It’s not surprising women are more religious than men. What else do they have to believe in?
A new survey has found a humongous gender gap in attitudes to God – but its author declines to speculate on why that should be. Well, I’ll have a go
Deborah Orr
Friday 23 January 2015 11.30 EST
Professor David Voas seems wise indeed. The population studies expert has analysed responses to a survey of 9,000 British people and found a humongous gender gap in attitudes to God, religion and life after death. A chunky54% of men say they are atheists or agnostics, while only 34% of women hold similar views. An even greater number of men – 63% – believe there is no life after death, compared to 36% of women.
Professor Voas sensibly remarks that, as in many matters of religion, there’s no obvious explanation as to why this should be. I do admire the way the Prof expresses his reluctance to stray into the minefield of gender speculation – somehow, it’s simply all religion’s fault. A lesser man might have been tempted to point out that it’s odd that women, much more so than men, are drawn to capricious, unfathomable things. Sadly, I’m not as wise as he is, and I can’t resisting picking at this news, in much the same way I’d pick at a scab.
Of course, a great deal depends on whether you see religious belief as a good thing or a bad thing. If you see it as a good thing, you could argue that the study illustrates that women are more likely to be happy to see themselves as part of some much bigger plan, rather than standing alone at the centre of the universe. You could argue that women are simply more open-minded, more imaginative, less likely to think that anything beyond their own understanding can’t have any value. You could argue that women are more aware of the wonder of life, and more relaxed about embracing its wonder, rather than feeling compelled to reduce it to the rational.
Except that, oh God, that would annoy a lot of people. It’s been a while since anyone could expect to declare women to be inherently less rational than men without a monstrous regiment of women offering reasons why they’re talking rubbish in icily rational terms. Those same people tend to explain gender gaps within a framework that offers the long history of female oppression as a driver on inequality.
http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jan/23/its-not-surprising-women-are-more-religious-than-men
http://www.ioe.ac.uk/newsEvents/110639.html
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