Remembering to Ask the Boss: Priming and the Dynamics of Priest Reliance on Bishop Cues

Though the degree of influence that US bishops have over Catholic parishioners is inconsistent, the institutional power bishops have over parish priests suggests that bishops enjoy reliable influence over their local subordinates. However, there are an array of competing influences over parish pries...

Full description

Saved in:  
Bibliographic Details
Authors: Calfano, Brian Robert 1977- (Author) ; Oldmixon, Elizabeth Anne 1973- (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
Check availability: HBZ Gateway
Journals Online & Print:
Drawer...
Fernleihe:Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste
Published: MDPI [2016]
In: Religions
Year: 2016, Volume: 7, Issue: 3, Pages: 1-18
Further subjects:B Political Behavior
B Experiment
B Catholic Bishops
B Clergy
Online Access: Presumably Free Access
Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:Though the degree of influence that US bishops have over Catholic parishioners is inconsistent, the institutional power bishops have over parish priests suggests that bishops enjoy reliable influence over their local subordinates. However, there are an array of competing influences over parish priests that, when made salient, might make priest reliance on bishop instructions for political behavior less reliable. Using data from the first ever survey experiment on a national sample of US Catholic priests, we assess the effects of randomly priming priests with varying considerations of their professional responsibilities and relevant constituencies (including parishioner expectations). Results suggest that priests opt to rely on bishop cues when primed to consider institutional responsibilities as part of their professional identity, but that bishop influence over priest political behavior is, at best, indirect.
ISSN:2077-1444
Contains:Enthalten in: Religions
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.3390/rel7030021