What Happens on the Bus? How Community Impacts Jewish Engagement on Taglit-Birthright Israel

AbstractTaglit-Birthright Israel motivates participants "to explore their Jewish identity through a peer educational experience of historic and contemporary Israel" and attempts to strengthen relationships among young Jews in the Diaspora and Israel (Taglit-Birthright Israel, 2012). Substantial research has shown the positive impact of Taglit, but there are still multiple questions about the mechanism through which Taglit impacts the participants. The current research explores the role of creating community on the Taglit bus. Using data from pre and post-trip surveys, the impact of community on participants' connections to Judaism and Israel are explored. In sociological terms, bringing individuals together to create community increases bonding social capital. Data show that an atmosphere of community and friendship on the bus is a strong predictor of trip outcomes. Implications for participants' connections with the Jewish community are considered.IntroductionTaglit-Birthright Israel, launched in late 1999, was designed to enhance Jewish identity, love of Israel, and klal Yisrael - a sense of Jewish community - among Diaspora young adults (Saxe & Chazan, 2008). The program goals were ambitious, and initially, there was considerable skepticism about whether they could be achieved simply by bringing young adults to Israel for a ten day educational tour. More than a decade of research assessing the impact of the program, however, documents its effects - on increased feelings of connection to Israel and the Jewish people, as well as increased Jewish engagement amongst participants (Saxe et al., 2008; Saxe et al., 2011; Saxe et al., 2012). Despite strong evidence of its impact both in the short and long-term, the mechanisms underlying Taglit's impact are not fully understood. The current paper explores some of what happens during a Taglit trip and how it leads to changes in Jewish identity and involvement in the Jewish community. In particular, the present research explores the way in which a sense of community on the bus helps participants feel a deeper connection to their Jewish identity, Israel, and the Jewish people, klal Yisrael.Community on Taglit-Birthright IsraelTaglit has brought over 350,000 young adults to Israel from around the world. Participants spend 10 days touring Israel on a bus with 40 peers from their home country. For at least half of the trip, they are joined by 6-8 Israeli peers who become fellow participants as the group visits historical and modern landmarks and experiences contemporary Israel. This aspect of the Taglit experience is called the mifgash (encounter) (Sasson, Mittelberg, Hecht, & Saxe, 2008).Taglit is open to young Jews (even those with one Jewish parent) who are between the ages of 18 and 26 and have not been on a peer trip to Israel.1 As a result, Taglit attracts a wide spectrum of Jewish young adults. Participants have varied levels of Jewish education and practice, as well as knowledge about Israel. The majority of Taglit participants are from the United States and Canada, with a significant contingency coming from across the world. Israeli mifgash participants also represent a broad spectrum of Israeli young adults. Most consider themselves secular, although the majority follow Jewish traditions and many identify as traditional (Masorti) or religious (Sasson et al., 2008).Bringing seemingly diverse Jewish young adults together to learn about their shared culture is central to the mission of Taglit. As described by Taglit's educational platform, "the Taglit?Birthright Israel educational journey is committed to a culture of open discussion and dialogue about diverse visions and versions of Jewish identity, discourse, and living" (Taglit-Birthright Israel, 2012). Participants on Taglit are encouraged to explore new ways of Jewish engagement in an open, non-judgmental setting (Kelner, 2010). A temporary Jewish community is established, modeling Jewish solidarity and group life on a small scale (Kirshenblatt-Gimblett, 2002). …