Book contents
- Democratic Resilience
- Democratic Resilience
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Part I Why Might Polarization Harm Democracy?
- Part II Political Institutions in Polarized Times
- Part III Social Polarization and Partisanship
- 7 The Social Roots, Risks, and Rewards of Mass Polarization
- 8 The Great White Hope
- 9 The Religious Sort
- 10 Weaponized Group Identities and the Health of Democracy
- Part IV Vicious Circles? The Relationship between Polarized Behavior and Institutions
- Part V Can Political Action Save Democracy in Polarized Times?
- Index
9 - The Religious Sort
The Causes and Consequences of the Religiosity Gap in America
from Part III - Social Polarization and Partisanship
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 20 November 2021
- Democratic Resilience
- Democratic Resilience
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Tables
- Contributors
- Acknowledgments
- Part I Why Might Polarization Harm Democracy?
- Part II Political Institutions in Polarized Times
- Part III Social Polarization and Partisanship
- 7 The Social Roots, Risks, and Rewards of Mass Polarization
- 8 The Great White Hope
- 9 The Religious Sort
- 10 Weaponized Group Identities and the Health of Democracy
- Part IV Vicious Circles? The Relationship between Polarized Behavior and Institutions
- Part V Can Political Action Save Democracy in Polarized Times?
- Index
Summary
The answers to two standard survey questions – “Aside from weddings and funerals, how often to attend religious services?” and “How important is religion in your daily life?” – reveal a great deal about a person’s politics, particularly among white Americans. In short, the more religious a person is, the more likely it is that he or she identifies with the Republican Party and supports Republican candidates. This religiosity gap brings together religious mainline Protestants, evangelical Protestants, undifferentiated Christians, and Catholics under the Republican umbrella while their less devout co-religionists sit alongside religious non-identifiers – including atheists, agnostics, and those who do not call themselves part of a religion – as Democrats.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Democratic ResilienceCan the United States Withstand Rising Polarization?, pp. 226 - 245Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2021
- 1
- Cited by