Belief or Belonging? Untangling Evangelical Religiosity and Its Impact on Affective Polarization

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dc.contributor.advisorMayer, Jeremy
dc.creatorBledsoe, Scott
dc.date.accessioned2023-03-17T19:05:43Z
dc.date.available2023-03-17T19:05:43Z
dc.date.issued2022
dc.description.abstractWhile previous research has shown that evangelicals are seemingly more polarized than other religious groups and secular Republicans, less is known about why this might be the case, and what impact, if any, distinct aspects of religiosity play in driving these high levels of affective polarization. This dissertation examines the relationship between evangelical religiosity and affective polarization by disaggregating religiosity into discrete categories of belief and belonging to better understand how each influences polarized political behavior, as well as how they interact with one another. Through the use of a novel survey and a systematic historical analysis, this dissertation finds that deep religious belonging tends to produce high levels of bonding social capital, something that often produces mistrust and animosity toward the outgroup. Additionally, bridging social capital, or one’s connection to their civic community, does not appear to have much of an influence on affective polarization, particularly in the face of deep levels of belonging to one’s own religious community. While claims of causality are muted, this dissertation finds important patterns within American evangelical religious belonging, its relationship to the production and maintenance of bonding social capital, and the subsequent influence on affective polarization.
dc.format.extent262 pages
dc.format.mediumdoctoral dissertations
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1920/13181
dc.language.isoen
dc.rightsCopyright 2022 Scott Bledsoe
dc.rights.urihttps://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0
dc.subjectAmerican Politics
dc.subjectEvangelical
dc.subjectPolarization
dc.subjectReligion
dc.subjectReligiosity
dc.subjectSocial Capital
dc.subject.keywordsPolitical science
dc.subject.keywordsReligion
dc.titleBelief or Belonging? Untangling Evangelical Religiosity and Its Impact on Affective Polarization
dc.typeText
thesis.degree.disciplinePolitical Science
thesis.degree.grantorGeorge Mason University
thesis.degree.levelDoctoral
thesis.degree.namePh.D. in Political Science

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