=155
No
30%n=77
N/A or unclear
5%n=14
Yes and no / possibly
4%n=11
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 23

Integral to Community

257 Respondents
Nearly half of the 257 do not feel they are an integral part of their Muslim communities, the counterpart to Figure 24, where 87% say they would like to be.
Respondents
No, not an integral part
48%n=123
Yes
35%n=90
Possibly / yes and no
8%n=21
N/A
9%n=23
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Figure 24

The Desire to Belong

257 Respondents
The vast majority of the 257 are ready and willing to be integral parts of their communities. Set against Figure 23, the gap between this hope and the reality on the ground is the study's call to American Muslim communities.
Respondents
Yes, would like to be integral
87%n=224
No
13%n=33
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

Survey Q38

Thoughts of Leaving

257 Respondents
This question was not charted in the thesis; the coding was first published in 2020. 42.8% of the 257 admitted thoughts of leaving Islam. The full presentation, with the women's own words, lives on the Leaving Islam page.
Respondents
Yes, have thought about leaving
43%n=110
No
57%n=147
Total
100%n=257
Feeling Muslim Study · 2014

How to Cite This Research

APA (7th ed.)

Evans, K. N. (2015). Feeling Muslim: Prolegomena to the study of American female converts to Islam [Master's thesis, University of Georgia]. UGA Electronic Theses & Dissertations.

Chicago (17th ed.)

Evans, Karla Nicole. "Feeling Muslim: Prolegomena to the Study of American Female Converts to Islam." Master's thesis, University of Georgia, 2015.

ASA (7th ed.)

Evans, Karla N. 2015. “Feeling Muslim: Prolegomena to the Study of American Female Converts to Islam.” Master’s thesis, University of Georgia, Athens, GA.

A Note on the Data All figures presented here are drawn from the original 2014 to 2015 survey conducted as part of the M.A. thesis research at the University of Georgia under IRB-approved protocol. In total, 481 people responded to the survey. Of these, 459 were American women converts to Islam. The remaining 22 responses fell outside the parameters approved by the Institutional Review Board, which focused specifically on women converts born in the United States; those responses were received with gratitude and set aside from the women’s cohort. The figures on this page describe the 257 women who completed both the quantitative and qualitative strands in full. Data collection, research design, and analysis were conducted by Karla Nicole Kovacik (formerly Evans). The survey remains the only known study of this scope focused specifically on the psychological and sociological dimensions of Muslim identity formation among American female converts.

"Growth in grace is accomplished by slow degrees, and not per saltum... Why does the formation of an infant take nine months? Because God's method is to work by slow degrees."

Jalāl al-Dīn Rūmī · Mathnawī · Book VI · tr. Reynold A. Nicholson