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Collection of Sr. Marie Augusta Neal Social Surveys Finding Aid: Collection Overview

Title: Collection of Sr. Marie Augusta Neal Social Surveys

Date(s): 1967-1991

Repository I.D.: US: MBEmm: Lib-2013-5

Collection Call No.: Lib-2013-5

Author/Creator:

Neal, Marie Augusta
Leadership Conference of Women Religious of the United States. Conference of Major Superiors of Women
Catholic Education Council (South Africa)
Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur

Location: Emmanuel Archives—Cardinal Cushing Library 202

Extent:  .4 linear ft. (1 box/ 12 folders)

Language(s): Material is in English

Abstract: This collection contains the social survey, primarily of Sisters’ Surveys, conducted by Sr. Marie Augusta Neal (Helen C. Neal) between 1967 and 1991.

Access Restrictions: 1) The collection is not restricted. 2) Material in this collection is under copyright. 3) Requests for permission to publish material from this collection should be discussed with the copyright holder or the College Archivist.

Preferred Citation: [Item Title]. [Box Number, Folder Number]. Collection of Sr. Marie Augusta Neal Social Surveys. Cardinal Cushing Library, Emmanuel College, Boston, MA.

Related Collection(s):  

Leadership Conference of Women Religious of the United States Records (LCW), University of Notre Dame Archives (UNDA), Notre Dame, IN 46556

Marie Augusta Neal Papers (NEA), University of Notre Dame Archives (UNDA), Notre Dame, IN 46556 SND Archives

Provenance: Donated to the Emmanuel College Archives by Sr. Mary Johnson in July 2013

Processed By: Processed by John P. Healey, Jr. in July 2013

Biography/History: Born Helen C. Neal, June 21, 1921, in Brighton, MA, Sr Marie Augusta Neal received an A.B. from Emmanuel College, an M.A. from Boston College, and a Ph.D. in Sociology from Harvard University, 1963. She taught secondary school from 1946-53 before beginning her teaching and research career at Emmanuel College in Boston, MA. Beside her teaching, her work in her order of the Sisters' of Notre Dame de Namur and for the Conference of Major Superiors of Women's Institutes, Sr. Neal served on the Boston Archdiocesan Commission on Human Rights, and as an area chairperson for the Governor's Commission on the Status of Women in Massachusetts. In 1965, Sr. Neal became director of the newly organized Research Committee of the Conference of Major Superiors of Women's Institutes (CMSW). In this capacity she directed a "systematic examination of the resources of Sisters in the U.S. for the work of the Church in the post-Conciliar era." Originally planned as a two-stage study, the research developed into a many stages, multi-year project. The foundational stages were a 1966 survey of the personnel and resources of American women's religious orders, and a 1967 attitude survey of 139,000 American sisters in apostolic orders. These were followed by a survey of religious in contemplative orders in 1968, the development of an instrument to assess the populations served by religious in the same year, a content analysis of decrees from post-Conciliar renewal chapters in 1973, a partial retest of the 1967 Sisters' Survey in 1968, updates of this survey in 1979-1980 and 1989-1990, and an update of the 1966 congregational survey in 1982.

In addition to her work with the CMSW Research Committee, Sr. Neal also conducted or assisted in several related projects: a self- study by the Jesuits in the provinces of California and Oregon, a multi-national self-study by her own order, the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, and a survey of Catholic Schools in South Africa.

At the heart of Sr. Neal's research is the question of the readiness of religious for renewal and social activism in the direction envisioned by Vatican II. She attempts to determine factors which are conducive for change. She uses the data gathered in the surveys for comparative studies of religious orders having varying levels of experimentation and displaying different degrees of willingness to change. Central to her research is the use of "scales," multi-item measures of attitude, to measure belief and willingness to change. Sr. Marie Augusta Neal died in 2004.

Scope and Content: The collection contains surveys, many of which were overseen by Sr. Marie Augusta Neal and cover such issues as nuns attitudes in the post-Conciliar period, Catholic education in South Africa and Sister of Notre Dame Assessment of Life and Works for the period between 1967 and 1991. The materials range from questionnaires to reports to statistical data for the time period covered.   

Collection Arrangement: The series is arranged into two (2) series, ordered chronologically. 1. Sisters’ Survey Project. 2. Miscellaneous Questionnaires.

Note: Sister Surveys may be available at the Sisters of Notre Dame Archives in Ipswich, MA. For further information contact Nancy Barthelemy at (978) 380-1521 or Nancy.Barthelemy@sndden.org.