International Journal of Public Opinion Research 15:300-324 (2003)
© 2003 World Association for Public Opinion Research
Pathways to Political Participation? Religion, Communication Contexts, and Mass Media
Dietram A. Scheufele (Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison) is assistant professor in the Department of Communication at Cornell University. His current research interests include the formation and expression of public opinion, and the impact of mass and interpersonal communication on various forms of political behavior.
Matthew C. Nisbet (Ph.D., Cornell University) is an assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Communication at The Ohio State University, specializing in political mass communication, public opinion, and media sociology.
Dominique Brossard (Ph.D., Cornell University) is a post-doctoral associate in the Department of Communication at Cornell University. Her current research focuses on media effects, public opinion, and political behavior in a wide variety of contexts.
Address correspondence to Dietram A. Scheufele, Department of Communication, Cornell University, 315 Kennedy Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853-4203, USA. Email: dietram.scheufele{at}cornell.edu
Recently, there has been a focus on religion as an essential catalyst for political participation and renewed civic engagement. Various claims share the common assumption that religion promotes the essential components of political participation including motivation, recruitment, and ability. Using survey data from the 2000 National Election Study, we examine the processes that link the structural and cognitive dimensions of religion with political discussion networks, mass media use, and various indicators of democratic citizenship, including political participation. Our results show that current claims related to religion may be oversold. Specifically, we find that the cognitive dimension of religion leads to several negative effects on aspects of democratic citizenship. Our results also indicate that the structural effects of religion are limited, compared to secular networks, which provide an ideal setting for citizens to gain and exchange information, increase feelings of efficacy, and—most importantly—engage in various forms of participation.
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