Faith and the Foreigner - Exploring the Impact of Religion on Immigration Attitudes

Do religious identities or practices shape views about immigrants and immigration policy? This thesis examines the role of religious affiliation and attendance at worship in shaping U.S. citizens perspectives on immigration. Using a nationally representative sample of U.S. respondents, the author employs multivariate regression to test whether religious tradition or attendance at worship affect views about immigration net of other important social and cultural factors. The results reveal a complex picture in which respondents from some religious traditions tend to have less tolerant views toward immigrants even after controlling for socio-economic status while those professing "no religion" tend to have more tolerant views than most self-described "religious" respondents. On the other hand, attendance at religious worship has a positive affect on respondents attitudes toward immigrants. This thesis illustrates the importance of understanding complex cultural factors such as religion when analyzing views about immigration and xenophobia.