“Nones” Most Likely to Oppose Torture, US Pew Survey Says
Positive correlation found between religious piety and support for torture
The US Pew Research Center for the People and the Press released results of its most recent survey on US public support for torture this week. Conducted the week of April 14-21, this survey confirmed a similar study by Pew conducted in 2008.
US white evangelical protestants (61%) and white non-hispanic Catholics (51%), the categories with the highest levels of support, believed torture was often or sometimes justified, whereas only 46% of white mainline protestants and 40% of unaffiliated / nones believed so. Among those who felt that torture was rarely or never justifiable, 55% of unaffiliated / nones held this view, whereas 53% of mainline protestants, 47% of white non-hispanic Catholics, and only 33% of white evangelical protestants agreed.
These proportions also correlated with frequency of US church attendance: 54% of those who attended church weekly believed torture was often or sometimes justified as did 51% of those who attended infrequently. Only 42% of those who rarely or never attended church felt that torture was often or sometimes justified.
For more information, visit: http://pewforum.org/docs/?DocID=156.