Diasporic religion: The Irish and Northern Irish in England

Abstract

The current research assesses the religious orientations of Irish and Northern Irish Catholic and Protestant migrants in England related to the suggestion that immigration to a comparatively irreligious society increases religious awareness. Participants were 391 opportunity- and snowball-sampled individuals, where 171 were members of the Northern Irish Diaspora, 54 were members of the Republic of Ireland Diaspora and 166 were members of the English Control Group. Findings suggest that the Irish and Northern Irish migrant groups showed significantly higher levels of religious commitment than their English counterparts, although these diasporic groups did not differ from each other in terms of their levels of commitment. Findings are discussed with reference to the impact of religion on migration, Catholic and Protestant religious practices, and the impact of church activities on religious commitment.