To examine the extent to which religious “nones” are actually not religious in their personal lives, data were analyzed from five recent U.S. population surveys—the 2018 General Social Survey, 2017 Values and Beliefs of the American Public Survey, 2012 Portrait of American Life Study, 2017-2020 World Values Survey, and 2018 Chapman Survey of American Fears. Consistent with some previous studies but contrary to widely-held assumptions, many individuals who report no religious affiliation or check “none” on surveys (as well as atheists and agnostics) display a wide variety of religious and spiritual practices and beliefs.
