Decline of Christianity in the U.S. Has Slowed, May Have Leveled Off
After years of decline, the U.S. Christian share now shows signs of leveling off. The new Religious Landscape Study explores trends in identity, beliefs and practices.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Chip Rotolo is a Research Associate on Pew Research Center’s Religion and Public Life team. His research explores religious identities, beliefs and practices in the United States with a particular focus on religion’s role in American society. He has worked on surveys examining views about America as a Christian nation, how Americans perceive the importance of religion in public life, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on attendance at religious services, spirituality in the U.S. and religion among Asian Americans. Chip holds a doctorate in sociology from the University of Notre Dame.
Publications
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5 Years Later: America Looks Back at the Impact of COVID-19
Nearly three-quarters of U.S. adults (72%) say the COVID-19 pandemic did more to drive the country apart than to bring it together.
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The vast majority of Americans celebrate Thanksgiving, but their traditions and activities vary widely
Turkey Day traditions, activities and even preferred dinnertimes vary.
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8 in 10 Americans Say Religion Is Losing Influence in Public Life
Most Americans say religion’s influence is shrinking, and about half (48%) see conflict between their own religious beliefs and mainstream American culture.
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By a wide margin, Americans say football – not baseball – is ‘America’s sport’
More than half of Americans (53%) say America’s sport is football – about twice the share who say it’s baseball (27%).
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Religious ‘Nones’ in America: Who They Are and What They Believe
28% of U.S. adults are religiously unaffiliated, describing themselves as atheists, agnostics or “nothing in particular” when asked about their religion.
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Spirituality Among Americans
Overall, 70% of U.S. adults describe themselves as spiritual in some way, including 22% who are spiritual but not religious. An overwhelming majority of U.S. adults (83%) say they believe that people have a soul or spirit in addition to their physical body. And 81% say there is something spiritual beyond the natural world, even if we cannot see it.
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Religion Among Asian Americans
A rising share of Asian Americans say they have no religion (32%), but many consider themselves close to one or more religious traditions for reasons such as family or culture. Christianity is still the largest faith group among Asian Americans (34%).
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In Their Own Words: Cultural Connections to Religion Among Asian Americans
Read about some of the ways focus group participants with ties to different faith traditions explain the complex relationship of religion and culture in their lives.
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How the Pandemic Has Affected Attendance at U.S. Religious Services
During the pandemic, a stable share of U.S. adults have been participating in religious services in some way – either virtually or in person – but in-person attendance is slightly lower than it was before COVID-19. Among Americans surveyed across several years, the vast majority described their attendance habits in roughly the same way in both 2019 and 2022.
