Secularism and American Political Behavior

Bibliographic Data

ID6367704
AuthorsGeoffrey C Layman (0000-0002-5955-920X, University of Notre Dame professor of political science at the , Notre Dame, IN, USA), David E Campbell (0000-0002-6360-7315, American Democracy at the University of Notre Dame Packey J. Dee Professor of , Notre Dame, IN, USA), John C Green (Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron director emeritus of the , Akron, OH, USA), Nathanael Gratias Sumaktoyo (0000-0002-7932-3691, University of Konstanz postdoctoral fellow at the , Konstanz, Germany)
Year2021
Volume85
Issue1
Pages79-100
Publication date2021-08-04
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePublic Opinion Quarterly (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0033-362X • E-ISSN: 1537-5331
PublisherOxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1093/poq/nfab011
OpenAlexW3177025819
LanguageEN
Citations received16
References cited31

The recent growth of the secular population in the United States has implications for American politics. However, our understanding of these implications has been hindered by oversimplified concepts and measures that equate secularism with non-religion. We separate the two concepts, distinguishing “non-religiosity,” or the absence of religion, from “secularism,” or a positive embrace of secular beliefs and identities. Using original national-sample cross-sectional and panel surveys, we introduce new measures of secularism, evaluate their properties, and assess their connection to political attitudes and behavior. We find a clear distinction between secularism and non-religiosity in the American public and show that secularism is more closely related than non-religiosity to political attitudes, identifications, and engagement. In fact, while secularism is related to changes over time in political orientations, non-religiosity is not

Political science · Politics · Religiosity · Secularism · Sociology · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Society, and Development · Law · Social Psychology

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