RELIGION IN A FREE MARKET:
Religious and Non-Religious Americans—Who, What, Why and Where
by Barry Kosmin and Ariela Keysar

The success of American religion, its amazing vitality and dynamism, is due to the free market-oriented regime it has operated under for over two centuries. The market system allows different generations and groups to seek different responses to their spiritual and religious needs.

The American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS), reported in depth in Religion in a Free Market, is the most comprehensive survey of religion ever done in the United States. Over 50,000 Americans were asked to report on their religious affiliations, outlook, and beliefs, and their responses were weighted to reflect the entire U.S. adult population.

Why read this book? First, because religious ferment is as strong as it has ever been, so Religious Americans whatever you learned about religion in the U.S. a generation ago is out of date.

Second, whether you are a political consultant, a marketer, a religious leader, or a social scientist, it is impossible to understand America without understanding religion in America. According to ARIS, 75 percent of adults in 2001 said they are religious or somewhat religious and 91 percent said they believe in God. Even those who consider themselves secular—a rapidly growing portion of the public—are acutely aware of and influenced by the religious milieu surround them.

As its title indicates Religion in a Free Market is built on a key idea—that religion in America can best be understood as a product on offer in the marketplace of ideas. What clergy have observed anecdotally and other researchers have speculated on, Religion in a Free Market documents scientifically.