Conrad Hackett, Pew Research Center
Thursday, September 4, 2025
Religious identity is fading in many countries. From 2010 to 2020, the share of the population affiliated with any religion dropped at least 5 percentage points in 35 countries, according to a recent Pew Research Center study. It dropped considerably more in Australia (17 points), Chile (17), Uruguay (16), and the United States (13). The decline happens in what researchers call the Participation-Importance-Belonging (P-I-B) sequence. In this sequence, generations first shed aspects of religion that require more time and resources. People are slower to shed religious identity, which is not necessarily as burdensome.
