Religiosity and Secularization in the Academic Professions

Abstract

Data on present and past religiosity of university faculty members in six major academic fields suggest that the relatively high present religiosity of members of applied fields is the result of a selective process and a low rate of secularization. This also accounts for the lower religiosity of natural scientists. But low religiosity in the humanities more often is due to late secularization. Both the latter and a selective process underlie low religiosity among social scientists. Religious beliefs are a better predictor of perceived conflict between religious convictions and academic knowledge and of concern about it than is academic field. Academic field, however, is the better predictor of modes of relating these two spheres of ideas to each other.