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June 04, 2008

Religious Habits of Young Americans Spell Trouble for Fund Raising

Baby boomers give less to religious causes than their parents’ generation did when they were the same age as boomers are now, new research has found. And members of Generation X, people born after 1965, give even less than boomers.

What’s more, younger people attend religious services far less regularly than their parents or grandparents.

The research, conducted by Indiana University Center on Philanthropy, is based in part on an analysis of data from 8,000 households that have been followed and interviewed on a range of topics every two years since the 1960s.

Giving to religion is an important trend for fund raisers of all kinds, since numerous studies have found that people who give to religious causes — and attend services — tend to donate more to groups of all kinds.

In the study by Indiana University, researchers found that people aged 35 to 49 gave $789 to religious causes in 2000, while people their parents’ age, who were 35 to 49 in 1973, gave $991, for example.

The difference in giving among the generations appears to be related to attendance at religious services, which has declined nationwide, said Bill Enright, one of the Center on Philanthropy researchers.

A generation ago, more than 40 percent of Americans attended weekly religious services, but that figure has shrunk to about 25 percent, he said.

“Charitable fund raisers need to understand differences in generational behaviors,” said Patrick Rooney, the Center on Philanthropy’s director of research. “Will Generation X become more like their parents or grandparents as they age and start giving a higher share of their income to religion or other charities? Or are their behaviors going to remain fixed?”

— Holly Hall

Wednesday June 4, 2008 | Permalink

Comments

1. I’m 27 years old, never attend organized religious services, but give $1000.00 annually to my undergraduate college, an amount which I plan to increase with age. I think they ought to reanalyze the link between giving to churches and the likelihood of giving elsewhere.

   — The Giver    Jun 5, 10:25 AM    #

2. I’m 33, and give at least $1K to $2K a year to charities (and would give more money if I had more income) as well as time and goods, but I specifically do not give to religious charities. I believe people should be able to get the assitance they require without proselytization.

   — Bee    Jun 5, 11:32 AM    #

3. I’ll reaffirm some short aspect of this study with my anecdote. I’m religious, attend regularly, and have always done so. My parents attended regularly and always gave significantly to religious and also other charitable causes. All this on a middle-class income. The previous posters didn’t give an annual income amount, so its hard to know what percentage of their income they give. Does $1K or $2K represent 1%, or maybe 15% of your income? I consistently give $4,000-$4,500 a year, mainly to religious, but also other charitable causes. This is approximately 10-11% of my after tax income. Oh, by the way, I’m 41.

   — Another Giver    Jun 5, 12:26 PM    #

4. I think the trend is interesting. My theory is that many who have supported religion over the years have tended to be folks who will write a check for $25 to the Red Cross. They tend to support many charities with smaller amounts. As more individuals focus their philanthropy, what we may see more of now is people giving larger amounts to fewer charities. I don’t necessarily see a reduction in giving to religion, which may or may not become the norm over time, as being a major warning sign for fund raisers.

   — Interested    Jun 5, 02:03 PM    #

5. Bee — I work for a religious charity and we do not proselytize to those we serve. We provide services without regard to religious affiliation (or lack thereof), race, gender, national origin, etc. We provide services because we feel called to do so. Religious organizations were the “safety net” long before government got involved. More than 90 percent of the 35,000 people we serve annually do not belong to our Protestant denomination, yet we provide a range of services to children, seniors, the poor and those in crisis. Many other faith-based organizations do the same.

   — Katherine    Jun 5, 02:19 PM    #

6. I am a baby boomer, raised in a religious household, attended religious schools, and was required to attend religious services several times a week as a child. I am an atheist and do not now attend church, nor do most of my friends. I give about 3-4% of my income to charity each year. Some of that is to church-related charities that provide important services in my community but do not force worship upon their clients or students. My giving, as is that of my friends, is based on belief in the underlying mission of the organization, whether or not it is church-related. However, I do not give to churches or other charities that focus on worship or evangelizing. I would caution anxious fund raisers that religious participation is only one indicator of giving, and that others may be just as important, including volunteering.

   — Kate    Jun 5, 02:20 PM    #

7. I can only speak for myself, but my faith definitely plays a big part of my desire to donate to both religious and non-religious charities. I did not grow up in a religious household, my parents did not donate regularly, but as I continue to grow in my Christian faith, I just realize how blessed I am and how God has given me resources not to squander on myself, but to reallocate. Our giving has grown to almost 15% ($8000 last year) of our household income and I know that will grow. It’s truly a rewarding to give. I am currently married, work full-time and am age 26.

   — Spiritually Interested    Jun 5, 03:08 PM    #

8. I had the pleasure of teaching a high school confirmation class this spring. Our kids gave of both their time and limited financial resources. One on-going discussion we had was the desire of this generation to not just give and “trust the institution” to provide the service, but a desire and willingness to personally be involved in the service. As the Church learns how to better engage youth where they are in their lives, I expect that engagement in philanthrophy to increase as well. AS lay leaders in the Church we have to better understand the world views of our youth and, while maintaining the fundamentals of our faith, be open to programs, services and “new” traditions that keep them involved. My class was very proud that the Church they belong to has played such a leadership role in the charitable world. We (I) had not helped them make the connection between the basket that gets passed by when they are at church and the services provided to people in the hospital, to the homeless, the infirmed, at risk mothers and youth.

   We talked a great deal about the “other 167” – we spend one hour out of the 168 hours in a week in church. Of that 167 that are left what can we do to “love and serve the Lord?” To engage in our faith? As an educator I had to engage them differently today, than I did 10 years ago when I taught a class. The church must do the same thing…let them sign up for text message reminders to pray, text message reminders that “Mass is in a hour,” make engaging sermons available online, etc. Unfortunately, we need to compete for their attention and their engagement. But based on the attitude of the young adults I was with, I think they will surprise us in exciting new ways. I pray that they do.

   — Tad Druart    Jun 5, 04:36 PM    #

9. “The previous posters didn’t give an annual income amount, so its hard to know what percentage of their income they give. Does $1K or $2K represent 1%, or maybe 15% of your income? “

   My annual income is 23K, so, 4.3% of my income I give to my undergraduate college.

   — The Giver    Jun 5, 05:24 PM    #

10. I hope the readers note this fact as reported in the article. “Giving to religion is an important trend for fund raisers of all kinds, since numerous studies have found that people who give to religious causes — and attend services — tend to donate more to groups of all kinds.”

    Research on giving, volunteering and helping others in all ways increases as folks attend religious services. Religiously committed people vote more often, do more work in the community and give to other groups more than the uncommitted.

    If you are working in a charity or volunteer group even as an atheist you need to hope and pray for more religiously oriented supporters because they will do a lot for you. Data on Civic Virtue shows a very high correlation between religious commitment and civic involvement.

    Ps. I give 10 to 15% each year to charity.

    — Gary Sweeten    Jun 5, 11:56 PM    #

11. I wonder what the giving numbers are for young adults under 35. A lifelong church-goer, I know that my donations go more toward the day-to-day operations of the church and the church community than to evangelizing. I’m 24 and have given 10% of my income to the church each year since I was about 21 years old. Other charitable giving goes on top of that (case by case).

    — ae    Jun 13, 04:55 PM    #

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