Normalisation of nonreligious identity in Finland

Based on representative survey material analysed with the help of Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA), this article examines nonreligious identification in Finland. It focuses on those who positively identify themselves as nonreligious, describes them according to selected social variables, and e...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of contemporary religion
Authors: Taira, Teemu (Author) ; Ketola, Kimmo 1965- (Author) ; Sohlberg, Jussi (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Carfax Publ. 2023
In: Journal of contemporary religion
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B Finland / Irreligiosity / Generations / Birth year / History 1981-1996 / History 1995-2010 / Cultural identity / Secularization
RelBib Classification:AB Philosophy of religion; criticism of religion; atheism
AD Sociology of religion; religious policy
KBE Northern Europe; Scandinavia
TK Recent history
Further subjects:B Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA)
B Nonreligion
B cultural religion
B Finland
B Millennials
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:Based on representative survey material analysed with the help of Multiple Classification Analysis (MCA), this article examines nonreligious identification in Finland. It focuses on those who positively identify themselves as nonreligious, describes them according to selected social variables, and explores their attitudes. The results demonstrate that nonreligious identity is more prevalent among Millennials and even more so among urban men. An examination of attitudes towards minority religions, church–state interaction, and national pride shows that the nonreligious are relatively liberal and tolerant, but what makes them different from others is their opposition to church–state interaction and their lack of national pride, thus indicating the weakening of ‘cultural religion’. On the basis of these findings, this article argues that in addition to the general process of secularisation, national history and recent social changes offer plausible reasons for the questions of how and why such normalisation is taking place, especially among Millennials.
ISSN:1469-9419
Contains:Enthalten in: Journal of contemporary religion
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1080/13537903.2022.2138020