The Long Road Out: Exit Stories from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

This study examined 50 exit narratives written by former members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints posted on two Web sites, postmormon.org and exmormon.org, to explore organizational exit from a faith-based community. Using a microstoria narrative analysis, we found that the narratives described a long, nonlinear exit process that was advanced through microdisassociations. Members masked their intent to leave and internal doubts as they concurrently disconnected and reconnected with their faith. This study extends research on organizational exit to a third organizational form—totalistic organizations—and explores how organizational form informs the exit process.