Asian-Americans less religious, study finds

WASHINGTON — The most comprehensive study of religion and Asian-Americans to date finds them less religious than most Americans, but also far more religiously diverse.

“Asian-Americans are really a study in contrasts, with religious groups that are running the gamut from highly religious to highly secular,” said Cary Funk, lead researcher on “Asian Americans: A Mosaic of Faiths,” released June 19 by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.

The 3,551 Asian-Americans surveyed were 42 percent Christian, compared to 75 percent of all Americans. The next largest group of Asian-Americans identified as unaffiliated (26 percent), followed by Buddhists (14 percent), Hindus (10 percent) and Muslims (4 percent).

As for their religiosity, measured by standard questions asked by religion researchers, religion seems less central in the lives of Asian-Americans than Americans in general. Thirty-nine percent of the respondents say that religion is very important in their lives, compared to 58 percent of Americans in general.

And 30 percent of Asian-Americans say religion is not too important or not at all important to them, compared to 16 percent of all Americans.