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79 Soc. F. 291 (2000-2001)
The Measure of American Religion: Toward Improving the State of the Art

handle is hein.journals/josf79 and id is 303 raw text is: The Measure of American Religion: Toward Improving the State of the Art* BRIAN STEENSLAND, Princeton University JERRY Z. PARK, University of Notre Dame MARK D. REGNERUS, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill LYNN D. ROBINSON, Princeton University W. BRADFORD WILCOX, Princeton University ROBERT D. WOODBERRY, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Abstract Recently, scholars have devoted renewed attention to the role of religion in American life. Thus, it is important that they use the most effective means available to categorize and study religious groups. However, the most widely used classification scheme in survey research (TW Smith 1990) does not capture essential differences between American religious traditions and overlooks significant new trends in religious affiliation. We critique this scheme based on its historical, terminological and taxonomical inaccuracy and offer a new approach that addresses its shortcomings by using denominational affiliation to place respondents into seven categories grounded in the historical development ofAmerican religious traditions. Most important, this new scheme yields more meaningful interpretations because the categories refer to concrete religious traditions. Because of increased accuracy in classification, it also improves model fit and reduces measurement error. Since the rise of the Christian Right in the late 1970s, scholars have devoted renewed attention to the role of religion in American public life. Social commentators now widely acknowledge that Americans are more religious than citizens in most other *Early versions of this article were presented at the meetings of the Southern Association for Public Opinion Research (1997) and the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion (1998). The article grew from discussions between the authors at the Seminar on Survey Research and American Religion sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trusts. We are grateful to Jim Guth, Bud Kellstedt, and Corwin Smidt for organizing the seminar and for their encouragement on the project. We also thank the anonymous Social Forces reviewers for their helpful suggestions. Direct correspondence to Brian Steensland, 2-N-1 Green Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544. E-mail: stenslnd@princeton.edu. Social Forces, September 2000, 79(1):291-318 @ The University of North Carolina Press

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