Research Article
Forms, Frequency, and Correlates of Perceived Anti-Atheist Discrimination
Authors:
Joseph H. Hammer ,
Iowa State University, US
About Joseph
Doctoral Student in Counseling Psychology
Ryan T. Cragun,
University of Tampa, US
About Ryan
Assistant Professor of Sociology
Karen Hwang,
Center for Atheist Research, US
About Karen
Senior Research Associate
Jesse M. Smith
University of Colorado at Boulder, US
About Jesse
Doctoral Candidate in Sociology
Abstract
The nationally representative 2008 American Religious Identification Survey found that 41% of self-identified atheists reported experiencing discrimination in the last 5 years due to their lack of religious identification. This mixed-method study explored the forms and frequency of discrimination reported by 796 self-identified atheists living in the United States. Participants reported experiencing different types of discrimination to varying degrees, including slander; coercion; social ostracism; denial of opportunities, goods, and services; and hate crime. Similar to other minority groups with concealable stigmatized identities, atheists who more strongly identified with their atheism, who were “out” about their atheism to more people, and who grew up with stricter familial religious expectations reported experiencing more frequent discrimination. Implications for future research tied to the ongoing religion/spirituality-health debate are discussed.
How to Cite:
Hammer, J.H., Cragun, R.T., Hwang, K. and Smith, J.M., 2012. Forms, Frequency, and Correlates of Perceived Anti-Atheist Discrimination. Secularism and Nonreligion, 1, pp.43–67. DOI: http://doi.org/10.5334/snr.ad
Published on
16 Oct 2012.
Peer Reviewed
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