New Pew Research Finds U.S. Atheists Are Mostly Young White Males
News Brief by Cassy Benefield | FāVS News
New statistics from the Pew Research Center show atheists are mostly male (64%), mostly under the age of 49 (seven-in-ten compared with about half the U.S. adults overall (52%)), more likely to be white (77% vs. 62%) and have a college degree (48% vs. 34%).
Current research also pointed out Western European countries have a higher population of atheists than America. The highest populations come from France (23%), Sweden (18%) and Netherlands (17%). This compares with the U.S. at 4%.
Pew found U.S. atheists and religiously-affiliated Americans find meaning in life in some of the same sources. Family stood at the top of the list. Still, atheists (26%) were more likely than Christians (10%) to describe their hobbies as meaningful. Other areas that were significant to atheists included finances, travel, creative pursuits and leisure activities. Only 4% found meaning in spirituality.
While atheists don’t ascribe to religious teaching, many of them remain well-informed about religion. In a Pew 2019 religious knowledge survey, on average U.S. adults got 14 out of 32 fact-based questions correct. Atheists answered about 18 of the questions correctly.
About a quarter of atheists (23%) say they do believe in a higher power of some kind, but less than 1% say they believe in a the Bible’s description of God.
Other facts include: 98% atheists say religion is not too or not at all important in their lives; most atheists express concerns about the role of religion in society; and most Americans (73%) don’t think belief in God is necessary to be a good and moral person.
