Explaining Differences in the Salience of Religion as a Symbolic Boundary of National Belonging in Europe

Abstract

This article analyses how differences in the salience of religion as a symbolic boundary of the nation among the majority populations in Europe can be explained. Following previous studies, I consider individual- and country-level characteristics based on theories of social identity and ethnic threat in my analyses to explain the variation. In addition, I include the institutional relationship between church and state and historical manifestations of religious nationalism as additional context conditions, which I assume to influence the salience of religious boundaries among the population. Drawing on data from the International Social Survey Programme, multilevel regression models are applied to data from 28 European countries. The results reveal that affiliation with the dominant religion as well as individual religiosity and perceived ethnic threat influences whether the national community is defined in religious terms. At the country level, historical manifestations of religious nationalism and a close and supportive relation between the state and dominant church increase the salience of religious boundaries of the nation, even when controlling for different levels of secularization. Thus, cultural narratives and institutional settings constitute important frameworks that impact individual definitions of national belonging in times of growing religious diversity and struggles over immigrant integration.