Religious identification in a changing Turkey

Abstract

ABSTRACT Turkish politics is changing rapidly, as is the place of religion in its public square. In this context, it is useful to ask who prioritizes religious identity and who does not. Our social-psychological approach emphasizes the importance of understanding why religion is more central to certain individuals’ sense of self than others. We analyze data from an original, nationally representative survey of over 2,000 adults in Turkey that includes a measure of how strongly respondents identify with religion (among other identity options). We run statistical regression analysis to assess how well existing theories of religiosity in general explain the under-explored theoretical and empirical domain of religious identification. Our findings indicate that ideological conservatism, religious fundamentalism, and minority religious group status have significant implications for one’s strength of identification with religion. These results underscore the importance of future research into the psychological roots of attachment to religion and religious identity.