The Nones: Social Characteristics of the Religiously Unaffiliated

In spite of the fact that more than 10 percent of Americans claim no religion, academic investigations of the "nones" represent an underdeveloped area in the sociology of religion. We find that people with religiously unaffiliated parents and those who attended religious services less as a child are more likely to claim no religion. In addition, we find a strong association between having a spouse and peer group that are non-religious and claiming no religion.