Abstract
Research suggests that congregational characteristics are associated with the racial attitudes of American churchgoers. This study examines the relationship between congregational size and beliefs about the Black/White socioeconomic gap among religious adherents.MethodDrawing upon data from the General Social Survey and the National Congregations Study, we fit binary logistic regression models to estimate the association between congregational size and Americans’ explanations of Black/White economic inequality.ResultsFindings reveal that attendees of larger congregations are less likely than attendees of smaller congregations to explain racial inequality as the result of the racial discrimination. The likelihood of explaining racial inequality in terms of personal motivation does not vary by congregation size.ConclusionDespite the growing diversity in larger congregations in America, such congregations may steer attendees’ views about racial inequality away from systemic/structural factors, which may attenuate the ability of such congregations to bridge racial divisions.
Highlights
Despite decades of policy initiatives, race continues to account for disparities in income, unemployment, wages, and wealth in the United States [1,2,3]
Other studies in this area highlight the role of other institutional characteristics in accounting for variations in racial attitudes among religious adherents in the United States
A one unit increase in the logged number of regular attendees is associated with a 15 percent decrease in the odds of supporting racial discrimination as an explanation for racial inequality
Summary
Despite decades of policy initiatives, race continues to account for disparities in income, unemployment, wages, and wealth in the United States [1,2,3]. Researchers have yet to investigate the possible association between congregational size and racial attitudes This neglect is curious, given ongoing attention to the roles of religious institutions in shaping racial attitudes. The relationship between religion and racial attitudes continues to garner attention from researchers in the sciences and humanities as well as from the popular media Most studies in this area have focused on the relationship between religious denominations and beliefs about racial inequality [15,16]. Emerson and colleagues found that White evangelicals were more likely than non-evangelical Whites to attribute Black/White socioeconomic disparities to blacks’ lack of perceived motivation Other studies in this area highlight the role of other institutional characteristics in accounting for variations in racial attitudes among religious adherents in the United States. Prior studies have found that the size of an organization’s racial minority population accounts for variations in racial attitudes, while other studies have shown the importance of other institutional characteristics such as the ability of congregations to serve as “affinity havens” [18,19,20]
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