The Transformation of Generation strongXstrong Shifts in Religious and.pdfVIP

The Transformation of Generation X: Shifts in Religious and Political Self-Identification, 1990-2008 Barry A. Kosmin Juhem Navarro-Rivera A Report Based on the American Religious Identification Survey 2008 Principal Investigators Barry A. Kosmin Ariela Keysar The Transformation of Generation X: Shifts in Religious and Political Self-Identification, 1990-2008 Barry A. Kosmin Juhem Navarro-Rivera Highlights Generation X has weakened its ties to Christianity (85% in 1990 v. 75% in 2008), especially Catholicism, and the Republican Party (34% v. 26%) since 1990. Generation X has secularized over time. In 1990 11% were Nones compared to16% in 2008; 13% of Generation X did not identify with a religion (including Don’t Know and refusals) in 1990, compared to 21% in 2008. Generation X’s shift away from religion can be attributed to defections among Catholics. Self- identified Catholics declined from 33% in 1990 to 26% in 2008. Generation X’s Catholic population fell by 700,000 identifiers during 1990-2008. The loss of 1.7 million white Catholics was not offset by the addition of one million Hispanic Catholics. Generation X underwent religious polarization through religious switching. The Nones grew by 2.2 million persons and the non-denominational Generic Christian population by 1.8 million. The flow to conservative Christian traditions (Christian Generic; Pentecostals; Protestant Sects) appears to have come at the expense of the Baptists and Catholics but not at the expense of the Mainline Protestants. Generation X Christian groups became more female dominated over time (with the exception of the Protestant Sects) while the Nones and Other Religions became more male dominated. Generation X members who self-identifi