Religion, Social Trust, and Civic Participation: Cross-National Evidence

Abstract

Religion has long been identified as a potential generator of social capital through its provision of community membership, shared values, and organized collective action. Putnam (2000), in ‘Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community,’ identified religious participation as one of the most robust correlates of civic engagement, arguing that religious congregations provide the social infrastructure for civic skills development, volunteer recruitment, and norm internalization that supports broader civic life. However, the relationship between religion and social capital is more complex than the Putnam thesis implies: religious capital is predominantly bonding (within-group), and may reduce bridging capital (cross-group) when religious identity becomes the basis for social exclusion. This paper examines cross-national survey evidence on the religion-social trust relationship, distinguishing effects on particularistic (in-group) versus generalized trust, and exploring how religious pluralism, state-church relations, and religious intensity moderate the civic consequences of religious participation.