Survey: Americans still largely religious

Survey: Americans still largely religious


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SALT LAKE CITY — Seven in 10 Americans consider themselves moderately or very religious, according to a study released Tuesday.

The Gallup Poll is based on respondents' self-reporting of the importance of religion in their daily lives and their attendance at religious services.

Among the 69 percent who say they are moderately or very religious, 40 percent are very religious, meaning that they attend religious services regularly and say religion is important in their daily lives.

It also shows the U.S. remains a largely Christian nation, although an increasing percentage of adults say they don't have a formal religion.

Other key findings from this and previous research from 2008 include:

  • Mormons are the most religious of any specific religious group in America; Jews are the least.
  • Blacks are more religious than any other race or ethnic group in America.
  • Religiousness is highest in Southern states, including Mississippi, Alabama, and Louisiana.

American Religiousness
Very religious: 40%
Moderately religious: 29%
Nonreligious: 31%

  1. Religiousness is lowest in states located in the two northern corners of the country, including Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska.
  2. Religiousness increases with age. Americans are least religious at age 23 and most religious at age 80.
  3. Women are significantly more religious than men, at all ages and within all race and ethnic groups.
  4. Upscale Americans are less religious than those with lower levels of education and income, but better-off Americans attend religious services just as often.
  5. Republicans are significantly more likely to say that religion is important in their daily lives and more likely to attend religious services regularly than either independents or Democrats. Gallup says although it's difficult to predict the future, it expects religion to become more important because the number of older Americans will essentially double over the next 20 years. Past statistics show people generally become more religious as they age. The data is based on more than 320,000 interviews conducted between Jan. 2 and Nov. 30, 2012.

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Linda Williams

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