Context Matters: Effects of the Proportion of Fundamentalists on Gender Attitudes

Previous research has shown that fundamentalist religious beliefs and affiliations are associated with conservative gender attitudes. This study expands upon previous research by examining both the individual and contextual effects of conservative Protestantism on gender attitudes. Multilevel analysis of data from the General Social Surveys (1985-96) reveals a significant relationship between the proportion of fundamentalists in a state and conservative gender attitudes of white individuals within that state even after controlling for the individuals' own religious affiliation, beliefs, and practices.