Conrad Hackett

Seven things to consider when measuring religious identity

Measuring religious identity is complex. The author offers seven suggestions for those who wish to describe and understand religious identity using survey data: (1) Definitions and measures of religious identity shape knowledge about religious groups; (2) Variation in question wording leads to variation in responses; (3) Comparing results across surveys provides valuable perspective; (4) Incentives shape how respondents report their religious identity; (5) Religious identity may be liminal; (6) Salient identity categories are often unmeasured; and (7) Religious identity and religious practice may not seem congruent. This essay includes many examples to illustrate these measurement suggestions.

The Size and Demographic Structure of Religions in Europe

Two of the most closely watched patterns of religious-demographic change in Europe are religious switching and the growth of religions other than Christianity (in particular, Islam). This chapter provides answers about the sex differences in religious affiliation, a product of differential patterns of religious switching by sex and the disproportionally male migrant stock. To estimate the proportion of religious groups in European countries, the author has collected the best available and most up-to-date data from censuses, surveys, and administrative population registers for all European countries. The author has favored sources that measured religious identity directly in a one-step question. The chapter does not measure religious intensity and only considers stated religious affiliation, not the relationship between belief and practice. It also provides estimates of religious distributions by age and sex for 42 countries in Europe. Keywords: demographic change; Europe; religions

Religious Affiliation Among Older Age Groups Worldwide: Estimates for 2010 and Projections Until 2050

Objectives The religious landscape of older adults around the world is changing profoundly. Yet until now, no study has chronicled these changes or compared expected aging patterns of religious groups. Differential aging among religious groups can have important economic and social consequences. This study estimates and projects the future religious composition by age at the global and regional levels. Method This study presents estimates of age structures by religion for 2010 and projections until 2050. It is based on analyses of more than 2,500 censuses, registers, and surveys from 198 countries. Regional and global results are the aggregate of demographic projections carried out at the country level. Results In 2010, Muslims were least likely to be aged 60 or older (7% of all Muslims), and Jews were most likely to be in this age group (20% of all Jews). By 2050, we project that Buddhists and the religiously unaffiliated will have the oldest populations (both will have 32% above the age of 60), whereas Muslims will remain the youngest religious group (with only 16% above the age of 60). Christians will, globally, age relatively slowly, from 14% to 21% above the age of 60 from 2010 to 2050. Discussion The religious landscape among the worlds seniors will change fundamentally in the coming years, due to the combination of rapid aging among the religiously unaffiliated and Buddhist populations and the persistence of relatively young age structures among Muslims and Christians, which are the dominant religions in Africa.

When people shed religious identity in Ireland and Austria: Evidence from censuses.

BACKGROUND Disaffiliation from religion is an important factor behind the rapid rise in persons claiming no religious affiliation in many advanced industrial countries. Scholars typically think of disaffiliation as a life course process that is confined to young adults, with little change occurring among older adults, yet few studies have examined this assumption outside the United States and Great Britain. OBJECTIVE We evaluate whether the young-adult model of disaffiliation from religion applies in Ireland and Austria, two historically Catholic-majority countries with different levels of non-affiliation growth. METHODS We use census data on religious affiliation in Ireland (1971–2011) and Austria (1971–2001) to track aggregate changes in the percentage reporting no religious affiliation over the life course for successive birth cohorts. RESULTS We find support for the young-adult model in Ireland. However, recent cohorts in Austria exhibit a distinct pattern of disaffiliation that continues into middle adulthood. Our analysis suggests that mid-life disaffiliation in Austria is connected to a religious tax, which we argue spurs nominally affiliated adults to disaffiliate themselves, as their income rises and the costs of religious affiliation increase. CONCLUSION Our findings offer insight into some of the social factors behind recent religious change across Europe and highlight the need for more cross-national research on the age and cohort dimensions of this change.