A Belief and Belonging Paradox?

Featured Data December 16, 2021

Chart showing Americans with less formal education express greater certainty in God.

Americans with less formal education tend to express greater certainty about their belief in God. Fifty-nine percent of Americans without a college education say they are certain God exists. Only 44 percent of those with post-graduate education say the same, although they are slightly more likely to express certainty that God does not exist. Despite the fact that college graduates are more uncertain in their religious beliefs, they are actually more likely to belong to a church or congregation, a divide that has grown larger in recent years.

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