First worldwide survey of religion and

science: No, not all scientists are atheists

December 3, 2015
Rice University

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Credit: Petr Kratochvil/Public Domain

Are all scientists atheists? Do they believe religion and science can co-
exist? These questions and others were addressed in the first worldwide
survey of how scientists view religion, released today by researchers at
Rice University.
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"No one today can deny that there is a popular 'warfare' framing between
science and religion," said the study's principal investigator, Elaine Howard
Ecklund, founding director of Rice University's Religion and Public Life
Program and the Herbert S. Autrey Chair in Social Sciences. "This is a war
of words fueled by scientists, religious people and those in between."

The study's results challenge longstanding assumptions about the

science-faith interface. While it is commonly assumed that most
scientists are atheists, the global perspective resulting from the study
shows that this is simply not the case.

"More than half of scientists in India, Italy, Taiwan and Turkey self-identify
as religious," Ecklund said. "And it's striking that approximately twice as
many 'convinced atheists' exist in the general population of Hong Kong,
for example, (55 percent) compared with the scientific community in this
region (26 percent)."

The researchers did find that scientists are generally less religious than a
given general population. However, there were exceptions to this: 39
percent of scientists in Hong Kong identify as religious compared with 20
percent of the general population of Hong Kong, and 54 percent of
scientists in Taiwan identify as religious compared with 44 percent of the
general population of Taiwan. Ecklund noted that such patterns challenge
longstanding assumptions about the irreligious character of scientists
around the world.

When asked about terms of conflict between religion and science,

Ecklund noted that only a minority of scientists in each regional context
believe that science and religion are in conflict. In the U.K. - one of the
most secular countries studied - only 32 percent of scientists
characterized the science-faith interface as one of conflict. In the U.S.,
this number was only 29 percent. And 25 percent of Hong Kong scientists,
27 percent of Indian scientists and 23 percent of Taiwanese scientists
believed science and religion can coexist and be used to help each other.

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In addition to the survey's quantitative findings, the researchers found

nuanced views in scientists' responses during interviews. For example,
numerous scientists expressed how religion can provide a "check" in
ethically gray areas.

"(Religion provides a) check on those occasions where you might be

tempted to shortcut because you want to get something published and
you think, 'Oh, that experiment wasn't really good enough, but if I portray it
in this way, that will do,'" said a biology professor from the U.K.

Another scientist said that there are "multiple atheisms," some of which
include religious traditions.

"I have no problem going to church services because quite often, again
that's a cultural thing," said a physics reader in the U.K. who said he
sometimes attended services because his daughter sang in the church
choir. "It's like looking at another part of your culture, but I have no faith
religiously. It doesn't worry me that religion is still out there."

Finally, many scientists mentioned ways that they would accommodate

the religious views or practices of the public, whether those of students or
colleagues.

"Religious issues (are) quite common here because everyone talks about
which temple they go to, which church they go to. So it's not really an
issue we hide; we just talk about it. Because, in Taiwan, we have people
[of] different religions," said a Taiwanese professor of biology.

Ecklund and fellow Rice researchers Kirstin Matthews and Steven Lewis
collected information from 9,422 respondents in eight regions around the
world: France, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Taiwan, Turkey, the U.K. and the U.S.
They also traveled to these regions to conduct in-depth interviews with
609 scientists, the largest worldwide survey and interview study ever
conducted of the intersection between faith and science.

By surveying and interviewing scientists at various career stages, in elite

and nonelite institutions and in biology and physics, the researchers
hoped to gain a representative look at scientists' views on religion, ethics
and how both intersect with their scientific work.

Ecklund said that the study has many important implications that can be
applied to university hiring processes, how classrooms and labs are
structured and general public policy.

"Science is a global endeavor," Ecklund said. "And as long as science is

global, then we need to recognize that the borders between science and
religion are more permeable than most people think."

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Provided by Rice University

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