The 2024 General Social Survey is now available on the ARDA. This release includes the addition of variables measuring non-religious beliefs and religious tradition, as well as items like household composition and family responsibility. Download the data for free at www.thearda.com/data-archive....

The ARDA team is spending the weekend at @sssreligion.bsky.social. Stop by our table to learn about free religion data resources or to tell us how you use the ARDA!

Ghosts. Spiders. Germs. Strangers. What do Americans fear the most? The Chapman University Survey of Fears collects annual data on the fears, worries, and concerns of Americans. View and download the 2023 dataset at www.thearda.com/data-archive....

Good morning Minneapolis! The #SSSR_RRA2025 Annual Meeting begins today with a full weekend of plenary sessions, receptions, networking events and papers exploring this year’s theme “Religion Matters.” Full program. ⬇️ #Research #SocialScience #Religion sssreligion.org/annual-meeti...

Ghosts, UFOs, and Other Paranormal Beliefs Many people in the United States hold supernatural or paranormal beliefs that may not fit into tidy conceptualizations of religion. This learning module utilizes survey data to examine paranormal beliefs, who holds them, and why. Access the free module:

Jesus Prayers in Public Schools: Who's For and Who's Against? In the latest #AheadOfTheTrend, Dr. Ryan Burge looks to data from @pewresearch.org to determine whether perceptions of prayer in public schools are dependent on how explicitly religious the prayers are. Full analysis now on the ARDA.

Many social movements in American history have emerged from religious groups and religious ideals. "Social Movements and Religion in American History," an ARDA college-level learning module, examines the history of movements in the United States by using religion as a lens.

View all of the data visualizations from the latest #AheadOfTheTrend "Pews vs. Passports: Who’s Leaving the Country—and Who Isn’t." Look through the graphics and find the full analysis for each at www.thearda.com/categories/a....

New datasets are available to view and download for free each month on the ARDA. This month, we have added collections from @prri.org, @pewresearch.org, and the Australian Consortium for Social and Political Research Incorporated. View all of the latest data at www.thearda.com/data-archive....

Pews vs. Passports: Who’s Leaving the Country—and Who Isn’t Are religious people more likely to stay in the U.S.? Probably not based on data by @pewresearch.org. Instead, it’s the never-attenders who are least likely to travel abroad. Read the full analysis in this installment of #AheadOfTheTrend.

In order to provide more of the best religion data, the ARDA has added External Religion Resources: datasets containing measures of religion which are not cleaned and archived. These external links lead to the site where the data are hosted, with abstracts and descriptions directly from the source.

This summer, ARDA students from the University of Sheffield participated in the European Academy of Religion (EuARe), a major forum for academic research on religion and its relevance for society. Our team was able to share information and resources to those in attendance.

Rethinking Race and Religion in America — The Latest #AheadOfTheTrend Most people who attend church semi-regularly worship alongside others of the same racial background, especially white churchgoers. Yet, 21% of respondents said that no single racial group made up a majority of their congregation.

Dive deeper into #AheadOfTheTrend with data visualizations from "Parenting Isn’t Easy—But Faith Might Help a Little." View the graphs and head to www.thearda.com/categories/a... for the full analysis.

What happens when we die? Some religions have very specific descriptions about the afterlife, while other religions believe what happens after death is a mystery, unexplainable until experienced. This learning module on the ARDA will explore the various beliefs Americans hold about life after death.

New #AheadOfTheTrend on the ARDA: Parenting Isn’t Easy—But Faith Might Help a Little A survey by @pewresearch.org asked parents a series of questions beginning, “How often do you find being a parent to be…” followed by adjectives, such as: enjoyable, stressful, and tiring. Read the analysis below.

Explore the latest data sets added to the ARDA, including: Adolescent Christian Narratives and Experiences Survey American Trends Panel Wave 102 — Climate, COVID, and Culture of Work PRRI Gen Z Survey, 2023 Pew National Survey of Latinos, 2011 Questionnaire on Religious Belief, 1990–1991

The ARDA's Executive Co-Director Andrew Whitehead will be leading a webinar exploring Cross-Cultural Christian Nationalism tomorrow at 3 p.m. as part of @csraac.bsky.social's Religion & webinar series. Register for this timely discussion at raac.indianapolis.iu.edu/programs/rel....

Collecting reliable data on international religion can be difficult due to limitations of translation. In this college-level learning module, users will explore sources that contain reliable data on international religion. Download "Exploring Religion and Religious Freedom in Nations" here.

Ponder the visualizations from our latest installment of #AheadOfTheTrend: The Many Jobs of a Religious Leader To what degree are American clergy bi-vocational? What factors determine additional roles: age, salary, role? Make sure to read the full analysis at www.thearda.com/categories/a....

New dataset on the ARDA: @prri.org Gen Z Survey, 2023 This survey considers what sets Generation Z apart from older generations in terms of: political and cultural values, faith in communities and political institutions, and views on religion. Discover the Data: www.thearda.com/data-archive...

Looking for the latest in religion data and resources? Subscribe to the ARDA Newsletter to receive the newest datasets, Ahead of the Trend columns, learning modules, and more delivered directly to your inbox. Sign up at www.thearda.com/about/subscr....

One of the many beneficial religion data resources on the ARDA is our collection of family trees for major world religions. Each family tree outlines the rich history of a religion, providing interactive diagrams and descriptions of important groups, places, and events. Explore this resource today.

New #AheadOfTheTrend on the ARDA: The Many Jobs of a Religious Leader The National Survey of Religious Leaders helps show how clergy entered ministry and how they manage the financial aspects of being a pastor. The findings show most ministers hold secondary employment and work >40 hours/week.

ARDA Co-Director @andrew-whitehead.bsky.social will be leading the kick-off conversation for @csraac.bsky.social's sixth season of Religion &. Register for Religion & Cross-Cultural Christian Nationalism and the full slate of episodes at raac.indianapolis.iu.edu/programs/rel....

New Data on the ARDA: U.S. Religious Landscape Study, 2023-24 This survey provides a religious portrait of the U.S. among a nationally representative sample of 36,908 adults. The ARDA has added six variables to the data set to enhance user experience. Discover More: www.thearda.com/data-archive...

Learning Module Spotlight: Religion and Science It is often said that there is a fundamental conflict between religion and science. This learning module examines empirical data from Americans on their opinions between religion and science. Access the Module: www.thearda.com/categories/t...

New #AheadOfTheTrend — Higher Education on Trial: Religion, Politics, and Public Doubt What role does religion play in this changing perception of higher education in the United States? When breaking down data on college sentiment by religious tradition, there was some significant variation.

Religious families are one way to classify religious groups based on ancestry or heritage. They are broader than denomination but more specific than religious traditions. Some common religious families include: Adventist, Lutheran, and Holiness. Visit the link below for a complete list.

New on the ARDA | ATP Wave 115 — Parents Survey The American Trends Panel (ATP), created by @pewresearch.org, is a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults. The ATP Wave 115 was conducted among a sample of parents of a child under 18. Discover the data: www.thearda.com/data-archive...

Learning Module Spotlight: Religion in United States Public Schools The role of religion in public schools has long been a topic of debate. This college-level learning module explores the opinions of average Americans about religion in schools. Access the Module: www.thearda.com/categories/t...

New #AheadOfTheTrend — Faith Meets the Future: Religion and the Gene Editing Divide In 2021, @pewresearch.org fielded a survey that included questions about gene editing practices and implications. There’s a lot to learn about what factors shape people’s views and how much religion contributes.

Listen to real stories of impact about the ARDA's Community Profile Builder on why the resource has become essential in the ways they conduct ministry and community outreach. View our new video and learn more about the Community Profile Builder at www.thearda.com/us-religion/....

More from #AheadOfTheTrend: It’s easy to view Catholic traditionalists as falling in line with our modern conception of politics, being against abortion, same-sex marriage, and immigration. But the data tells a much more complicated story. Read the analysis at www.thearda.com/categories/a....

Does religion prevent individuals from committing crimes? How does religion shape an individual’s perception of crime and views on punishment? Our college learning module, "Crime and Religion" helps students answer these questions and more. Download the free module at the link below.

New #AheadOfTheTrend: The Role of Certainty in the Lives of Catholics The General Social Survey includes a question about belief in God with options from believing without doubts to an atheistic view. It’s helpful to visualize how American Christian groups answered that question. Read more:

The ARDA was featured in an article in the most recent issue of Encounter: A Journal of Theological Scholarship from Christian Theological Seminary. Rob Saler writes about why good data on religion is essential for pastors and practitioners. Read the article at cts.libguides.com/library/publ....

Part of the ARDA's ethos is to be relevant to conversations being held in the world of religion today. One way we contribute to these ongoing conversations is through learning modules that are designed to educate individuals about particular topics through use of the best religion data.

The Association of Religion Data Archives (@religiondata.bsky.social) is one of the central programs of the Center. The ARDA contains more than 90 learning modules on religion data, including notable topics such as religious views on homosexuality. Learn more at www.thearda.com/categories/t....

Congratulations to our Executive Co-Director @andrew-whitehead.bsky.social for being selected as a research fellow by the Charles F. Kettering Foundation (@kettering.org). We look forward to seeing the work that stems from this opportunity!

Andrew Whitehead (@andrew-whitehead.bsky.social), Executive Co-Director of @religiondata.bsky.social, was named a distinguished research fellow by the Charles F. Kettering Foundation (@kettering.org). Learn more about Andrew's honor and work at raac.indianapolis.iu.edu/news/andrew-....

New #AheadOfTheTrend: How Certain Are Clergy of their Faith? A common assumption is that religious leaders have full surety about matters of religious belief. However, according to data from the National Survey of Religious Leaders, there might be some variability in clergy certainty. Read more:

Twice per year, the ARDA updates its machine-readable cataloging (MARC) records to include records for new resources in the Data Archive. MARC files comply to a standard format for use by libraries to incorporate into their computerized catalogs. Download the updated MARC files here.

Learning doesn't have to stop during summer break. The ARDA includes 40 modules designed for students in junior high and high school to learn more about religion data, demographics, and research. Check out the full library at www.thearda.com/teaching/jr-....

More from #AheadOfTheTrend: Yes, “spiritual but not religious” is a growing share of the American religious landscape. But the "Nones" aren’t more spiritual today than they were twenty years ago. According to the data, about two-thirds say that they are “not at all” or only “slightly” spiritual.

Populations and sampling are key components of survey research. The ARDA has created a learning module to explain and examine random sampling using our archive of open-source datasets. This module helps users identify different collection methods and determine generalized populations for each.

New #AheadOfTheTrend: How Many Americans Are Actually Spiritual But Not Religious? There is a common belief that more Americans are identifying as "spiritual but not religious." Utilizing data from the General Social Survey, we tested the claim to see if the percentage is rising. Read more here:

More from #AheadOfTheTrend: Let's try to figure out which factors lead to more or less flourishing. Everything in our regression is statistically significant, but four factors predicted a higher flourishing score: being white, having a greater household income, being spiritual, and being religious.

In light of the selection of a new pope, you might be wondering: What are historic attitudes and beliefs about the papacy? The ARDA has developed a measurement concept collecting 63 survey questions related to the pope from his infallibility to opinions of previous popes. View the entire set here.

In the newest issue of #AheadOfTheTrend, we examine reported flourishing in young people. A survey administered by the Springtide Research Institute polled young people aged 13-25 years old on eight questions related to human flourishing—an incredibly valuable piece of data! Read more here: