J V Smith
Biographic Data
| ID | 3604344 |
|---|---|
| NAME | J V Smith |
| GIVEN NAMES | J V |
| FAMILY NAME | Smith |
| SIGNATURE | SMITH J V |
| AFFILIATIONS | Pennsylvania State University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-9730-200X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 13 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 62 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 13 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1963 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Partisan and Racial Sorting of Christian Nationalism, 1996–2022
Christian nationalism scholarship and discourse has surged in the years since Trump's 2016 election victory, even as, by most measures, adherence to Christian nationalist beliefs has declined. Applying scholarship on political backlash, I propose that this apparent discrepancy may be explained both by ideological trends antithetical to public religion among Democrats and politicization of religious identity among Republicans, leading to partisan …
Reply to Steven Foertsch's “Defending Critical Epistemology
In his reply to “Old Wine in New Wineskins,” Foertsch argues that positivist critiques of the “Christian nationalism” literature are deficient and advocates for continued application of critical epistemology in this area of research. In response, I argue, first, that the focus on positivism mischaracterizes the interpretivist critique in “Old Wine in New Wineskins” while unintentionally implicating most of the evidentiary basis for claims about “…
From heterodoxy to pluralism
In 2015, rain and Behavioral Sciences published a symposium on the implications of left-leaning ideological imbalance in social science, with a lead article from Duarte et al. calling for the fostering of greater political diversity. In this essay I revisit, reaffirm, and extend this call. First, I review two prominent theories of viewpoint diversity from Mill and Longino, demonstrating the irreducible need for actual viewpoint diversity in knowl…
Measurement and Conceptualization of Christian Nationalism
In recent years there has been an abundance of research on the role of Christian nationalism in the United States. Critics of this research have argued that typical survey measures in this work do not reflect the concept of Christian nationalism as theorized. In this study, we use exploratory factor analysis to extract a scale from a novel set of survey items from the Neighborly Faith data set intended to measure the concept more directly. We the…
Family and religion in flux
Objective This study examines the links between family formation, relationship history, and multiple types of religiosity in early–middle adulthood, as well as racial/ethnic heterogeneity of these associations. Background Family and religion have long been recognized as linked institutions. However, rapid changes in both institutions in recent decades necessitate a reexamination of this link. We know little about how this association varies by pa…
Old wine in new wineskins
In 2001, John Levi Martin published a critique of authoritarianism scholarship, arguing that it was marred by fundamental biases of tautology, selective interpretation, and overtheorization of some research subjects but neglect of others. Drawing from this critique, I argue that Christian nationalism scholarship in sociology operates as a variant of authoritarianism research, exhibiting similar claims, strengths, and shortcomings. In a short span…
Re-Examining the Link Between Premarital Sex and Divorce
Premarital sex predicts divorce, but we do not know why. Scholars have attributed the relationship to factors such as differences in beliefs and values, but these explanations have not been tested. It is further unclear how this relationship changes by number of sexual partners, or differs by gender. We re-examine this relationship with event history models using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Models incl…
Linking Religious Upbringing to Young Adult Moral Formation
Recent scholarship has conceptualized morality in terms of multidimensional, intuitive traits that influence what people regard as right or wrong. Ample literature shows that religious factors are closely related to moral traits. However, little research has explored links between religious upbringing and adult moral outcomes. This study uses longitudinal data from the National Study of Youth and Religion to examine how diverse forms of religious…
Beyond The God Gap
Research has consistently found that the link between religious and political identification and behavior in the United States has grown significantly, as religious populations have increasingly aligned with the political right while secular Americans move toward the political left. Yet, other research cautions that most Americans are not extreme either politically or religiously. In this study I seek to integrate these claims by applying a laten…
What Isn't Christian Nationalism? A Call for Conceptual and Empirical Splitting
In the years surrounding Donald Trump's presidency, a burgeoning strand of literature has emphasized the role of Christian nationalism in American political conflict. The authors argue that this literature contains mutually reinforcing theoretical and empirical shortcomings. Theoretically, the concept of Christian nationalism is overextended and conflates multiple conceptualizations of religion in public life. Empirically, the standard scale used…
Transmission of Faith in Families
The family and denominational factors influencing intergenerational religious transmission have been examined in a substantial body of work. Despite research identifying religious ideology as a salient aspect of American religion, however, its role in religious transmission remains unexplored. In this study, I use the National Study of Youth and Religion to test whether children's worship attendance and centrality of faith in young adulthood diff…
Ecological Validity of Indicator Data as Predictors of Survey Findings
In a series of sh1die.r the validity of preexisting indicator data, based on child and family variables, was tested by means of an extensive sample survey with individual case interviews in two counties in New York State. The counties included one of the highest and one of the lowest in the state, as measured on a specially developed index. On comparable variables a close fit was found between the indicator and the survey data. When the more exte…
Casework Service to Chronically Dependent Multiproblem Families
What Isn't Christian Nationalism? A Call for Conceptual and Empirical Splitting
In the years surrounding Donald Trump's presidency, a burgeoning strand of literature has emphasized the role of Christian nationalism in American political conflict. The authors argue that this literature contains mutually reinforcing theoretical and empirical shortcomings. Theoretically, the concept of Christian nationalism is overextended and conflates multiple conceptualizations of religion in public life. Empirically, the standard scale used…
Transmission of Faith in Families
The family and denominational factors influencing intergenerational religious transmission have been examined in a substantial body of work. Despite research identifying religious ideology as a salient aspect of American religion, however, its role in religious transmission remains unexplored. In this study, I use the National Study of Youth and Religion to test whether children's worship attendance and centrality of faith in young adulthood diff…
Beyond The God Gap
Research has consistently found that the link between religious and political identification and behavior in the United States has grown significantly, as religious populations have increasingly aligned with the political right while secular Americans move toward the political left. Yet, other research cautions that most Americans are not extreme either politically or religiously. In this study I seek to integrate these claims by applying a laten…
Old wine in new wineskins
In 2001, John Levi Martin published a critique of authoritarianism scholarship, arguing that it was marred by fundamental biases of tautology, selective interpretation, and overtheorization of some research subjects but neglect of others. Drawing from this critique, I argue that Christian nationalism scholarship in sociology operates as a variant of authoritarianism research, exhibiting similar claims, strengths, and shortcomings. In a short span…
Ecological Validity of Indicator Data as Predictors of Survey Findings
In a series of sh1die.r the validity of preexisting indicator data, based on child and family variables, was tested by means of an extensive sample survey with individual case interviews in two counties in New York State. The counties included one of the highest and one of the lowest in the state, as measured on a specially developed index. On comparable variables a close fit was found between the indicator and the survey data. When the more exte…
Linking Religious Upbringing to Young Adult Moral Formation
Recent scholarship has conceptualized morality in terms of multidimensional, intuitive traits that influence what people regard as right or wrong. Ample literature shows that religious factors are closely related to moral traits. However, little research has explored links between religious upbringing and adult moral outcomes. This study uses longitudinal data from the National Study of Youth and Religion to examine how diverse forms of religious…
Casework Service to Chronically Dependent Multiproblem Families
Casework Service to Chronically Dependent Multiproblem Families
Ecological Validity of Indicator Data as Predictors of Survey Findings
In a series of sh1die.r the validity of preexisting indicator data, based on child and family variables, was tested by means of an extensive sample survey with individual case interviews in two counties in New York State. The counties included one of the highest and one of the lowest in the state, as measured on a specially developed index. On comparable variables a close fit was found between the indicator and the survey data. When the more exte…
Transmission of Faith in Families
The family and denominational factors influencing intergenerational religious transmission have been examined in a substantial body of work. Despite research identifying religious ideology as a salient aspect of American religion, however, its role in religious transmission remains unexplored. In this study, I use the National Study of Youth and Religion to test whether children's worship attendance and centrality of faith in young adulthood diff…
Beyond The God Gap
Research has consistently found that the link between religious and political identification and behavior in the United States has grown significantly, as religious populations have increasingly aligned with the political right while secular Americans move toward the political left. Yet, other research cautions that most Americans are not extreme either politically or religiously. In this study I seek to integrate these claims by applying a laten…
What Isn't Christian Nationalism? A Call for Conceptual and Empirical Splitting
In the years surrounding Donald Trump's presidency, a burgeoning strand of literature has emphasized the role of Christian nationalism in American political conflict. The authors argue that this literature contains mutually reinforcing theoretical and empirical shortcomings. Theoretically, the concept of Christian nationalism is overextended and conflates multiple conceptualizations of religion in public life. Empirically, the standard scale used…
Linking Religious Upbringing to Young Adult Moral Formation
Recent scholarship has conceptualized morality in terms of multidimensional, intuitive traits that influence what people regard as right or wrong. Ample literature shows that religious factors are closely related to moral traits. However, little research has explored links between religious upbringing and adult moral outcomes. This study uses longitudinal data from the National Study of Youth and Religion to examine how diverse forms of religious…
Family and religion in flux
Objective This study examines the links between family formation, relationship history, and multiple types of religiosity in early–middle adulthood, as well as racial/ethnic heterogeneity of these associations. Background Family and religion have long been recognized as linked institutions. However, rapid changes in both institutions in recent decades necessitate a reexamination of this link. We know little about how this association varies by pa…
Old wine in new wineskins
In 2001, John Levi Martin published a critique of authoritarianism scholarship, arguing that it was marred by fundamental biases of tautology, selective interpretation, and overtheorization of some research subjects but neglect of others. Drawing from this critique, I argue that Christian nationalism scholarship in sociology operates as a variant of authoritarianism research, exhibiting similar claims, strengths, and shortcomings. In a short span…
Re-Examining the Link Between Premarital Sex and Divorce
Premarital sex predicts divorce, but we do not know why. Scholars have attributed the relationship to factors such as differences in beliefs and values, but these explanations have not been tested. It is further unclear how this relationship changes by number of sexual partners, or differs by gender. We re-examine this relationship with event history models using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. Models incl…
Reply to Steven Foertsch's “Defending Critical Epistemology
In his reply to “Old Wine in New Wineskins,” Foertsch argues that positivist critiques of the “Christian nationalism” literature are deficient and advocates for continued application of critical epistemology in this area of research. In response, I argue, first, that the focus on positivism mischaracterizes the interpretivist critique in “Old Wine in New Wineskins” while unintentionally implicating most of the evidentiary basis for claims about “…
From heterodoxy to pluralism
In 2015, rain and Behavioral Sciences published a symposium on the implications of left-leaning ideological imbalance in social science, with a lead article from Duarte et al. calling for the fostering of greater political diversity. In this essay I revisit, reaffirm, and extend this call. First, I review two prominent theories of viewpoint diversity from Mill and Longino, demonstrating the irreducible need for actual viewpoint diversity in knowl…
Measurement and Conceptualization of Christian Nationalism
In recent years there has been an abundance of research on the role of Christian nationalism in the United States. Critics of this research have argued that typical survey measures in this work do not reflect the concept of Christian nationalism as theorized. In this study, we use exploratory factor analysis to extract a scale from a novel set of survey items from the Neighborly Faith data set intended to measure the concept more directly. We the…
Partisan and Racial Sorting of Christian Nationalism, 1996–2022
Christian nationalism scholarship and discourse has surged in the years since Trump's 2016 election victory, even as, by most measures, adherence to Christian nationalist beliefs has declined. Applying scholarship on political backlash, I propose that this apparent discrepancy may be explained both by ideological trends antithetical to public religion among Democrats and politicization of religious identity among Republicans, leading to partisan …
Religion and Society Interactions (9 works) · Sociology (9 works) · Politics (7 works) · Political science (6 works) · Psychology (6 works) · Ideology (5 works) · Epistemology (4 works) · Law (4 works) · Law (4 works) · Nationalism (4 works)