The public’s views of whether Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence have changed little in the aftermath of the Boston Marathon bombings.

Currently, 42% say Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence among its believers, while 46% say Islam does not encourage violence more than other religions.

These are similar to opinions about Islam and violence for most of the past decade. But in March 2002, six months after the 9/11 attacks, just 25% said Islam was more likely to encourage violence while 51% disagreed.

The new national survey by the Pew Research Center, conducted May 1-5 among 1,504 adults, finds sizable demographic and religious differences in attitudes toward Islam and violence. And the partisan gap is as large as ever: 62% of Republicans say that Islam encourages violence more than other religions, compared with 39% of independents and just 29% of Democrats.

The survey also finds that Muslim Americans are seen as facing more discrimination than some other groups in society, including gays and lesbians, Hispanic Americans, African Americans and women.

Overall, 45% say that Muslim Americans face a lot of discrimination, and 28% say they are subject to some discrimination. Only about one-in-five say that Muslim Americans face only a little (13%) or no discrimination (6%).

About four-in-ten (39%) say that gays and lesbians face a lot of discrimination. Smaller percentages say that Hispanic Americans (25%), African Americans (22%) and women (15%) face a lot of discrimination.

Opinions about Islam and Violence

Most young people continue to reject the idea that Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence among its believers. Six-in-ten (60%) of those younger than 30 say Islam does not encourage violence more than other religions, as do 54% of those 30 to 49. By contrast, about half of those 50 to 64 (51%) and 65 and older (53%) say that Islam is more likely to encourage violence.

There also are gender differences in these opinions: By 48% to 39%, men say Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence; women, by 52% to 35%, disagree.

The wide partisan differences in these opinions are even starker among ideological groups: Fully 69% of conservative Republicans say Islam encourages violence more than other religions. About the same percentage of liberal Democrats (71%) say that Islam is no more likely than other religions to encourage violence.

Among religious groups, most white evangelical Protestants (63%) say that Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence. White Catholics are divided (43% more likely, 43% not more likely).

By 53% to 40%, white mainline Protestants say Islam does not encourage violence more than other religions. The balance of opinion is similar among the religiously unaffiliated (54% to 35%).

Views of Discrimination against Muslim Americans, Other Groups

There are sizable partisan differences in views of discrimination against Muslim Americans and other groups included in the survey. Nearly twice as many Democrats (57%) as Republicans (29%) say Muslim Americans face a lot of discrimination. About half of independents (47%) say the same.

Democrats also are more likely than Republicans to see a lot of discrimination against Hispanics (by 23 points), African Americans (22 points), gays and lesbians (19 points) and women (11 points).

Age also is a factor in these opinions: About half of those under 30 (51%) and 30-49 (49%) say there is a lot of discrimination against Muslim Americans. That compares with 42% of those 50-64 and just 35% of those 65 and older.

There also are substantial differences between the youngest and oldest age groups in perceptions of discrimination against gays and lesbians: 51% of those younger than 30 think there is a lot of discrimination against gays and lesbians, compared with 28% of those 65 and older.

Notably, blacks, whites and Hispanics are all about equally likely to say there is a great deal of discrimination against Muslim Americans (47% of blacks and Hispanics and 45% of whites). When it comes to perceptions of discrimination against blacks and Hispanics, however, the differences are much greater. Nearly half of blacks (46%) say there is a lot of discrimination against African Americans, compared with a quarter of Hispanics (25%) and 16% of whites.

About four-in-ten blacks (43%) and Hispanics (38%) say there is a lot of discrimination against Hispanic Americans, compared with 20% of whites.

Notably, blacks are about as likely to say there is a lot of discrimination against Muslim Americans (47%) and Hispanic Americans (43%) as against African Americans (46%). Far more whites see a lot of discrimination against Muslim Americans than either Hispanic Americans (20%) or African Americans (16%).

As Americans head to the polls this November, their values and basic beliefs are more polarized along partisan lines than at any point in the past 25 years. Unlike in 1987, when this series of surveys began, the values gap between Republicans and Democrats is now greater than gender, age, race or class divides.

Overall, there has been much more stability than change across the 48 political values measures that the Pew Research Center has tracked since 1987. But the average partisan gap has nearly doubled over this 25-year period – from 10 percentage points in 1987 to 18 percentage points in the new study.

Nearly all of the increases have occurred during the presidencies of George W. Bush and Barack Obama. During this period, both parties’ bases have often been critical of their parties for not standing up for their traditional positions. Currently, 71% of Republicans and 58% of Democrats say their parties have not done a good job in this regard.

With regard to the broad spectrum of values, basic demographic divisions – along lines such as gender, race, ethnicity, religion and class – are no wider than they have ever been. Men and women, whites, blacks and Hispanics, the highly religious and the less religious, and those with more and less education differ in many respects. However, these differences have not grown in recent years, and for the most part pale in comparison to the overwhelming partisan divide we see today.

In recent years, both parties have become smaller and more ideologically homogeneous. Republicans are dominated by self-described conservatives, while a smaller but growing number of Democrats call themselves liberals. Among Republicans, conservatives continue to outnumber moderates by about two-to-one. And there are now as many liberal Democrats as moderate Democrats.

But the growing partisan divide over political values is not simply the result of the declining number who identify with the party labels. While many Americans have given up their party identification over the past 25 years and now call themselves independents, the polarization extends also to independents, most of whom lean toward a political party. Even when the definition of the party bases is extended to include these leaning independents, the values gap has about doubled between 1987 and 2012.

Looking ahead to the 2012 election, the largest divides between committed supporters of Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are over the scope and role of government in the economic realm. Swing voters, who make up about a quarter of all registered voters, are cross-pressured. Their attitudes on the social safety net and immigration are somewhat closer to those of Romney supporters, while they tilt closer to Obama supporters in opinions about labor unions and some social issues.

In contrast to the widening partisan gap, the new survey finds neither growing class differences in fundamental political values, nor increasing class resentment. As in the past, a substantial majority of Americans agree that “the rich just get richer while the poor get poorer.” Yet there are no indications of increasing hostility toward the rich and successful. And there are no signs that lower-income people have become more cynical about an individual’s power to control their destiny or the value of hard work.

At the same time, the proportion of Americans who see a widening gap in living standards between the poor and middle class has grown since the mid-1980s. But the public sees no greater gap in values differences between the middle class and poor over this period.

The polling finds little support for the broad notion of American “declinism.” As has been the case in previous political values surveys, a large majority agrees that “as Americans we can always find a way to solve our problems and get what we want.” The public’s confidence in the nation has not been dulled, even as Americans have become more skeptical about prospects for economic growth.

These are among the principal findings of the latest Pew Research Center American Values survey, conducted April 4-15, 2012, among 3,008 adults nationwide. The values project, which began in 1987 and has been updated 14 times since then, tracks a wide range of the public’s fundamental beliefs. These questions do not measure opinions about specific policy or political questions, but rather the underlying values that ultimately shape those opinions.

Widening Gaps over Social Safety Net, Environmentalism

The survey covers the public’s attitudes on the role and performance of government, the environment, business, labor, equal opportunity, national security and several other dimensions.

Republicans are most distinguished by their increasingly minimalist views about the role of government and lack of support for environmentalism. Democrats have become more socially liberal and secular. Republicans and Democrats are most similar in their level of political engagement.

On some sets of issues, such as views of the social safety net, there already were sizable partisan gaps in Pew Research’s first political values study in 1987. But these differences have widened considerably. On others, such as measures of religiosity and social conservatism, there were only modest differences initially, but these divides also have grown.

Republicans and Democrats are furthest apart in their opinions about the social safety net. There are partisan differences of 35 points or more in opinions about the government’s responsibility to care for the poor, whether the government should help more needy people if it means adding to the debt and whether the government should guarantee all citizens enough to eat and a place to sleep.

On all three measures, the percentage of Republicans asserting a government responsibility to aid the poor has fallen in recent years to 25-year lows.

Just 40% of Republicans agree that “It is the responsibility of the government to take care of people who can’t take care of themselves,” down 18 points since 2007. In three surveys during the George W. Bush administration, no fewer than half of Republicans said the government had a responsibility to care for those unable to care for themselves. In 1987, during the Ronald Reagan’s second term, 62% expressed this view.

Over the past two decades, the public consensus in favor of tougher environmental restrictions has weakened, also primarily because of changing opinions among Republicans.

For the first time in a Pew Research Center political values survey, only about half of Republicans (47%) agree that “there needs to be stricter laws and regulations to protect the environment.” This represents a decline of 17 points since 2009 and a fall of nearly 40 points, from 86%, since 1992.

The partisan gap over this measure was modest two decades ago. Today, roughly twice as many Democrats as Republicans say stricter environmental laws and regulations are needed (93% vs. 47%).

Democrats More Secular, Socially Liberal

Yet the widening partisan divide in political values is not just the result of changing opinions among Republicans. Democrats have shifted their views in a number of areas in recent years, though less dramatically: They have become more secular, more positive in their views of immigrants and more supportive of policies aimed at achieving equal opportunity.

Roughly three-quarters of Democrats (77%) say they “never doubt the existence of God,” as do 76% of independents. The proportion of Democrats saying they never doubt God’s existence has fallen 11 points over the past decade. Among white Democrats, the decline has been 17 points – from 85% in 2002 to 68% currently.

Independents also are less likely to express firm belief in God than in the past. By contrast, the percentage of Republicans saying they never doubt God’s existence is as large today (92%) as it was a decade ago, or a quarter century ago.

There also has been a substantial decline in the share of Democrats saying they “have old-fashioned values about family and marriage.” Just 60% of Democrats currently agree, down from 70% in 2007 and 86% in the first political values survey. Republicans’ views have shown far less change: Currently, 88% say they have old-fashioned values about marriage and family.

Democratic support for doing whatever is necessary to improve the position of minorities, including the possible use of preferences, has increased in recent years. About half (52%) of Democrats agree that “We should make every effort to improve the position of blacks and other minorities, even if it means giving them preferential treatment” – an 11-point increase since 2007.

Republicans’ views have changed little over this period. Just 12% currently agree that all efforts should be taken, including the use of preferential treatment, to improve the position of minorities. Since 1987, the gap between the two parties has about doubled – from 18 points to 40 points.

Class Divides: No Wider than in 1987

While the partisan gaps in political values have increased substantially, class divisions have not. This does not mean there are not significant differences, particularly when it comes to views about whether hard work leads to success and whether success is within an individual’s control. But these differences are generally no wider today than in recent years, or than they were in the initial political values survey.

For the past 25 years, majorities across most groups have rejected the idea that “hard work offers little guarantee of success.” In the current survey, just 35% agree with this statement while 63% disagree. As in the past, those with less education and lower incomes are more likely than those with more education and higher incomes to say that hard work does not ensure success.

Currently, 45% of those with no more than a high school education agree that hard work offers little guarantee of success, compared with 25% of college graduates. The gap was about as large in Pew Research’s first political values study (35% vs.17%).

Among whites who have not completed college, 36% are skeptical that hard work guarantees success; fewer white college graduates agree (24%). The education gap among whites was comparable in 1987 (29% non-college grad, 16% college grad).

There is greater agreement across socioeconomic lines in views of the gap between the rich and poor in this country.

As has been the case in most values surveys, majorities in all educational and income groups agree that “today it’s really true that the rich just get richer while the poor get poorer.” In the current survey, 76% of the public agrees with this statement, about the same as the 74% that agreed in 1987.

Still, there is evidence that the public sees greater economic inequality today than it did in the 1980s. About six-in-ten (61%) say the gap in living standards between middle class and poor people has widened over the past 10 years, while just 28% say it has narrowed.

In a 1986 survey by Gallup and the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, just 40% said the gap in the standard of living between the middle class and poor had grown, while about as many (39%) said it had narrowed.

Yet there has been far less change in opinions about whether the values of middle class and poor people are growing apart. In the current survey, 47% say the values of the middle class and poor have gotten more similar over the past 10 years; somewhat fewer (41%) say they have gotten more different. That is little changed from the 1986 survey, when 44% said the values of each had gotten more similar and 33% more different.

Economic Views Sour, But No Decline in Optimism

The survey also finds new evidence of the toll taken by the economic downturn, both on people’s personal financial assessments and their views of the country’s economic prospects. Just 53% say they are “pretty well satisfied with the way things are going for me financially.” That matches the lowest percentage ever, reached three years ago. People with family incomes of $75,000 or more express greater satisfaction with their finances than in 2009; financial satisfaction has continued to sag among those with incomes of less than $40,000.

Only about half of Americans (51%) agree with this statement: “I don’t believe that there are any real limits to growth in this country today”; 45% disagree. That is the lowest percentage ever agreeing with this statement, down slightly from 54% in 2009. In the first political values survey, 67% said there were no limits to growth in the United States.

Despite persistent economic pessimism, however, the public remains bullish about the ability of the American people to overcome challenges. Nearly seven-in-ten (69%) agree that “As Americans, we can always find a way to solve our problems and get what we want.” While that is largely unchanged from 2009 (70%), it is up 11 points since 2007 (58%). It also is about the same percentage that agreed with this statement in the first values survey (68%).

Political Values and the 2012 Election

When the values items are combined into indices (grouping measures on common subjects, such as the social safety net, into a single scale), swing voters – who make up 23% of all registered voters – tend to fall about halfway between certain Obama voters and certain Romney voters. Swing voters are either undecided, only lean toward a candidate, or favor a candidate but say there is still a chance they will change their minds.  (For more, see “With Voters Focused on Economy, Obama Lead Narrows,” April 17, 2012).

On views about the scope and performance of government, for example, there is a wide divide between certain Obama and Romney supporters. But the attitudes of swing voters are about equidistant from backers of either candidate. The same is true on several other key indices, including views of business, the environment and national security.

Nonetheless, there are some issues on which the views of swing voters tilt slightly toward the backers of either candidate. On attitudes toward labor and social conservatism, opinion among swing voters comes somewhat closer to that of Obama voters. By contrast, on indices measuring attitudes on the social safety net and immigration, swing voters’ opinions tilt toward those of Romney supporters.

While the views of swing voters generally fall between those of certain Obama and Romney backers, there are a handful of individual questions that show agreement between swing voters and the supporters of one candidate or the other.

For example, on the power of labor unions and admiration of wealthy people, the opinions of swing voters are closer to those of Obama supporters. About half of swing voters (51%) agree that labor unions have too much power, placing them closer to the views of Obama supporters (39% agree) than Romney supporters (82%).

Just 22% of swing voters, and an identical percentage of Obama supporters, say they “admire people who are rich.” A much higher percentage of Romney supporters (38%) agree.

But swing voters are far closer to Romney voters on the question of whether the government should help more needy people even if it means going further into debt: just 19% of Romney voters and 27% of swing voters agree, compared with a 62% majority of Obama voters.

Number of Independents Continues to Grow

While Republicans and Democrats have been moving further apart in their beliefs, both groups have also been shrinking. Pew Research Center polling conducted so far in 2012 has found fewer Americans affiliating with one of the major parties than at any point in the past 25 years. And looking at data from Gallup going back to 1939, it is safe to say that there are more political independents in 2012 than at any point in the last 75 years.

Currently, 38% of Americans identify as independents, while 32% affiliate with the Democratic Party and 24% affiliate with the GOP. That is little changed from recent years, but long-term trends show that both parties have lost support.

The percentage of Americans identifying as Democrats increased from 31% in 2002, following the 9/11 terrorist attacks, to 36% in 2008. But over the past four years, Democratic affiliation has fallen to 32%. Republican identification stood at 30% in 2002, but fell to 25% in 2008 and has not recovered since then.

More Conservative Republicans, More Liberal Democrats

Over the past decade, the Republican Party has come to be dominated by conservatives, while liberals make up an increasing share of Democrats.

In surveys conducted this year, 68% of Republicans describe themselves as politically conservative. That is little changed from 2008, but is higher than in 2004 (63%) or 2000 (60%).

Demographically, Republicans remain overwhelmingly white and their average age now approaches 50. Fully 87% of Republicans are non-Hispanic whites, a figure which has changed little since 2000.

Meanwhile, the percentage of Democrats who say their political views are liberal has risen from 28% in 2000 to 34% in 2008 and 38% in 2012 surveys by the Pew Research Center. For the first time, there are as many liberal Democrats as moderate Democrats.

In contrast to Republicans, Democrats have grown increasingly diverse. A narrow majority of Democrats (55%) are non-Hispanic whites, down from 64% in 2000. As in recent years, most Democrats are women (59%). And while the average age of self-described Democrats has risen since 2008 – from 46.9 to 47.7 – Democrats continue to be younger than Republicans on average (47.7 vs. 49.7).

Independents also have become more diverse since 2000: Two-thirds of independents (67%) are non-Hispanic whites, down 12 points from 2000. The proportion of independents who are Hispanic has nearly doubled – from 9% to 16% – over this period.

A plurality of independents (43%) describes their views as moderate, while 30% are conservative and 22% are liberal. These views are largely unchanged from previous election years.

About six-in-ten Americans (62%) have heard about the proposed federal rule that would require employers, including most religiously affiliated institutions, to cover birth control as part of their health care benefits. Among those aware of the issue, opinion is closely divided over whether these institutions should be given an exemption to the rule if they object to the use of contraceptives: 48% support an exemption and 44% say they should be required to cover contraceptives like other employers.

The latest national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, conducted Feb. 8-12 among 1,501 adults, finds sharp divisions on the issue by religious affiliation, party and ideology.

The Obama administration announced Feb. 10 that it would modify the mandate in response to criticism that the rule would force religious organizations to violate their religious beliefs in providing contraception coverage. The survey shows little difference in opinions among people interviewed before the administration’s proposed modification on Feb. 10 and those interviewed afterwards.

Among Catholics who have heard at least a little about the issue, 55% favor giving religious institutions that object to the use of contraceptives an exemption from the federal rule, while 39% oppose exempting those institutions. White evangelical Protestants, by an even larger margin (68% to 22%), favor giving religious institutions an exemption. White mainline Protestants are divided (44% favor an exemption, 46% are opposed). By contrast, a majority (55%) of the religiously unaffiliated who have heard about the issue say religious institutions that object to the use of contraceptives should be required to cover them like other institutions, while 39% favor giving an exemption to these institutions.

There also are wide partisan and ideological divisions in opinions about the issue. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of Republicans, and 82% of Republican and Republican-leaning independents who agree with the Tea Party, favor giving religious institutions that object to contraceptives an exemption from the new federal rule. By about two-to-one (64% to 29%), Democrats say religious institutions should be required to cover contraceptives like other employers; liberal Democrats (72%) are more likely than conservative and moderate Democrats (58%) to favor this approach.

Independents are split: 48% say religious institutions that object to the use of contraceptives should be required to cover them like other employers, while 46% favor giving religious institutions an exemption.

A narrow majority of men (54%) who have heard at least a little about this issue say religious institutions that object to the use of contraceptives should be given an exemption from the new federal rule. Only about four-in-ten women (42%) agree.

This issue has attracted much more attention from people at either end of the political spectrum than those in the middle. Overall, 71% of Republicans, 63% of Democrats and 58% of independents have heard at least a little about the new federal rule on contraceptive coverage. However, 65% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents who agree with the Tea Party have heard a lot about this issue, compared with just 25% of other Republicans and Republican leaners. Among Democrats, about twice as many liberals (43%) as conservatives and moderates (21%) have heard a lot about the new federal rule on contraceptive coverage.

Awareness of the controversy is also far higher among older adults than among the young. Six-in-ten (60%) adults ages 18-29 have heard nothing about the issue, compared with just 24% among those 50 and older. Among people ages 30-49, 43% have not heard about it.

The contraception story was a particular focus of talk show hosts on cable and radio. According to the Pew Research Center’s Project for Excellence in Journalism, fully 24% of the time studied on talk shows on both radio and cable news channels during the past week was devoted to the contraception controversy. That contrasts with 8% of news coverage overall.

Where Catholics Stand

The issue of requiring contraceptive coverage is of particular relevance to Catholics, since many of the institutions that initially raised religious objections to the rule are affiliated with the Catholic Church. Along with white Protestants, white Catholics are more likely than members of other religious groups to say that they have heard at least a little about the issue. Among white Catholics, 71% say they have heard about the rule, as have 70% of white evangelical Protestants and 67% of white mainline Protestants.

While 55% of Catholics who have heard about the rule support an exemption to it, opinion varies considerably by frequency of church attendance. Among Catholics who attend Mass at least once a week, 63% support an exemption while 25% say religiously affiliated institutions should have to cover contraceptives like other employers. Among those who attend less often, opinion is evenly divided (48% favor an exemption, 49% oppose one).

About one-quarter of Catholic churchgoers (24%) report having heard about the issue in church. Among Catholics who report attending Mass weekly, 32% said the rule was brought up recently by their priest or other church official.

Although the use of contraception is forbidden by church doctrine, few U.S. Catholics regard the use of contraceptives as morally wrong. Just 15% of Catholics say that using contraceptives is morally wrong, while 41% say it is morally acceptable and 36% say it is not a moral issue. Even among Catholics who attend church weekly, just 27% say contraception is morally wrong.

By comparison, 55% of Catholics (and 68% of those who attend Mass weekly) regard having an abortion as morally wrong. Among the public overall, 48% regard having an abortion as morally wrong.

Another practice forbidden by church doctrine – getting a divorce – is regarded as morally wrong by only 19% of Catholics.

Reactions to Federal Court Decision on Same-Sex Marriage

Almost eight-in-ten Americans (78%) are aware of a federal court ruling last week that a California law banning same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. One-in-three (33%) have heard a lot about the ruling, and 45% have heard a little about it.

Among those who have heard about the issue, more express negative than positive reactions to the ruling. More than four-in-ten (44%) say they are disappointed (31%) or angry (13%). Just a third (33%) say they are pleased (20%) or very happy (13%). About one-in-five (22%) volunteer that they have none of these reactions (15%) or have no opinion (7%).

A majority of Republicans (58%) say they are disappointed (39%) or angry (20%) about the court decision. Just 21% are pleased (15%) or very happy (6%). Democrats, on balance, have a positive reaction to the court’s ruling: 46% are either pleased (27%) or very happy (19%), while 34% are either disappointed (26%) or angry (8%). Independents’ reactions mirror those of the general public, with 42% expressing disappointment (29%) or anger (13%) and 33% saying they are pleased (20%) or very happy (13%).

Among religious groups, white evangelical Protestants have the most negative reactions to the verdict, while the views of white mainline Protestants and Catholics are more mixed. About six-in-ten white evangelical Protestants (59%) say they are either angry (25%) or disappointed (35%), compared with fewer than half of Catholics (42%) or white mainline Protestants (43%). Roughly a third in each of the latter groups is very happy or pleased with the ruling. Among those unaffiliated with a religion, 45% say they are very happy (20%) or pleased (25%) with the ruling, while 30% are disappointed (20%) or angry (10%).

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As the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks approaches, a comprehensive public opinion survey finds no indication of increased alienation or anger among Muslim Americans in response to concerns about home-grown Islamic terrorists, controversies about the building of mosques and other pressures that have been brought to bear on this high-profile minority group in recent years. There also is no evidence of rising support for Islamic extremism among Muslim Americans.

On the contrary, as found in the Pew Research Center’s 2007 survey, Muslims in the United States continue to reject extremism by much larger margins than most Muslim publics surveyed this year by the Pew Global Attitudes Project. And majorities of Muslim Americans express concern about the possible rise of Islamic extremism, both here and abroad.

A significant minority (21%) of Muslim Americans say there is a great deal (6%) or a fair amount (15%) of support for extremism in the Muslim American community. That is far below the proportion of the general public that sees at least a fair amount of support for extremism among U.S. Muslims (40%). And while about a quarter of the public (24%) thinks that Muslim support for extremism is increasing, just 4% of Muslims agree.

Many Muslims fault their own leaders for failing to challenge Islamic extremists. Nearly half (48%) say that Muslim leaders in the United States have not done enough to speak out against Islamic extremists; only about a third (34%) say Muslim leaders have done enough in challenging extremists. At the same time, 68% say that Muslim Americans themselves are cooperating as much as they should with law enforcement.
The survey of 1,033 Muslim Americans, conducted April 14-July 22 by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, finds that far more view the United States’ efforts to combat terrorism as sincere than did so in 2007. Currently, opinion is divided – 43% of Muslim Americans say U.S. efforts are a sincere attempt to reduce terrorism while 41% do not. Four years ago, during George Bush’s presidency, more than twice as many viewed U.S. anti-terrorism efforts as insincere rather than sincere (55% to 26%).

For Muslims in the United States, concerns about Islamic extremism coexist with the view that life for Muslim Americans in post-9/11 America is difficult in a number of ways. Significant numbers report being looked at with suspicion (28%), and being called offensive names (22%). And while 21% report being singled out by airport security, 13% say they have been singled out by other law enforcement. Overall, a 52% majority says that government anti-terrorism policies single out Muslims in the U.S. for increased surveillance and monitoring.

However, reports about such experiences and feelings of being subject to intense scrutiny have not changed substantially since 2007. Overall about the same percentage today as in 2007 say that life for Muslims in the U.S. has become more difficult since 9/11 (55% now, 53% in 2007). The percentage reporting they are bothered by their sense that Muslim Americans are being singled out for increased government surveillance also is no greater now than four years ago (38% bothered a lot or some today vs. 39% in 2007).

The controversies over the building of mosques in New York City and other parts of the country are resonating in the Muslim American community. Most Muslim Americans (81%) have heard about the proposal to build a mosque and Islamic center near the site of the World Trade Center and a clear majority of those who are aware of the planned mosque (72%) say it should be allowed. However, 35% say either that the project should not be allowed (20%), or that it should be permitted but is a bad idea (15%).
A quarter of Muslim Americans (25%) report that mosques or Islamic centers in their communities have been the target of controversy or outright hostility. While 14% report that there has been opposition to the building of a mosque or Islamic center in their community in the past few years, 15% say that a mosque or Islamic center in their community has been the target of vandalism or other hostile acts in the past 12 months.

Nonetheless, Muslim Americans have not become disillusioned with the country. They are overwhelmingly satisfied with the way things are going in their lives (82%) and continue to rate their communities very positively as places to live (79% excellent or good).

At a personal level, most think that ordinary Americans are friendly (48%) or neutral (32%) toward Muslim Americans; relatively few (16%) believe the general public is unfriendly toward Muslim Americans. About two-thirds (66%) say that the quality of life for Muslims in the U.S. is better than in most Muslim countries.

Strikingly, Muslim Americans are far more satisfied with the way things are going in the country (56%) than is the general public (23%). Four years ago, Muslim Americans and the public rendered fairly similar judgments about the state of the nation (38% of Muslims vs. 32% of the general public were satisfied).

The current disparity may well reflect the fact that Muslim Americans are much more satisfied with the current political situation in the country than they were four years ago. Most Muslim Americans continue to identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party and they overwhelmingly support Barack Obama. Fully 76% approve of Obama’s job performance; in 2007, about as many (69%) disapproved of George Bush’s job performance.

Support for Extremism Remains Negligible

As in 2007, very few Muslim Americans – just 1% – say that suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilian targets are often justified to defend Islam from its enemies; an additional 7% say suicide bombings are sometimes justified in these circumstances. Fully 81% say that suicide bombing and other forms of violence against civilians are never justified.

A comparably small percentage of Muslim Americans express favorable views of al Qaeda – 2% very favorable and 3% somewhat favorable. And the current poll finds more Muslim Americans holding very unfavorable views of al Qaeda than in 2007 (70% vs. 58%).

There is much greater opposition to suicide bombing – and more highly negative views of al Qaeda – among Muslims in the United States than among Muslims in most of the seven predominantly Muslim countries surveyed by the Pew Global Attitudes Project. In the Palestinian territories, 68% of Muslims say suicide bombing and other forms of violence are at least sometimes justified, as do 35% of Muslims in Lebanon and 28% of those in Egypt.

In the other Muslim publics surveyed, the median percentage saying that suicide bombing and other violence against civilians are never justified is 55%; by contrast, 81% of Muslims in the U.S. say such violence is never justified. Similarly, the median percentage across the seven Muslim publics with very unfavorable views of al Qaeda is 38%, compared with 70% among Muslim Americans. (For more, see “U.S. Image in Pakistan Falls No Further Following bin Laden Killing,” June 21, 2011; “Muslim-Western Tensions Persist,” July 21, 2011.)

Opposition to violence is broadly shared by all segments of the Muslim American population, and there is no correlation between support for suicide bombing and measures of religiosity such as strong religious beliefs or mosque attendance. Yet opposition to extremism is more pronounced among some segments of the U.S. Muslim public than others.

Overall, just 5% of Muslim Americans express even somewhat favorable opinions of al Qaeda. Yet hostility toward al Qaeda varies – 75% of foreign-born U.S. Muslims say they have a very unfavorable opinion of al Qaeda, compared with 62% of all native-born Muslims and 56% of native-born African American Muslims. However, the proportion of African American Muslims expressing very unfavorable opinions of al Qaeda has increased from 39% four years ago.

Perhaps relatedly, 40% of native-born African American Muslims believe that there is at least a fair amount of support for extremism among U.S. Muslims, compared with just 15% among foreign born Muslim Americans.

Middle Class and Mostly Mainstream

A majority of Muslim Americans (56%) say that most Muslims who come to the U.S. want to adopt American customs and ways of life; just 20% say that Muslims in this country want to be distinct from the larger American society. In contrast, just a third (33%) of the general public believes that most Muslims in the U.S. today want to assimilate.

Moreover, only about half of U.S. Muslims (48%) say that most of their close friends are Muslims, and just 7% say that all their close friends are Muslims. These figures are little changed from 2007.

Nearly three-quarters (74%) of Muslim Americans endorse the idea that most people can get ahead if they are willing to work hard; just 26% say hard work is no guarantee of success. Among the general public, somewhat fewer (62%) say that most people who work hard can get ahead.

U.S. Muslims are about as likely as other Americans to report household incomes of $100,000 or more (14% of Muslims, compared with 16% of all adults), and they express similar levels of satisfaction with their personal financial situation. Overall, 46% say they are in excellent or good shape financially; among the general public, 38% say this. Muslim Americans are as likely as the public overall to have graduated from college (26% of Muslims vs. 28% among the general public). Because as a group Muslim Americans are younger than the general public, twice as many report being currently enrolled in a college or university class (26% vs. 13%). Similar numbers of Muslim Americans and members of the general public report being self-employed or owning a small business (20% for Muslim Americans, 17% for the general public).

When it comes to many other aspects of American life, Muslim Americans look similar to the rest of the public. Comparable percentages say they watch entertainment television, follow professional or college sports, recycle household materials, and play video games. About one-in-three (33%) say they have worked with other people from their neighborhood to fix a problem or improve a condition in their community in the past 12 months, compared with 38% of the general public.

When asked to choose, nearly half of Muslims in the U.S. (49%) say they think of themselves first as a Muslim, while 26% see themselves first as an American; 18% volunteer that they are both. In a 2011 survey by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, 46% of Christians in the U.S. say they identify as Christian first while the same number identify as American first. White evangelicals are much more likely to identify first as Christian (70%).

The survey also finds that compared with Muslims elsewhere, Muslim Americans are more supportive of the role of women in society. Virtually all Muslim Americans (90%) agree that women should be able to work outside of the home. Most (68%) also think that there is no difference between men and women political leaders. These are not the prevailing views of Muslims in most predominantly Muslim countries surveyed by the Pew Global Attitudes Project.

And on a key foreign policy issue, Muslim Americans are far more likely than Muslims in the Middle East to say that a way can be found for the state of Israel to exist so that the rights of the Palestinians are addressed (62% say this; 20% disagree). In this regard, the views of Muslim Americans resemble those of the general public, among whom 67% say a way can be found for the state of Israel to exist while protecting the rights of the Palestinians; 12% disagree.

Who Are Muslim Americans?

A 63% majority of Muslim Americans are first-generation immigrants to the U.S., with 45% having arrived in the U.S. since 1990. More than a third of Muslim Americans (37%) were born in the U.S., including 15% who had at least one immigrant parent. Despite the sizable percentage of immigrants, 81% of Muslim Americans are citizens of the U.S., including 70% of those born outside the U.S. This is a much higher rate of citizenship among foreign-born Muslims than among the broader immigrant population in the U.S.; 47% of all foreign-born are citizens.

First-generation Muslim Americans come from a wide range of countries around the world. About four-in-ten (41%) are immigrants from the Middle East or North Africa, while about a quarter (26%) come from South Asian nations including Pakistan (14%), Bangladesh (5%) and India (3%). Others came to the U.S. from sub-Saharan Africa (11%), various countries in Europe (7%), Iran (5%), or other countries (9%).

Among the roughly one-in-five Muslim Americans whose parents also were born in the U.S., 59% are African Americans, including a sizable majority who have converted to Islam (69%). Overall, 13% of U.S. Muslims are African Americans whose parents were born in the United States.

A 55% majority of Muslim Americans are married, comparable to 54% among the U.S. general public. Most Muslim Americans (83%) are married to someone of their own faith, as is the case generally in the U.S. For example, among married U.S. Christians, 92% are married to a Christian.

Muslim Americans’ Political Attitudes

Muslim Americans have liberal attitudes on a number of current political issues. A substantial majority (68%) says they would rather have a larger government providing more services than a smaller government providing fewer services. That compares with 42% of the general public.

Most Muslim Americans (70%) either identify as Democrats (46%) or lean toward the Democratic Party (24%); just 11% identify with the Republican Party or lean toward the GOP.

Nearly half of Muslim Americans (48%) say they feel that the Republican Party is unfriendly toward Muslim Americans; just 15% say the party is friendly toward them. By contrast, 46% say the Democratic Party is friendly toward Muslim Americans, and 64% feel that way about Barack Obama. Among Muslim Americans who say they voted in 2008, an overwhelming 92% say they voted for Obama. In comparison, the 2007 survey found that 71% reported voting for Democrat John Kerry in the 2004 election.

One issue on which Muslim Americans do not stand out as especially liberal is on societal acceptance of homosexuality. About as many Muslim Americans say homosexuality should be discouraged by society (45%) as accepted by society (39%). The general public, by a 58% to 33% margin, says that homosexuality should be accepted. Still, there is greater support for societal acceptance of homosexuality, among both U.S. Muslims and the public, than there was a few years ago. In 2007, Muslim Americans, by more than two-to-one (61% to 27%), said homosexuality should be discouraged.

Perhaps not surprisingly, Muslim Americans have a far more positive view of immigrants than does the public generally. About seven-in-ten (71%) say that immigrants today strengthen the country with their hard work and talents; just 22% say that immigrants are a burden because of their impact on the availability of jobs, housing and health care. The general public is evenly divided on this question; 45% say that immigrants strengthen the country, while 44% say immigrants are a burden.

Religious, But Not Dogmatic

Many Muslim Americans are highly religious: 69% say that religion is very important in their lives, and about half (47%) report at least weekly attendance at a mosque for prayer. Similarly, about half (48%) say they make all five salah prayers daily, and another 18% report making at least some salah daily.

By these measures, Muslims in the U.S. are about as religious as Christians in the United States: 70% of Christians say that religion is very important in their lives and 45% attend services at least weekly according to recent surveys by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press.

Overwhelming numbers of Muslim Americans believe in Allah (96%), the Prophet Muhammad (96%) and the Day of Judgment (92%). Yet the survey finds that most reject a dogmatic approach to religion. Most Muslim Americans (57%) say there is more than one true way to interpret the teachings of Islam; far fewer (37%) say that there is only one true interpretation of Islam. Similarly, 56% of Muslim Americans say that many different religions can lead to eternal life; just 35% say that Islam is the one true faith that leads to eternal life.

In this respect, Muslim Americans differ from many of their counterparts in the Muslim world and are similar to U.S. Christians. In the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life’s 2007 U.S. Religious Landscape Survey, 28% of Christians said that there was only one way to interpret the teachings of their religion.

About the Muslim American Survey

The 2011 Muslim American Survey is based on telephone interviews conducted April 14-July 22, 2011 with 1,033 Muslims in the U.S. Interviews were conducted in English, Arabic, Farsi and Urdu.

The survey was conducted by landline telephones and cell phones, using a nationally representative random sample combining interviews from three sampling sources. (1) About a third (35%) of the interviews (358) were obtained from a geographically stratified random-digit-dial (RDD) sample of the general public, which entailed screening 41,689 households. (2) An additional 501 came from a commercial database of 113 million households, of which more than 600,000 included people with likely Muslim first names or surnames who also had a telephone number; Muslim households from this database were excluded from the geographically-stratified RDD sample but were included in a separate stratum as part of the general public RDD sample. (3) An additional 174 interviews were obtained by recontacting English-speaking Muslim households on landlines and cell phones from previous nationwide surveys conducted since 2007.

The results of all three sampling sources were combined and statistically adjusted to the demographic parameters of the Muslim population, as estimated by the results of the interviews from the geographically-stratified RDD and listed sample (excluding the recontact interviews). The margin of sampling error for results based on the full sample is plus or minus 5 percentage points. Details about the study’s sample design and the overall methodological approach are contained in the survey methodology. The study’s design was nearly identical to that used in the 2007 survey of Muslim Americans.

The public remains divided over whether Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence among its believers. Currently, 40% say the Islamic religion is more likely than others to encourage violence while 42% say it is not.

These opinions have changed little in recent years. But in March 2002, just 25% saw Islam as more likely to encourage violence while twice as many (51%) disagreed.

The national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, conducted Feb. 22-March 1 among 1,504 adults, finds that most young people reject the idea that Islam is more likely than other religions to promote violence. Nearly six-in-ten (58%) of those younger than 30 say Islam does not encourage violence more than other religions; 31% say it does. By contrast, a plurality of those 50 and older (45%) say Islam is more likely to encourage violence.

Political and ideological divisions are even wider: By roughly three-to-one (66% to 21%), conservative Republicans say Islam encourages violence more than other religions. Moderate and liberal Republicans are divided – 46% say Islam is more likely to encourage violence, 47% say it is not.

By more than two-to-one (61% to 29%), liberal Democrats say that Islam is not more likely than other religions to promote violence. Conservative and moderate Democrats, by a smaller margin (48% to 31%), agree.

Fully 67% of those who agree with the Tea Party movement say Islam is more associated with violence than other religions. Among those who disagree with the Tea Party, the balance of opinion is nearly reversed – 62% say Islam is no more likely than other religions to promote violence while 24% say it is. Among the large share of the public that offers no opinion of the Tea Party, 38% say Islam is more likely to promote violence while about the same number (41%) disagrees.

A clear majority of white evangelical Protestants (60%) say that Islam is more likely to encourage violence than are other religions. Far fewer white mainline Protestants (42%) and white Catholics (39%) express this view. And by nearly two-to-one (56% to 30%), the religiously unaffiliated say that the Islamic religion does not encourage violence more than others.

Many Americans continue to say their religious beliefs have been highly influential in shaping their views about social issues, including abortion and same-sex marriage. But far fewer cite religion as a top influence on their opinions about several other social and political issues, including how the government should deal with immigration, the environment and poverty.

Despite the fact that many religious leaders have been outspoken advocates for immigration reform, just 7% of adults who take a position on immigration say that religion is the most important influence on their views on this issue. About one-in-four churchgoers (24%) say the clergy at their places of worship have spoken out about immigration, nearly the same as in 2006. About half of those who hear about immigration in church say their clergy are favorable to immigrants and immigration, but nearly one-quarter are hearing anti-immigration messages.

In contrast with the issue of immigration, 35% say religion is the top influence on their thinking about same-sex marriage, including fully 60% among those who oppose allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally. More than four-in-ten (44%) hear clergy speak out about homosexuality in church, with the overwhelming majority hearing negative messages about homosexuality. On the issue of abortion, 26% overall say religion is the most important influence on their opinion, including 45% among abortion opponents.

The death penalty is another issue on which a substantial number of Americans cite religion as a key influence. Nearly one-in-five (19%) say religion is the most important factor in their thinking, including about one-third (32%) among death penalty opponents. Just 13% of death penalty supporters say religion is the key influence on their opinion.

The vast majority of regular churchgoers (88%) say they hear about the issue of hunger and poverty from their clergy, but just 10% cite religion as the top influence on their opinions about government’s role in providing assistance to the poor. Nearly half (47%) say their clergy speak out on the environment, almost always to encourage environmental protection. But just 6% say their own views on the environment are shaped primarily by their religious beliefs.

These are among the key findings of a survey exploring religion’s connection with opinions about current social and political issues. The survey was conducted July 21-Aug. 5 by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life. It interviewed 3,003 respondents reached on landlines and cell phones in both English and Spanish.

For most voters, the economy and jobs outpace all other issues in the election this fall, and religious voters are no exception. As previously reported (see “Republicans Faring Better with Men, Whites, Independents and Seniors,” Aug. 10, 2010), nine-in-ten voters (90%) rate the economy as very important, and 88% do so for jobs; the numbers are nearly identical among all major religious groups, including people who are unaffiliated with a religion. Health care also rates near the top, with 78% saying it will be very important. Terrorism, the budget deficit and taxes are also seen as important, especially by white evangelicals and black Protestants.

In contrast, hot-button social and cultural issues fall at or near the bottom of the list, even for relatively conservative religious groups such as white evangelical Protestants. Though both issues are among the least important for evangelicals, abortion (61% very important) and same-sex marriage (46%) are more important to evangelicals than to other religious groups. About four-in-ten voters (43%) overall rate abortion as very important and about one-third (32%) say this about same-sex marriage.

White evangelicals also stand out for the relatively high importance they place on immigration: 67% say immigration is a very important issue, compared with 60% among Catholics, 56% among white mainline Protestants, 50% among the unaffiliated and 48% among black Protestants.

Immigration

A plurality of Americans (42%) favor immigration policy that gives equal priority both to better border security and stronger enforcement of immigration laws as well as to creating a way for illegal immigrants to become citizens (a so-called path to citizenship). One-third (33%) believe the priority should be on better border security and greater enforce-ment, while slightly more than one-in-five (22%) consider offering a path to citizenship the top priority.

Support for placing a priority on strict enforcement of current immigration laws is higher among whites (37%) than blacks (26%) and stands at roughly one-in-ten (11%) among Hispanics. A similar divide is seen among religious groups: Relatively few Hispanic Catholics would make better border security the top priority (8%). Support for doing so is much higher among white Catholics (37%), evangelicals (42%) and mainline Protestants (40%).

While nearly half (47%) of Republicans prioritize better border protection, just 21% of Democrats do. There is also a large divide between those whose house of worship includes many immigrants and those whose house of worship is comprised of fewer immigrants. Among those who attend congregations where many or nearly all members are immigrants, 22% favor better border protection, while support stands at nearly four-in-ten among those with fewer immigrants at their house of worship (37%).

Few Americans (7%) consider religion the most important influence on their opinions about immigration policy. Larger numbers cite a personal experience (27%), their education (20%) or something they have seen or read in the media (21%). Those who cite religion as the most important influence are somewhat less likely than other respondents to place priority on enhanced immigration enforcement.

The subject of immigration does come up during religious services. About one-quarter (24%) of those who attend religious services at least once a month say their clergy have spoken out about the issue. Catholics (32%) are more likely than Protestants (20%) to say their clergy speak out about the issue. Among those who attend religious services at least once or twice a month, nearly four-in-ten of those whose house of worship includes many immigrants (38%) and nearly one-third (32%) of those who place a priority on creating a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants have heard their clergy speak out on the issue.

Respondents who say they have heard about immigration in their house of worship were asked to describe what kinds of things they have heard from their clergy. Nearly half (49%) say their clergy were generally favorable toward immigration and immigrants, with 24% specifically urging tolerance or a welcoming attitude toward strangers. About one-quarter (23%) characterize the messages from their clergy as generally negative about immigration, with equal numbers saying they have heard their clergy appeal for strict enforcement of the law (7%), contend that immigrants are a burden because they unfairly take jobs and government services (7%), or make general anti-immigrant remarks (7%).

Roughly half of the public (49%) sees immigrants as strengthening society while 38% say immigrants threaten traditional American customs and values. Attitudes on this question are somewhat more favorable toward immigrants than in mid-June, when 44% saw them as a positive influence and the same number said that immigrants threaten American customs and values.

The public is more evenly divided on immigrants’ contribution to the economy: 42% believe that immigrants strengthen the country with their hard work and talents, while 45% believe they are a burden because they take jobs, housing and health care.

Democrats, younger Americans, Hispanic Catholics and the religiously unaffiliated are more likely than other groups to express positive views of immigrants on both of these questions; white evangelicals are among those expressing the least favorable views of immigrants, with 27% saying immigrants strengthen the country with their hard work and talents and 36% saying they strengthen society rather than threaten traditional customs and values.

Roughly half of those whose clergy speak out about immigration say immigrants strengthen the country with their hard work and talents, compared with 38% among regular worship attenders whose clergy do not speak about immigration. There is very little difference between these two groups on the question of immigrants’ impact on American customs and values. Those who report that many or most members of their congregation are immigrants are far more favorable toward immigrants than those whose house of worship is comprised of fewer immigrants.

Environment

By a wide margin, Americans favor tougher laws and regulations to protect the environment. Eight-in-ten (81%) favor greater protections, while just 14% oppose them. Similar questions from past Pew Research polls show comparable levels of support for environmental protection; however, fewer people prioritize environmental protection over keeping energy prices low (See Public Remains of Two Minds on Energy Policy, June 14, 2010).

While an overwhelming majority favors tougher environmental protections, the subject of the environment is only a mid-tier issue for voters in the fall Congressional elections. Roughly six-in-ten voters (57%) cite the environment as very important, far behind the economy (90% cite it as very important) or jobs (88%), but higher than social issues such as abortion (43%) or same-sex marriage (32%).

For many policy issues, political or religious affiliations reveal sizeable gaps in support, but on the general question of stronger environmental protection these differences are relatively modest. Fewer Republicans favor tougher environmental laws and regulations than either Democrats (88%) or independents (80%), but even among Republicans, 73% support stronger safeguards for the environment.

There is only a modest religious element in attitudes about environmental protection. Solid majorities of all major religious traditions favor stronger laws and regulation, including 73% of white evangelical Protestants, 79% of black Protestants, 85% of Catholics and 84% of the unaffiliated.

Religion has far less influence on opinions about environmental policy than other factors do. Just 6% say that their religious beliefs have had the biggest influence on what they think about tougher environmental rules. Education and what people hear or read in the media are the strongest drivers of opinions about environmental regulations; roughly three-in-ten cite their education (29%), and 26% mention the media as having the most influence on their thinking about this issue.

While few describe religion’s influence as most important in shaping their thinking on environmental protection, some variation exists among religious groups. White evangelical Protestants, black Protestants and Hispanic Catholics are more likely than white mainline Protestants and white Catholics to cite religion’s influence as most important to their views on the environment.

Although religion is generally not a key influence on people’s opinions about the environment, many churchgoers report that clergy at their place of worship discuss the topic. Just under half (47%) of those who attend worship services regularly say that their clergy speak out on the environment. More black Protestants (59%) than other religious groups report hearing about the environment from their clergy. The majority of white Catholics (64%), white evangelical Protestants (59%) and white mainline Protestants (51%) in the survey say that the environment is not discussed at their place of worship.

Those hearing about the environment in church report hearing a variety of mostly pro-environment messages. Roughly three-in-ten (29%) are encouraged to “protect it” or “clean it up,” while 11% say their clergy encourage conservation. One-in-five (20%) report warnings and discussion about environmental damage, including the recent oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico (6%). For 10% of those who hear about the environment, the messages include explicit religious language and themes promoting stewardship of the earth or care for God’s creation.

Homosexuality and Abortion

In contrast with many other social and political issues, religion is clearly an important influence on public opinion about same-sex marriage and abortion. Significant numbers of Americans report that religion is the most important factor in their thinking about these topics, and sizeable numbers of churchgoers hear about them from their clergy.

On the issue of abortion, half of Americans (50%) say abortion should be legal in all (17%) or most (33%) cases while fewer, 44%, say it should be illegal in all (17%) or most (27%) cases. Support for legal abortion has edged upward since last 2009, when 47% said it should be legal in all or most cases.

Almost six-in-ten Democrats (59%) and 53% of independents say abortion should be legal in all or most cases, while 59% of Republicans take the opposite view, saying it should be illegal in all or most cases. Religious groups also vary significantly in the extent to which they support legal abortion. Almost seven-in-ten (69%) of the religiously unaffiliated (including 85% of atheists and agnostics) say abortion should be legal, as do 60% of white mainline Protestants and 50% of white Catholics. By contrast, just 41% of black Protestants and 32% of white evangelical Protestants say abortion should be legal in most or all cases.

Roughly a quarter (26%) of those with an opinion on abortion say religion is the most important influence on their views about the issue. A similar number cite their education (23%), while fewer say that a personal experience (17%) was most important in determining their views on abortion.

Fully 45% of those who say abortion should be illegal in all or most cases cite religious beliefs as the top influence on their views, compared with just 9% of those who say abortion should be legal. Among religious groups, just over half of white evangelical Protestants (53%) say religion has the biggest influence on their views of abortion, while a third of black Protestants (33%), roughly a quarter of Catholics (23%) and 17% of white mainline Protestants say the same.

Almost six-in-ten regular churchgoers (59%) say their clergy speak out on the issue of abortion, higher than for any other issue in the survey except hunger and poverty (88%). Despite divided opinions on abortion among Catholics as a whole, seven-in-ten Catholics (70%) who attend church at least once a month report that their clergy speak out on the issue of abortion. Similarly, 65% of white evangelical Protestants and 55% of black Protestants who attend services at least once a month report that their clergy talk about abortion, while fewer mainline Protestants (39%) say this.

Among those who attend religious services at least once a month and say abortion should be illegal in most or all cases, two-thirds (66%) report having heard about the issue from their clergy. Among regular worship attenders who think abortion should be legal in most or all cases, fewer (50%) report having heard about this issue from their clergy. Half of those who say their clergy speak out on abortion cite religion as the most important influence on their views on abortion, compared with 29% of those who do not hear from their clergy about the issue.

On the issue of same-sex marriage, about four-in-ten Americans (41%) say they favor allowing gays and lesbians to marry legally while 48% are opposed. A slight majority of Democrats (52%) favor same-sex marriage, while independents are evenly split (44% favor, 45% oppose) and two-thirds (67%) of Republicans are opposed. Democrats are divided sharply along racial lines; 63% of white Democrats favor same-sex marriage, compared with just 27% of black Democrats and 46% of Hispanic Democrats.

Stark differences in opinion exist across religious groups. Roughly six-in-ten of the religiously unaffiliated (61%) favor same-sex marriage, including fully 78% of atheists and agnostics and 54% of those who say their religion is “nothing in particular.” Slightly fewer than half of white mainline Protestants (48%) and white Catholics (49%) favor same-sex marriage. By contrast, just 22% of white evangelical Protestants favor allowing gays and lesbians to marry, along with 26% of black Protestants. Roughly one-quarter (24%) those who attend worship services at least once a week favor same-sex marriage, but that rises to 49% among those who attend monthly or yearly and 57% among those who attend seldom or never.

More than a third of those who hold an opinion on same-sex marriage say that their religious beliefs are the biggest influence on their views (35%); roughly half as many say a personal experience plays the greatest role in their views (17%) and about one-in-ten cite their education (13%) or views of friends and family (10%).

Support for same-sex marriage is closely tied to what respondents report as the most important influence on their views. Among those who say religious beliefs are the most important influence on their opinion on same-sex marriage, a scant 6% favor allowing gays and lesbians to marry, but among those who cite some other influence (including education, views of friends and family, or a personal experience), two-thirds (66%) are in favor.

Religion is more commonly cited as the top influence on opinion by people in certain religious groups, including 62% of white evangelical Protestants and 46% of black Protestants. Fewer white mainline Protestants (30%) and white Catholics (27%) name religion as a key factor.

More than four-in-ten regular churchgoers (44%) report hearing their clergy speak about laws regarding homosexuality. About half of white evangelical Protestants (52%) and black Protestants (54%) say they hear about this subject from their clergy, while only a third of white mainline Protestants (34%) and Catholics (33%) say their clergy speak about homosexuality.

Of those who report hearing about homosexuality, roughly seven-in-ten (72%) report that their clergy say it should be discouraged, while just 8% say it should be accepted.

Religion also appears to shape public attitudes on another issue related to homosexuality: whether or not to allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. By a two-to-one margin, most Americans support allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military (60% favor vs. 30% oppose). The level of support has been consistent in recent years. Majorities of Democrats (67%) and independents (64%) favor allowing gays and lesbians to serve in the military, while Republicans are more divided (47% favor and 43% oppose).

Large majorities of white mainline Protestants (68%), white Catholics (71%), Hispanic Catholics (60%) and
the religiously unaffiliated (66%) favor allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military, while support is lower among white evangelical Protestants (43%) and black Protestants (46%). Even among the least supportive religious groups, though, less than half oppose allowing gays and lesbians to serve in the military.

Death Penalty

Americans continue to express support for the death penalty for persons convicted of murder. Currently 62% favor the death penalty, while 30% oppose it. This is nearly identical to the level of support in 2007 but somewhat lower than earlier in the 2000s and especially the 1990s. In 1996, 78% favored the death penalty and just 18% were opposed.

Support for the death penalty is lower among Democrats than independents or Republicans, but even among Democrats, half (50%) are in favor of it.

There are relatively modest differences in support across religious groups, with majorities of white evangelicals (74%), white mainline Protestants (71%) and white Catholics (68%) favoring capital punishment. But less than half of black Protestants (37%) and Hispanic Catholics (43%) favor the death penalty.

About one-in-five Americans with an opinion about the death penalty (19%) say that religion is the most important influence on their thinking about the issue. A comparable number (22%) cite their education as most important. Slightly fewer cite the media or personal experience (15% each). Just 7% say the views of friends or family are the most important influence.

Death penalty opponents are more apt to cite religion as the top influence on their views than are death penalty supporters. About one-third of those who oppose capital punishment (32%) cite religion, compared with 13% among those who favor it. Black Protestants (35% cite religion) and white evangelicals (31%) were the religious groups most apt to cite religion’s influence. Fewer white mainline Protestants (14%) and Catholics (17%) do so, though among opponents of the death penalty, 31% of Catholics cite religion as the top influence.

Most regular churchgoers do not report hearing about the death penalty from their clergy; just 24% say that their clergy speak out about the issue. Among Catholics, roughly one-third of regular churchgoers (32%) say they hear about the death penalty from their clergy. Despite their own low levels of support for the death penalty, black Protestants are no more likely than the average churchgoer to report that their clergy speak out on the issue.

Government Assistance to the Poor

By a margin of about two-to-one, Americans support providing more generous government assistance to the poor. In the current survey, 63% favor more generous aid to the poor while 31% are opposed; this marks a slight decline in support from July 2005, when 69% favored more generous assistance to the poor and a quarter (25%) were opposed.

There are sharp partisan differences in opinion on increased government aid to the poor. A large majority of Democrats (80%) favor more government aid to the needy, while just 16% oppose increased aid. By contrast, half of Republicans (50%) are against increasing aid to the poor, while 43% favor such a measure. Independents, on balance, favor increased assistance to the poor by a 60%-34% margin.

Majorities of all major religious groups favor more government assistance to the poor, and support is especially high among black Protestants and Hispanic Catholics. Overall, 62% of Protestants favor more generous government aid to the poor; this includes 54% of white evangelicals, 57% of white mainline Protestants and 81% of black Protestants. Similarly, most white Catholics (58%) favor more government assistance to the needy and support is even higher among Hispanic Catholics (77% favor).

Just one-in-ten (10%) of those with an opinion on government assistance to the poor say their religious beliefs are the most important influence on their views of the issue. More cite a personal experience (35%) or their education (20%) as having the biggest influence on their views. Those who favor increased aid are more likely than those who are opposed to cite religion as the main influence on their views (12% vs. 4%).

While religion plays a relatively minor role in shaping views of government assistance to the poor, most regular churchgoers say they hear about the issue of hunger and poverty at their place of worship. Overall, 88% of those who attend services at least once or twice a month say their clergy speak out on the issue. There is very little variance on this question across religious groups. A somewhat higher number of those who favor additional assistance to the poor have heard about their clergy’s views on the issue (90%) than those who oppose additional government assistance to the poor (86%).

Clergy Discussion of Iraq and Afghanistan, Candidates and Elections

Roughly half of regular worship attenders (51%) say the clergy at their congregation speaks out about the wars in Iraq or Afghanistan. Nearly two-thirds of black Protestants (63%) have heard their clergy discuss Iraq or Afghanistan, compared with 50% of white evangelical Protestants and 46% among both white mainline Protestants and white Catholics. Roughly one-quarter of religious service attenders (24%) say their clergy speak out about candidates and elections. Fully half of black Protestants say clergy at their congregation discuss candidates and elections, much higher than the one-quarter (25%) of white evangelical Protestants, 15% of white Catholics and 13% of white mainline Protestants who say the same.

The public continues to express conflicted views of Islam. Favorable opinions of Islam have declined since 2005, but there has been virtually no change over the past year in the proportion of Americans saying that Islam is more likely than other religions to encourage violence. As was the case a year ago, slightly more people say the Islamic religion does not encourage violence more than other religions (42%) than say that it does (35%).

Amid controversy over the proposed construction of an Islamic cultural center and mosque near the former site of the World Trade Center, more Americans agree with those who object to the building of the center than with the supporters of the project (51% to 34%). At the same time, 62% say that Muslims should have the same rights as other religious groups to build houses of worship in their local communities; just 25% say local communities should be able to block mosques in their area if they do not want them.

The new poll by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, conducted Aug. 19-22 among 1,003 adults, finds that opinions about Islam are less favorable than in the summer of 2005. Currently, 30% say they have a favorable opinion of Islam while slightly more (38%) have an unfavorable view; nearly a third (32%) offer no opinion. In 2005, slightly more expressed a favorable opinion of Islam than an unfavorable opinion (by 41% to 36%).

As in the past, there are substantial partisan, educational and age differences in opinions about Islam. By more than two-to-one (54% to 21%), Republicans express an unfavorable opinion of Islam; the balance of opinion among independents is negative (40% unfavorable vs. 28% favorable). Among Democrats, favorable opinions of Islam outnumber unfavorable ones (by 41% to 27%).

While those who are younger than 50 have mixed views of Islam, the balance of opinion is more negative among those older than 50 (44% unfavorable vs. 24% favorable). By a margin of 47% to 28%, college graduates express favorable opinions of Islam; pluralities of those with less education express unfavorable views.

Views of Islam and Violence

Opinions about whether Islam is more likely than other religions to promote violence have fluctuated since 2002. In March of that year, 51% said that Islam does not encourage violence more than other religions do, while only about half as many (25%) said that it does. Since then, opinions have been more closely divided. The current measure is comparable to 2009 and 2005, when pluralities said Islam was no more likely than other religions to encourage violence.

There are similar patterns in opinions about whether Islam encourages violence as in overall views of Islam. However, there is no political or demographic group in which a majority says that Islam encourages violence more than other religions. By a modest 47% to 38% margin, more Republicans say Islam is more likely to encourage violence. Independents are evenly divided (38% say it does encourage violence more, 38% say it does not). Democrats, by about two-to-one (50% to 24%), say Islam is not more likely than other religions to encourage violence.

Opposition to New York Mosque

If anything, there are even starker partisan and age differences over the proposed construction of an Islamic center and mosque a few blocks from the site of the former World Trade Center. By more than four-to-one (74% to 17%), Republicans say they agree more with those who object to the building of this center; half of independents (50%) agree more with the center’s opponents while 37% agree more with those who say it should be allowed. By contrast, more Democrats agree with the center’s supporters than its opponents (by 47% to 39%).

Those 65 and older, as well as those 50 to 64, agree more with the opponents of cultural center and mosque by wide margins. Those younger than 30 agree more with those who say it should be built, by 50% to 36%.

While there is opposition to building the Islamic cultural center and mosque in New York City, most Americans (62%) say Muslims should have the same rights as other religious groups when it comes to building houses of worship in local communities; 25% say that local communities should be able to prohibit the construction of mosques in their area if they do not want them.

Large majorities of Democrats (74%) and independents (65%) say that Muslims should have the same rights as other religious groups to build houses of worship. Republicans are closely divided: 47% say Muslims should have the same rights as other religious groups while nearly as many (42%) say local communities should be able to prohibit the construction of mosques if they do not want them.

Majorities of all age groups – except for those 65 and older – think that Muslims should have the same rights as other religious groups to build houses of worship. Fewer than half (48%) of those 65 and older express this view, while 33% say local communities should be able to block the construction of mosques.

Most Know Little about Muslim Religion

As in previous Pew Research surveys, most Americans say they know little about the Muslim religion. Currently, 55% say they do not know very much (30%) or know nothing at all (25%) about the Muslim religion and its practices; 35% say they know some about the religion while just 9% say they know a great deal. These numbers are largely unchanged from 2007.

Similarly, there has been little change in the percentage of Americans who say they know someone who is Muslim. In the new survey, 41% say they are acquainted with someone who is Muslim; comparable percentages said they knew someone who is Muslim last year and in 2007.

College graduates are far more likely than those with less education to say they know at least something about the Muslim religion. A majority of college graduates (63%) say they know some or a great deal about the religion, compared with 48% of those with some college experience and just 31% with a high school education or less.

Most college graduates (62%) say they know someone who is Muslim; that compares with 44% of those with some college experience and 26% of those with a high school education or less. As in the past, people younger than 50 (49%) are far more likely to be acquainted with a Muslim than are those 50 and older (31%).

Amid new revelations of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI’s job ratings for handling the scandal have plummeted. Only about one-in-ten (12%) say the pope has done an excellent (3%) or good job (9%) in addressing the sex abuse scandal; 71% say he has done a poor (44%) or only fair (27%) job.

The pope’s ratings for addressing the continuing scandal have declined sharply since April 2008, shortly after his visit to the United States. At that time, 39% said he had done an excellent or good job in dealing with the abuse scandal, while 48% said he had done only fair or poor.

The latest national survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, conducted April 1-5 among 1,001 adults on landlines and cells phones, finds most Americans (74%) have heard either a lot (29%) or a little (45%) about the pope. Awareness of the pope is nearly as high as it was in April, 2008, just after Pope Benedict XVI’s high-profile visit to the U.S., when 84% of the public had heard something about the pope.

Among those who have heard at least a little about the pope, Catholics express more positive opinions of the pope’s handling of the abuse scandal than do Protestants. Nonetheless, Catholics have become more critical of how the pope has addressed the issue: 59% give him only fair (31%) or poor (28%) ratings in the current survey, up from 40% in April 2008. Catholics who attend church at least once a week are more supportive of the pope’s performance than those who attend church less often – though negative ratings among both groups have risen since 2008.

Protestants are more critical than Catholics in rating the job the pope has done addressing the sex abuse scandal. About seven-in-ten (72%) give the pope only fair or poor ratings, up from 46% in 2008. There is little difference between the views of white evangelical and white mainline Protestants. Religiously unaffiliated Americans are the most critical of the pope’s handling of the abuse scandal: 86% say the pope has done a poor or only fair job addressing the situation.

More Americans continue to view the Republican Party as friendly toward religion (48%) than rate the Democratic Party that way (29%). President Barack Obama’s administration, however, is seen as friendly toward religion by more people (37%) than the Democratic Party as a whole. And all three get higher ratings for friendliness toward religion than the news media (14%), scientists (12%) or Hollywood (11%).

After peaking at 38% in mid-2008 during Obama’s presidential election campaign, the number of Americans describing the Democratic Party as friendly toward religion returned in mid-2009 to levels similar to those seen in 2005 through 2007. About one-in-five say Democrats are unfriendly toward religion (22%), up from 15% who felt that way last year but about the same as in surveys conducted in 2005 and 2006.

Views of the Democrats’ stance toward religion have soured sharply among groups that were already inclined to view the Democratic Party negatively, such as Republicans and white evangelical Protestants. But they have also turned more negative among both independents as well as Democrats who are ideologically moderate or conservative. These are among the main findings of a survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life, conducted Aug. 11-27 among 4,013 adults reached on both landlines and cell phones.

Only 9% of conservative Republicans say the Democratic Party is friendly toward religion, less than half the number who said this in 2008 (23%). Moderate and liberal Republicans are 11 percentage points less likely to see Democrats as friendly toward religion than they were last year (21% in 2009 vs. 32% in 2008). The number of independents describing the Democrats as friendly toward religion is down nine points (from 35% to 26%), and the number of conservative and moderate Democrats taking this view is down eight points (from 50% to 42%). At the same time, 56% of liberal Democrats view their political party as friendly toward religion, identical to last year’s level.

Views of the Democrats’ friendliness toward religion have declined among nearly all major religious groups. Only 19% of white evangelical Protestants now say Democrats are friendly toward religion, slightly less than the 24% of white Catholics and 26% of white mainline Protestants who say the same. By contrast, more than one-third (36%) of the religiously unaffiliated say the Democratic Party is friendly toward religion, down 11 percentage points since last year. And among black Protestants, nearly half (45%) say the Democrats are friendly toward religion.

For Obama as well as for both political parties, being viewed as friendly toward religion is closely associated with popularity generally. Among those who say the Obama administration is friendly toward religion, fully three-quarters approve of the job he is doing (77%), compared with half of those who say the administration is neutral toward religion (51%) and a scant 7% of those who say it is unfriendly. More than eight-in-ten of those who say the Obama administration is unfriendly toward religion disapprove of his job performance.

Likewise, almost three-quarters of those who see the Democratic Party as friendly toward religion have a favorable view of the party (73%), compared with just 15% of those who say it is unfriendly. For the Republican Party, the link is less pronounced. Almost half of those who say the GOP is friendly toward religion view the party favorably (48%), compared with 41% among those who say it is neutral and 21% for those who say it is unfriendly.

Hollywood, the Media, and Scientists Seen as More Unfriendly Toward Religion

While the Democratic Party’s image with respect to religion has slipped, more Americans perceive the party as friendly toward religion (29%) than unfriendly (22%). The same cannot be said for Hollywood, the news media and scientists. Public ratings of Hollywood in this regard are the most lopsided – 47% say Hollywood is generally unfriendly toward religion and just 11% say it is generally friendly. This is largely unchanged from the balance of opinion in 2003 (45% unfriendly, 16% friendly).

Compared with other groups, more Republicans, evangelicals and people who attend worship services at least weekly see Hollywood as unfriendly toward religion. For example, two-thirds of Republicans (67%) say Hollywood and the makers of movies and TV shows are unfriendly toward religion, compared with 48% of independents and just 31% of Democrats. Likewise, 61% of those who attend church at least weekly say Hollywood is unfriendly, compared with 39% of those who attend less often.

A plurality of those surveyed (42%) say the news media are neutral toward religion, and 35% say the media are unfriendly toward religion. Far fewer say the news media are friendly toward religion (14%). Again, views of the news media’s handling of religion are virtually unchanged from 2003, when 41% said they were neutral, 34% rated them as unfriendly and 16% viewed them as friendly toward religion. A plurality also says that scientists are neutral toward religion (42%), while 35% say scientists are unfriendly and just 12% view scientists as friendly toward religion.

Political and religious differences are somewhat less stark, but still apparent, in views of how friendly the media and scientists are toward religion. Pluralities of independents and Democrats say the media and scientists are neutral to religion. But majorities of Republicans (51%) and white evangelical Protestants (52%) in the survey say the news media are unfriendly toward religion. And almost half of weekly worship attenders say the media are unfriendly toward religion (46%), compared with 29% among those who attend religious services less often. Republicans, evangelicals, black Protestants and weekly churchgoers also stand out compared with other groups for viewing scientists as unfriendly toward religion.