Teens are fleeing religion like never before: Massive new study exposes religion’s decline

[SecularMotion]

Religion is rapidly losing the youngest generation of Americans, according to new research.

America’s rising generation of adults are the least religiously observant of any generation in six decades, determined an expansive study led by Jean Twenge, a psychology professor at San Diego State.

“Unlike previous studies, ours is able to show that millennials’ lower religious involvement is due to cultural change, not to millennials being young and unsettled,” Twenge says in a San Diego State University news release. .

In one of the largest studies ever conducted on Americans’ religious involvement, researchers from Case Western Reserve University and the University of Georgia collaborated with Twenge and her colleagues in California to analyze data from four national surveys of U.S. adolescents between the ages of 13 and 18. The surveys were taken between 1966 and 2014, and include responses from some 11.2 million people.

http://www.rawstory.com/2015/05/teens-are-fleeing-religion-like-never-before-massive-new-study-exposes-religions-decline/

[darkangel218]

1. As it should.

Thank "god" for the internet and the freedom it gives young people to find their own self and their own path.

It was about time.

[Xyzse]

2. I can agree, in very many ways.

Internet provides support groups and a sense of belonging beyond religion.

It is one of the reasons individuals head towards religion to begin with, to find comfort, stability and solace.

With the internet, it provides a larger community which someone can be a part of.

Sadly, the internet also brings out the crazier parts of an individual which would have been tapered down by face to face socializing. I mean, crazier parts of an individual come out in their niches and bubbles that support and reward bad behavior.

Either way, I still think it is a net positive.

[darkangel218]

3. +1

[HereSince1628]

13. Yep.

[bananas]

20. "a young, self-centric generation", "Generation Me", "disengaged, narcissistic"

From the article in the OP:

Twenge cites a surge of individualism as the force behind atheism’s relative appeal to a young, self-centric generation. She’s literally written the book on the subject: “Generation Me.” In it, Twenge provides academic rationale to support the allegation that children born in the 1980’s and 1990’s form an “Entitlement Generation,” which she describes as being “tolerant, confident, open-minded, and ambitious but also disengaged, narcissistic, distrustful, and anxious.”

Not necessarily a good thing.

[Arugula Latte]

38. These younger generations are fantastic.

They put my "Reagan Youth" old Gen X generation to shame.

[TM99]

58. As another Gen Xer

I disagree.

A lack of real social connections replaced by bits and bytes will lead to greater levels of narcissism and a general disconnect from our fellow human beings.

[Arugula Latte]

59. I actually think social media connection can also help "real life" connections.

I know that I have strengthened friendships and gotten to know people better on line so that when I see them in real life we are closer.

[TM99]

61. Most studies show that they do not.

Doesn't mean it can't happen as you note, but in general, it does not.

[Arugula Latte]

62. Well, in any case, the fewer people who are religious and attend church,

the better off our society will be.

It will be a fine day when most of these anti-science, anti-reason, anti-women, anti-gay institutions crumble.

The Unitarians can stay, though; they're cool.

[TM99]

67. I know that there are plenty of religious folk

who attend churches, synagogues, temples, mosques, etc. that are pro science, pro reason, pro gender equality, and pro LGBT civil rights.

I just won't paint with such a broad brush.

This is a generation that is going to push back against the worst of the fundamentalism out there. Some will find other spiritual avenues and social groups. Some will be atheists, agnostics, whatever.

[snooper2]

69. not really, since GenX built the networks and technology to allow them to take selfies

and share them with the world

[Arugula Latte]

70. Not I.

I'm always about five years behind in technology.

[eridani]

65. What horseshit. The "Me generation" used to be the baby boomers

The researchers probably call every generation after the Silent Generation too selfcentered.

[Arugula Latte]

42. Nonsensical religious dogma needs relative isolation to truly thrive.

If you live in a small village without much contact to the outside world where everybody buys into wine turning into Jesus blood or lost golden tablets or Muhammad riding a horse to Heaven or angel messengers to a god or whatever the particular tall tale is, it is a heck of a lot easier to just go along with that stuff. Once you can compare notes easily with people around the world the jig is largely up.

[olddots]

4. its because of the devil's music

JAZZ with those sycopated beats and bass content .

[drm604]

9. It's those damned godless waltzes!

[krispos42]

31. You're both wrong...

... it's Elvis' pelvis!


///hunka hunka burnin' love!

[Blue_Tires]

5. The church has only itself to blame

[workinclasszero]

24. So true.

The religious right is a randian cult that worships money and hates gays, the poor, sick and old.

Oh and they love war as well. Forever war.

[Johonny]

6. In the 80s certain Churches aligned itself with the hard core conservative movement

The move worked to attract large loyal followings to political causes of dubious worth. The liberal churches could have pushed back, but as people left main stream religions for harder core Megachurches they instead mostly went along for the ride. Now it would appear is the payback. Many casual religious liberals took a second look at religion and said no thanks, and the young that tend to be liberal have watched the religions that seemed to pick the right side of the 80s culture wars now appear completely immoral, insane and uncaring about teens cultural needs. There is nothing in these religions for them.

[mopinko]

7. this species just may evolve after all.

phew.

[Ron Green]

8. It's also a bit sad, though,

that organized religion has become something so useless. Service, tolerance, fellowship, scholarship - all important qualities in groups as well as in individuals - were eclipsed by a new "business model" in rapidly-growing megachurches that pushed Prosperity Gospel and individual salvation.

We mustn't forget it was Catholic Bishops and Liberation Theology Protestants who worked with Saul Alinsky in Chicago to establish and continue his Back of the Yards and IAF work.

The components of religious belief are cosmology and ethics; when the cosmology is found to be bull***t, it's a shame to lose the applied ethics that have meant so much.

[snooper2]

15. Ethics like being gay is a sin, Like a woman should be subservient

[Ron Green]

16. I knew there'd be such a response and of course it's true:

The social issues and the culture struggle often eclipse the economic issues. It's still happening today; witness the sniping on DU around this.

[riderinthestorm]

18. I actually believe it's better to de-couple applied ethics from religion.

there are plenty of atheist and agnostic charities and philanthropists doing excellent work who aren't beholden to religious baggage.

That's a great thing imo.

[Tom Ripley]

39. +1000

[Logical]

47. If religion goes away it is net positive. Make believe is never a good thing. nt

[Ron Green]

48. I hear what you're saying; there has been so much harm done through religion.

But I don't see it as a simple, black-and-white issue. I believe there's a spiritual aspect to human life, and I don't think the effort to eliminate congregation around such an aspect will ever succeed. Rather I would hope that such associations always seek to promote tolerance and love among all people, rather than divisiveness and hatred. There are such groups, sometimes called churches and sometimes other things, but they are few and far between.

[Logical]

68. Maybe churches withour religion would be a good thing.....

Helping others and providing places for people to gather is not a bad idea.

[Ron Green]

71. Right, and it ought to be done OUTSIDE of government and OUTSIDE

the marketplace.

[Omaha Steve]

10. Is it the attitudes that aren't much like the teachings?

[Person 2713]

63. Spot on!

[Scuba]

11. Maybe there's hope for us after all.

[HereSince1628]

12. Personally, I think electronic interconnectedness may play a role...

While there is between person variability, humans are gregarious and need connections. Historically, church-going, dependably provided that connection, aka "fellowship". Fellowship within religions has always been a huge component of church-going, for many people it's at least as important as 'worship' and doctrine/beliefs.

Contact with social groups are needed, but the social group also present problems... time changes personal circumstance, societal issues and fashionable beliefs change...responsive social groups engage in reassessment and reassignment of personal place and status. Anyone who has spent much time around a congregation knows that competitions for status and efforts to maintain status within the group are a regular burdens that threaten to sour the pleasant experience.

For church-goers, relief from that means walking away from the church-going experience. People do that pretty regularly.

For internet users, the emergence of such unpleasantness is fixed by 'unfriending', placing on ignore, etc. The internet user never needs to dump the medium that provides the opportunity for inter-human connectedness. They just shuffle membership on their friends list.

[Arugula Latte]

34. The Internet also allows everyone to compare notes on beliefs.

A dead guy from Judea is coming back to Earth? A dude from ancient Mecca rode a horse to Heaven? Uhhh, yeah. No.

"Hey, do you see any clothes on that emperor? I don't."

"Glad you said that, 'cuz I thought he was nekkid too."

[eppur_se_muova]

14. Well, thank God for that. nt

[Cyrano]

17. Hopefully, nationalism and tribalism will also

fade away and become nothing more than the history of the adolescence of our species.

[bananas]

19. "a young, self-centric generation", "Generation Me", "disengaged, narcissistic"

From the article in the OP:

Twenge cites a surge of individualism as the force behind atheism’s relative appeal to a young, self-centric generation. She’s literally written the book on the subject: “Generation Me.” In it, Twenge provides academic rationale to support the allegation that children born in the 1980’s and 1990’s form an “Entitlement Generation,” which she describes as being “tolerant, confident, open-minded, and ambitious but also disengaged, narcissistic, distrustful, and anxious.”

[greyl]

21. "tolerant, confident, open-minded, and ambitious"

Your subject line quote is from the book Generation Me - not the study. So is mine.

Here's more from the article in the OP:

The study also notes an “increasing acknowledgment that religion is not consistent with scientific understanding” could be driving adolescents away from religion.

(bolding mine)

[hifiguy]

23. I was a doubter and skeptic by the time I was 8 or 10

an agnostic leaning toward atheism by the time I was 13 and became a full-fledged atheist in my early twenties when I saw Carl Sagan's Cosmos. Once you start to wrap your head around the age and size of the universe the "gods" seem terribly puny and insignificant indeed.

[bananas]

25. I used to be a scientific atheist.

Then I learned the limitations of science and gained new understandings of religious beliefs.

[Humanist_Activist]

54. What is a "scientific atheist"? In addition, what are the limitations of science...

according to you. And can you provide examples of your new understandings of religious beliefs.

[RKP5637]

27. I caught onto the bullshit very early in life when I questioned their beliefs and was told I would

have to leave Sunday school and never comeback if I kept asking questions. Problem for the authoritarians was, the other kids started questioning too as they started realizing religion is a total WTF.

[Arugula Latte]

32. Not swallowing mythological nonsense is "narcissistic"?

Maybe it's just "intelligent."

[Arugula Latte]

43. Hah!

Exactly!

The extreme myopia and lack of perspective on time and the vastness of the universe is one of the things about religion that drives me the most batty.

I mean, almost 14 billion years go by, and then -- bam -- a magical dude is born in Judea on one little planet in one little solar system in one little galaxy and, by the way, he is the most important being to ever exist in the universe, except for The Creator, who is kind of his dad, but kind of not, and kind of a ghost, and who kind of created Satan, even though he's omnipotent and you'd think he could kick evil's ass, and, uh ... oh, shit ... nevermind ...

[beam me up scottie]

66. Oh those arrogant atheists...

[Humanist_Activist]

55. Sounds like the Boomers, and every other generation that complains about the next one in line...

The so called generational degeneration is a myth, and it seems this author is prejudiced against the first generation in almost a century that ended up overall worse off than their parents. Entitlement generation my ass.

[hifiguy]

22. This is great news.

Religion and other forms of tribalism have been preventing humanity from evolving for thousands of years.

When religion - as opposed to spirituality - finally dies out it will be an immeasurable advance for the human race.

[RKP5637]

26. They are realizing that much of religion is total bullshit mixed with hatred! n/t

[Backwoodsrider]

28. thank God for evolution

The mind likes to trade up and many people, especially the younger generation have an evolved awareness trading up towards what we see as factual science and away from fear and myth based religion. Kudos!

[treestar]

29. their parents are definitely not as church oriented

When I was a kid we had to go to church every Sunday and go to Sunday school. Whereas my siblings' kids went through the motions but were not taken every single Sunday. So it was not pushed on them as much. I think that is how it has gotten in general, except for fundies.

[Skittles]

30. if people were not pressured by family and culture to believe

VERY few people would

[Arugula Latte]

33. Great news!

Here's to science, reason, and freedom from silly, nonsensical mythologies.

[WestCoastLib]

35. See what happens when you allow dancing?

Footloose town was right

[Avalux]

36. Pardon the pun, but thank god.

I'm sure some will equate this with a decline in morals, but I see it as the opposite. We don't need religion to be good people. We need religion to be controlled. This is a great sign that as a collective, we are tiring of the old authoritarian mindset.

[sarcasmo]

37. Kick.

[The2ndWheel]

44. A lot of collective activities are losing their strength these days

As we give ourselves a greater and greater ability to be independent, we need each other less. Sort of the reverse of E pluribus unum. We keep breaking off into more and smaller groupings. More and more specialized groups.

[Tree-Hugger]

45. But, but.....

If religion and megachurches decline, where will Jesus get His money?

[MattBaggins]

51. Well son, ya draw a circle on the ground and ya throw yer money up in the air

[BlueJazz]

46. My loathing of Religion is close to fanaticism

It's caused much pain, sorrow and death and only given a minuscule amount of joy.

[Liberal_in_LA]

49. where are they going to learn that female is the second sex, lessor than males?

That seems to be the primary point of most religions

[ZX86]

50. Don't forget hair styles and head dress.

Apparently this all knowing entity who knows nothing of atoms, molecules, the solar system, or galaxies is real keen on the length of your beard and what to wear on your head.

[Liberal_in_LA]

52. yep

[0rganism]

53. predicting the follow up: "...and no damage was caused as a result"

i know our conservative brethren are fond of claiming that this republic was founded on "judeo-christian principles" and without the direct intervention of Jesus in our lives we'll all become bandits, rapists, and murderers. however, we're about to see significant evidence to the contrary.

[valerief]

56. The internet did it. Kids can see beyond their little bubbles these days. nt

[ZX86]

57. What I think a lot of people miss is.....

Your religion looks crazy! You ever see some doc of some tribe in the bush jumping around, chanting and yelling, waving bloody chicken feathers and such and say to yourself what a bunch of self deluded loons. That's what YOUR religion looks like to people on the outside.

[Arugula Latte]

60. Right.

Like drinking and eating wine/cracker/Jesus body/blood -- that's not too fucking weird. Nooooo...

[TexasBushwhacker]

64. I think LGBT acceptance is part of the reason

Though we still have a long way to go, I think most young people have a.friend or two, or maybe a family member who is LGBT. They think these loved ones are good people. So when some churches are so viciously anti LGBT, many of these kids just aren't going to buy into the hate. Most probably think that abortion should be legal and that creationism doesn't belong in a science classroom. All these conflicts chip away at their faith, not to mention growing up knowing about the pedophile priests scandals.

[gollygee]

72. They've been raised with things like purity balls and chastity promises

Of course they're fleeing.