Overall in states where there is a Senate contest, support for Senate candidates is roughly evenly divided. Support for same-sex marriage has steadily grown over the past 15 years. In this pooled analysis, the actively religious are not more likely to report very good health, nor do they have better outcomes with regard to obesity and exercise. In Pew Research Center polling in 2004, Americans opposed same-sex marriage by a margin of 60% to 31%.

But the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) estimates that 21 million1 Americans still lack broadband access. “, Koenig, Harold G., Dana E. King, and Verna Benner Carson.

About Pew Research Center Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world.

An additional reason this study relies heavily on data from Christian-majority countries is that regular attendance at religious services – a key measure in this study – is a more central practice in some world religions (such as Christianity, Islam and Judaism) than in others (such as Hinduism or Buddhism, in which there is less emphasis on communal worship). While it is impossible to represent the entire crowded media space, the outlets, which range from network television news to Rush Limbaugh to the New York Times to the Washington Examiner to HuffPost, were selected to represent popular media brands across a range of platforms. The share who have rainy day funds differs drastically across demographic groups, and the groups that have been hardest hit by job and wage losses during the COVID-19 crisis are among the least likely to have these types of reserves. Religion may benefit psychological well-being because it encourages supernatural beliefs that can help people deal with stress.15 Social psychologists identify “stress buffering” mechanisms, such as a perceived connection with the divine, as key ways people may deal with difficult life events.16 And religious meaning may help people manage suffering, both in their lives and in the lives of those around them.17 This appears to be particularly important for older people, who tend to experience suffering on a more regular basis.18, Other researchers argue that religion can more directly lead to better health by proscribing risky behaviors and promoting healthy ones.19 Many religions discourage members from excessive alcohol and drug use, for example.20 Some religions, such as the Seventh-day Adventist Church and certain schools of Buddhism and Hinduism, encourage specific behaviors that may have health benefits, such as a vegetarian diet, regular exercise and meditation.21.