Dr Ingrid Storm from The University of Manchester examines religiosity and attitudes to immigration in Europe. She found that religious conformity to the national average is associated with negative attitudes toward immigration. Religion does not predict immigration attitudes uniformly across countries. Those who belong to majority denominations are more likely to be concerned about immigration. […]
Income security may increase secularity, but not vice versa
Dr Ingrid Storm from The University of Manchester examines economic decline and church attendance in Britain. She found that despite regular churchgoers being able to cope better with economic loss; economic decline does not increase church attendance. More than half the population of Britain consider themselves to have no religion. Those who have experienced a loss […]
Overcoming ethnic prejudice: how a positive trend could be threatened
An important indicator of a breakdown of barriers between different ethnic groups is accepting someone of a different ethnic background marrying into the family. Much research into attitudes looks at the views of the majority ethnic group separately to those of the minorities. In a break from this tradition, researchers from the University of Manchester […]
Welfare spending reduces religious participation
Dr Ingrid Storm from The University of Manchester finds that people who live in countries with lower GDP (Gross Domestic Product) and lower social welfare spending are more religious on average. This is in part because religiosity can act as an alternative form of social security when government welfare is not available. The results have […]
Does religion have any impact on morality in modern Europe?
New research drawing on European survey data finds that religious decline does not equal moral decline. Dr Ingrid Storm explains why involvement in religion makes most difference to morality in the most religious countries, and matters less for moral values now than it did in the 1980s. A recent report by the Commission on Religion […]
Do hard times increase concerns about immigration?
Dr Ingrid Storm argues that economic concerns about immigration are related to financial insecurity. In the wake of the Syrian refugee crisis immigration is high on the political agenda throughout Europe, sharply dividing public opinion. Anti-immigration rhetoric often paints a picture of immigrants as “stealing jobs” or “scrounging” on the welfare system, arguments that can […]
Why are Muslims less accepted than other minorities in Britain?
Negative attitudes towards Muslims may cause discrimination and disadvantage. Dr Ingrid Storm considers the reasons why prejudice is still high. Muslims are less accepted in Britain than other religious and ethnic minorities. Such heightened negative attitudes could contribute to discrimination in the labour market, segregation and social conflicts. In a recent Policy@Manchester blog by Rob […]
Do religious people volunteer more?
Among ethnic minorities in Britain, religious people are more likely to volunteer, but only for ethnic and religious organisations, explains Dr Ingrid Storm. Since the 1990s, the government has involved ‘faith groups’ as partners in local policy and service provision in order to promote civic participation and community cohesion. However, it is as yet unclear […]