The Effect of Religion on Youth (Dis)Engagement in Advanced Democracies

• In Event: Religion and Pluralism

Abstract

With role of religion declining at a greater rate among the young than ever before, how is this changing young people’s views about democracy in advanced societies? It is well-established in the literature that religious people are more likely to support democratic principles and processes. Does this mean that youth disengagement can be attributed to their aversion to religion? And, does this effect vary across democracies? Using cumulative survey data from the Comparative Study of Electoral Systems (1996-2016) in 35 advanced democracies, this paper asks whether individual and macro-level religious factors facilitate or undermine democratic citizenship among young people. The findings suggest that, notwithstanding age and generational membership, religious affiliation has an independent positive effect on democratic engagement. However, this effect at the individual level is moderated by contextual factors, namely the presence of religious political parties and the cultural heritage of the polity. These results elucidate the understudied effect of multilevel factors on youth disengagement.

Author

• Intifar Chowdhury, The Australian National University