"No religion" responses on the New Zealand census data survey and poor survey design

In 2008, the International Social Survey Programme was conducted in New Zealand by Massey University.

The results of this survey indicated that 72% of the population believed in the existence of God or a higher power, 15% are agnostic, and 13% are atheist (the survey had a 3% margin of error).

The New Zealand Census of 2013 lists Christianity below 50% and "no religion" at 41.9%. However, Pew Research found that 72% of people in the United States who put "None"/"no religion" on surveys believe in the existence of God/gods, but do not subscribe to a particular religion or to a particular religious organization so perhaps the same may be occurring in New Zealand. In addition, in the United States, it was found that individuals who attend nondenominational churches sometimes put "None"/"no religion"/"unaffiliated" on surveys because they regard their relationship with Jesus Christ to be personal and spiritual rather than religious and perhaps the same may be happening in New Zealand. See also: Growth of the "nones" in New Zealand, its cap on future growth and expected decline, its effect on New Zealand politics

As far as irreligion in New Zealand, In 2008, the International Social Survey Programme was conducted in New Zealand by Massey University. The results of this survey indicated that 72% of the population believed in the existence of God or a higher power, 15% are agnostic, and 13% are atheist (the survey had a 3% margin of error).

"Nones"/"No religion"/"unaffiliated" responses and survey data in the United States: Likely large overreporting of nones in the United States

In 2022, Pew Research reported:

“

Looking at the experience of 80 countries, we find that the share of people who were raised as Christians and switch away from Christianity has not risen much above 50% anywhere, even in highly secular Western European countries. For American Christians concerned about these trends, that could be the demographic good news of the day. If there truly is a floor under Christian retention rates, the net movement from the ranks of Christian to the ranks of the religiously unaffiliated eventually may stop.

”

Likely large overreporting of nones in the United States

See also: Likely large overreporting of "nones" in the United States

Storefront churches often provide assistance to local residents.

The U.S. Religious Census, organized by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, tracks the number of congregations and congregants at the county level. But recent research in three U.S. counties confirms that it has missed between 26% and 40% of their congregations.

In 2022, the Wall Street Journal reported in their article Religion Is Dying? Don’t Believe It: Many of the ‘Nones’ aren’t secular; they belong to minority faiths. The problem is how to count them:

“

Reports of religion’s decline in America have been exaggerated. You’ve heard the story: Churchgoers are dwindling in number while “Nones”—those who tell pollsters they have no religious affiliation—are multiplying as people abandon their faith and join the ranks of atheists and agnostics. Headlines declare that the U.S. is secularizing along the lines of Europe. From Britain’s Daily Mail in 2013: “Religion could disappear by 2041 because people will have replaced God with possessions, claims leading psychologist.” These conclusions are based on analyses that are so flawed as to be close to worthless. In a new study with our colleagues Matt Bradshaw and Rodney Stark, we seek to set the record straight. Data from five recent U.S. population surveys point to the vibrancy, ubiquity and growth of religion in the U.S. Americans are becoming more religious, and religious institutions are thriving. Consistent with some previous studies but contrary to widely held assumptions, many people who report no religious affiliation—and even many self-identified atheists and agnostics—exhibit substantial levels of religious practice and belief. (Our sources are the University of Chicago’s 2018 General Social Survey, Baylor’s 2017 Values and Beliefs of the American Public Survey, the Association of Religious Data Archives’ 2012 Portrait of American Life Study, the 2017-2020 World Values Survey and the 2018 Chapman University Survey of American Fears.)... But large databases on American religion often lump Others in with the Nones. Respondents who don’t see their faith or denomination listed check off the only remaining option, “none of the above.” The error extends to the counting of religious institutions. The U.S. Religious Census, organized by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies, tracks the number of congregations and congregants at the county level. But recent research in three U.S. counties confirms that it has missed between 26% and 40% of their congregations. Many are evangelical and Pentecostal churches, especially Latino and African-American congregations, as well as nondenominational churches and megachurches, many with multiple campuses. This means that instead of 344,894 congregations (based on the most recent U.S. Religious Census data), there may be as many as 500,000 houses of worship in the U.S. Omitted are not only thousands of small congregations but huge ones such as Lakewood Church in Houston (with weekly attendance of 45,000), Gateway Church in the Dallas area (100,000), North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, Ga. (40,000), Life Church in Edmund, Okla. (30,000), and Christ’s Church of the Valley in Phoenix (32,000). All of this helps explain why the proportion of Nones has increased sharply—from 15% in 2007 to 30% in 2021—even though the proportion of atheists in the U.S. has held steady at 3% to 4% for more than 80 years. And there are reasons to question the assumption that even truly unaffiliated Nones aren’t religious. Our study looked closely at their actual practices and beliefs.

”

For further study, please read: Are Religious “Nones” Really Not Religious?:Revisiting Glenn, Three Decades Later by Jeff Levin, Ph.D., M.P.H.*, Matt Bradshaw, Ph.D., Byron R. Johnson, Ph.D., Rodney Stark, Ph.D., Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Religion, Volume 18, 2022, Article 7, Institute for Studies of Religion, Baylor University, Waco, Texas

Nones, poor survey design and nondenominational Christians

According the New Zealand census, from 2013 to 2018, the number of "Evangelical, Born Again and Fundamentalist Christians" grew from 15,381 individuals to 38,127 individuals from 2013 to 2018. See also: Growth of evangelical Christianity in New Zealand

Research shows that a significant amount of American nondenominational church members are checking "unaffiliated" or "no religion" on surveys.

Pat Neff Hall at Baylor University.

Based on research done by Baylor University, a February 2011 article entitled Good News about Evangelicalism declares:

“

Nondenominational churches, almost exclusively evangelical, now represent the second-largest group of Protestant churches in America, and the fastest growing section of the American religious market... This trend has affected popular statistics and has also served to exaggerate the loss of religious faith and evangelical influence in America. Most previous research missed a new phenomenon: that members of nondenominational churches often identify themselves on surveys as unaffiliated or even as having “no religion.” Because traditional surveys do not provide categories that adequately describe those who attend nondenominational congregations, their members often check “unaffiliated” in typical surveys and questionnaires... Similarly, claims that Americans, including evangelicals, are falling away from the faith contradict seven decades of survey research confirming that only 4 percent of Americans are atheists... ...We found no statistically significant difference between younger and older evangelicals on other moral and political issues, however. Younger evangelicals were, in fact, sometimes more conservative than their elders. ...The number of evangelicals remains high, and their percentage among practicing Christians in America is, if anything, rising.

”

For more information, please see: Baylor University researchers on American Christianity

Rutland Street Church, Christchurch, New Zealand.

According the New Zealand census, from 2013 to 2018, the number of "Evangelical, Born Again and Fundamentalist Christians" grew from 15,381 individuals to 38,127 individuals from 2013 to 2018.

Wikipedia's article on "Irreligion in New Zealand" on the issue of "No religion" responses on the New Zealand census data

Wikipedia, is an online encyclopedia that was founded by an atheist and agnostic.

Wikipedia's article on "Irreligion in New Zealand" indicates concerning "No religion" responses on the New Zealand census data:

"There is significant debate among sociologists about the interpretation of this trend in census data. The increase in those indicating 'no religion' is often cited in support of the secularisation thesis. An alternative theory is that the data indicates a decline in institutional religious affiliation rather than simply a decrease in spiritual belief. A 1985 survey showed that around one-quarter of those answering 'no religion' may believe in a god and that, conversely, between 7 percent and 36 percent of Christians (depending on their denomination) did not believe in the existence of deities."

American atheists attempting to falsely inflate the number of American atheists via the "nones"/"No religion" on survey data

See: Atheists attempting to falsely inflate the number of atheists via the "nones"/"No religion" on survey data

See also

• Irreligion in New Zealand
• Postsecularism and New Zealand in the 21st century
• New Zealand, its growing problem of hyper-aging areas and desecularization
• Growth of evangelical Christianity in New Zealand