Atheism and children

In Japan, researchers found that Japanese children see the world as designed.

Researchers at Oxford University have reported finding children who, when questioned, express their understanding that there is a Creator, without having had any such teaching from parents or teachers about this matter.

According to Dr. Olivera Petrovich who lectures at Oxford University, there is now a “preponderance of scientific evidence” indicating that “children believe in God even when religious teachings are withheld from them”.

In Japan, researchers found that Japanese children see the natural world as designed and purposeful and believe some kind of intelligent being is behind that purpose.

Atheism and its retention rates in individuals

In 2012, a Georgetown University study was published indicating that about 30 percent of those who grow up in an atheist household in the United States remain atheists as adults.

In 2012, a Georgetown University study was published indicating that in the United States only about 30 percent of those who grow up in an atheist household remain atheists as adults. According to Dr. Mark Gray, "of those raised as atheists, 30% are now affiliated with a Protestant denomination, 10% are Catholic, 2% are Jewish, 1% are Mormon, and 1% are Pagan."

Theodore Beale wrote about the Pew Research Forum's examination data involving individuals raised as atheists:

“

...the example of various former atheists such as C.S. Lewis and Anthony Flew indicates that atheism is nothing more than a transitive state for many individuals... The retention rate is even worse for the full blown atheist population. 60% of those raised atheist abandon atheism; 0.5% of the population was raised atheist and 0.3% of it left atheism. And while 1.4% of the population became atheist, the fact that nearly all of the nation is not atheist means that the non-atheist population has a retention rate of 98.6%, which is nearly 2.5 times better than the atheist retention rate of 40%. Therefore, the perceived rapid growth of atheism is nothing more than an artifact of the atheist population's statistical insignificance. Even the dying Episcopalian church has a better retention rate than atheism...

”

See also:

• Desecularization and social conformity

• Ex-atheists

• Atheists doubting the validity of atheism

Atheism and child pornography

See: Atheism and child pornography

Weak atheists and claims about babies being atheists

Weak atheism is an individual merely lacking a belief in God/gods. Using this broad definition of definition of atheism, there are atheists who argue that babies are atheists.

See also

• Atheism, women and children