Around the world, people are beginning to turn their backs on religion.
For some time, researchers have observed this trend as it ripples through developed countries, with the United States standing out as the exception.
Now, a new study reveals this is no longer the case; with each passing generation, Americans too are steadily becoming less religious.
Research from Duke University and University College London (UCL) reveals that the number of people in the US who claim religious affiliations or attend Church has dropped.
And, the belief in God is dropping as well.
Among the data, the researchers found that while 94 percent of Americans born before 1935 claim a religious affiliation, the same is only true for 71 percent of the generation born after 1975.
The study also revealed that just 45 percent of young adults ages 18-30 say they have ‘no doubt God exists,’ while 68 percent of Americans 65 and older said the same.
They also found that 41 percent of people 70 and older attend church services at least once a month while just 18 percent of people 60 and younger say this.
As religious belief declines in much of the Western world, it’s large been thought that the United States had resisted the trend.
The study published in the American Journal of Sociology examined US data from the General Social Survey, which is conducted every two years.
Comparisons with data from Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand revealed an overall drop in religious belief over time.
In the United States, this drop has been very gradual, making it difficult for scientists to detect due to lack of data.
The decline, they found, has occurred generationally.
‘None of these declines is happening fast, but the signs are now unmistakable,’ said David Voas, a social scientist with UCL and co-author of the study.
‘It has become clear that American religiosity has been declining for decades, and the decline is driven by the same dynamic – generational differences – that has driven religious decline across the developed world.’
The number of people in the US who claim religious affiliations or attend Church has dropped. And, the belief in God is dropping as well. The decline, they found, has occurred generationally. The researchers say the data remains consistent over time, reflecting the trend seen elsewhere in the world
Researchers found each generation is subsequently less religious than the one before.
In one example, the team found that 41 percent of people aged 70 and older reported they attend church services at least once a month.
For people just under that age bracket, 60 and younger, only 18 percent attend church at this frequency.
‘The US has long been considered an exception to the modern claim that religion is declining,’ said Mark Chaves, the study’s other co-author, and a professor of sociology, divinity, and religion at Duke.
‘But if you look at the trajectory, and the generational dynamic that is producing the trajectory, we may not be an exception after all.’
The researchers say the data remains consistent over time, reflecting the trend seen elsewhere in the world.
‘If you break it down over five-year chunks,’ Chaves said, ‘each age group is a little less religious than the one before it.’