Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious Participation
We draw on the organizational ecology tradition to frame the relationship between the religious environment of a community and local religious participation. Prior research linking religious environments to religious participation downplays a key organizational aspect of religion: the congregation....
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2014-09-01
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| Series: | Religions |
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| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/5/3/929 |
| _version_ | 1828346963019431936 |
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| author | Troy Blanchard Samuel Stroope Charles Tolbert |
| author_facet | Troy Blanchard Samuel Stroope Charles Tolbert |
| author_sort | Troy Blanchard |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We draw on the organizational ecology tradition to frame the relationship between the religious environment of a community and local religious participation. Prior research linking religious environments to religious participation downplays a key organizational aspect of religion: the congregation. Following the organizational ecology usage of density, we argue that congregational density—the number of congregations per person within a community—impacts religious involvement by providing opportunities for participation and by fostering social accountability networks within congregations. Drawing on data from the 2000 Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey, we test the hypothesis that congregational density in a locality is associated with greater religious participation by residents. Our findings indicate that persons residing in congregationally dense communities are more likely to be members of churches, to attend church regularly, to participate in church-based activities, to participate in non-church religious organizations, to volunteer for religious work, and to give to religious causes. These findings hold while controlling for an array of individual and contextual-level variables. This notion of congregational density suggests that local factors transcend broader theological and/or denominational boundaries, resulting in variations in religious participation and commitment. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-14T00:33:24Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c44db539efbc4f1da23863ad4f6aeed0 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-14T00:33:24Z |
| publishDate | 2014-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-c44db539efbc4f1da23863ad4f6aeed02022-12-22T02:22:29ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442014-09-015392994710.3390/rel5030929rel5030929Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious ParticipationTroy Blanchard0Samuel Stroope1Charles Tolbert2Department of Sociology, Louisiana State University, 112A Stubbs Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USADepartment of Sociology, Louisiana State University, 112A Stubbs Hall, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USADepartment of Sociology, Baylor University, One Bear Place #97326, Waco, TX 76798-7326, USAWe draw on the organizational ecology tradition to frame the relationship between the religious environment of a community and local religious participation. Prior research linking religious environments to religious participation downplays a key organizational aspect of religion: the congregation. Following the organizational ecology usage of density, we argue that congregational density—the number of congregations per person within a community—impacts religious involvement by providing opportunities for participation and by fostering social accountability networks within congregations. Drawing on data from the 2000 Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey, we test the hypothesis that congregational density in a locality is associated with greater religious participation by residents. Our findings indicate that persons residing in congregationally dense communities are more likely to be members of churches, to attend church regularly, to participate in church-based activities, to participate in non-church religious organizations, to volunteer for religious work, and to give to religious causes. These findings hold while controlling for an array of individual and contextual-level variables. This notion of congregational density suggests that local factors transcend broader theological and/or denominational boundaries, resulting in variations in religious participation and commitment.http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/5/3/929religious participationorganizational ecologycongregational density |
| spellingShingle | Troy Blanchard Samuel Stroope Charles Tolbert Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious Participation Religions religious participation organizational ecology congregational density |
| title | Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious Participation |
| title_full | Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious Participation |
| title_fullStr | Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious Participation |
| title_full_unstemmed | Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious Participation |
| title_short | Bringing the Congregations Back in: Religious Markets, Congregational Density, and American Religious Participation |
| title_sort | bringing the congregations back in religious markets congregational density and american religious participation |
| topic | religious participation organizational ecology congregational density |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/5/3/929 |
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