international survey worldviews and opinions of scientists · international, academic web survey...

Ariela Keysar and Barry A. Kosmin

June 2008

IndiaWest Bengal

Uttaranchal

Uttar Pradesh

Tripura

Tamil Nadu

Sikkim

Rajasthan

Punjab

Pondicherry

Orissa

Nagaland

Mizoram

Meghalaya

Manipur

Maharashtra

Madhya Pradesh

Kerala

Karnataka

Jharkhand

Jammu and Kashmir

Himachal Pradesh

Haryana

Gujarat

Goa

Delhi

Daman and Diu

Chhattisgarh

Bihar

Assam

Arunachal Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

India 2007-08

SUMMARY REPORT

International Survey

Worldviews and Opinions of Scientists

International Survey

Worldviews and Opinions of Scientists

India 2007-08

SUMMARY REPORT

Principal InvestigatorsProfessor Ariela Keysar and Professor Barry A. Kosmin

In Cooperation with the Center for Inquiry IndiaChairman, Dr. N. Innaiah

Scientific Advisory BoardDr. Meera Nanda

Professor Benjamin Beit-HallahmiDr. Frank L. Pasquale

Research AnalystSteven Schmidt

Contents

Part I The Profile of the Scientists ......................................2I-A. Gender.................................................................. 2

I-B. AgeProfile............................................................ 2

I-C. YearDoctorateReceived........................................ 2

I-D. CurrentPosition.................................................... 2

I-E. ScientificDisciplines.............................................. 3

I-F. ScientificPublications........................................... 3

I-G. CurrentInstitutionalAffiliations.............................. 4

Part II Opinions on Political, Economic and Scientific Issues ...5II-A. ReasonsforBecomingaScientist .......................... 5

II-B. StatusofScienceandScientistsinIndia ................ 5

II-C.ScientificTemper--India’s ConstitutionalDuty ................................................ 6

II-D. FundingScience .................................................... 6

II-E. PreferredEconomicModel ..................................... 7

II-F. StatusofWomen ................................................... 7

II-G. ScientificLiteracyinIndia ...................................... 7

II-H. OpinionsRegardingEvolution ................................. 8

II-I. AnimalResearch .................................................... 8

II-J. EthicalConstraintsonScience ............................... 9

II-K. EfficacyofTraditionalTherapiesand Technologies ......................................................... 9

II-L. DegreesinVedicAstrologyand AyurvedicMedicine ............................................. 10

II-M.TheMeaningofSecularism .................................. 10

II-N. BlessingofRocketLaunching .............................. 11

II-O. ScienceversusReligion ....................................... 11

Part III Worldviews and Beliefs ...........................................12III-A.CurrentReligion................................................... 12

III-B.Vegetarianism ...................................................... 12

III-C. Secular/ReligiousOutlook ................................... 12

III-D. BeliefsaboutGod ................................................ 13

III-E. BeliefinMiracles ................................................. 13

III-F. TraditionalBeliefs ................................................ 13

III-G.Spirituality ........................................................... 14

III-H.MeaningoftheTermSpiritual ............................... 14

InstitutefortheStudyofSecularisminSocietyandCulture

Program on Public ValuesTrinity College

300 Summit Street Hartford, Connecticut 06106

USA

Phone: (860) 297-2381 E-mail: [email protected]

www.trincoll.edu/secularisminstitute

The establishment of ISSSC has been made possible by a grant from the

Posen Foundation of Lucerne, Switzerland.

© Copyright ISSSC 2008 Design by Jo Lynn Alcorn

Introduction

T he Worldviews and Opinions of Scientists in India Summary Report gives the highlights of an international, academic web survey conducted by the nonpartisan Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture (ISSSC) of Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. The survey was conducted

between August 2007 and January 2008 in cooperation with the Center for Inquiry India. The large national sample of Indian scientists, the first of its kind, included 1,100 participants from 130 universities and research institutes.1 The intent is to conduct a series of surveys in various countries with differing cultures, in order to learn who today’s scientists are and what they think about contemporary moral and ethical issues.

The criteria for inclusion in the survey were possession of a personal e-mail address at a scientific institution that was in the public domain and having a doctorate or equivalent qualification. The scientists were approached individually to participate via an e-mail contact letter, which was followed up by an electronic web-based survey questionnaire. The survey was administered directly from ISSSC in Connecticut and replies were transmitted directly to a dedicated website. The Center for Inquiry India helped design the questionnaire. All the respondents were assured that participation was completely voluntary. No incentives of any kind were offered and no support or encouragement was sought from the scientists’ own institutions. The 130 institutions with which the participants are affiliated are listed in Part I-G. The institutions with the largest number of respondents were the Indian Institutes of Technology in Kanpur (58), Kharagpur (53), Madras (51) and Bombay, Powai (50). Other institutions with large numbers of participating scientists were the Indian Institute of Science (41), the Indian Statistical Institute (33), the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (24) and the National Institute of Mental Health & Neuro Science (21).

The median average time spent online completing the questionnaire, including answering questions and adding comments, was 21 minutes. The survey instrument invited the respondents to participate “in an international research project designed to explore the beliefs and values of scientific professionals.” The self-identified “scientific professionals” were assured in the instructions:

The information gathered in this study will be kept confidential, of course. The data will be reported only in the aggregate and you will not be identified in any way in any reports. Many of the questions deal with personal beliefs and worldviews. If you find any questions intrusive or insensitive, feel free to skip them. You have the right to change your mind about participation in this study at any point. At the end of the questionnaire you can offer additional comments and express your feelings.

In fact, many hundreds of respondents took the opportunity to offer a rich array of comments, explanations and expansions upon their answers to the questionnaire. This rich material will be reported separately on the ISSSC website, along with detailed multivariate analyses, a full description of the methodology and the text of the questionnaire. In this report, the exact wording of the survey question appears in the heading of each figure.

This summary report contains three sections. The first is a profile of the respondents. The second describes their opinions on political, economic and scientific issues. The third delves into their worldviews and religious beliefs and attitudes.

1

1A pioneering study of 800 Indian scientists limited to five institutions (India Institute of Science, Bangalore; Delhi University; Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi; American College, Madurai; and C.M.S. College, Kottayam) was carried out in the early 1970s (David Gosling, Science and Religion in India, The Christian Literature Society, Madras, 1976).

PartIThe Profile of the Scientists

Researcher, Scientist 4%

Assistant Professor 21%

Lecturer or Reader 3%

Associate Professor 16%

Professor 44%

Emeritus Fellow/Professor 7%

Did not report their current position 5%

n = 1,100 100%

2 Part I The Profile of the Scientists

I-A. Gender Totalnumberofrespondents1,100 100%

Males 919 83%

Females 138 13%

Did not report their gender 43 4%

Less than 40 22%

40-54 46%

55+ 27%

Did not report age 5%

n = 1,100 100%

I-B. AgeProfile

Most of the respondents were born in the 1950s and 1960s. The participating Indian scientists are primarily over 40 years of age, yet the sample also captures the views and opinions of young scientists.

Before 1969 4%

1970-1979 13%

1980- 1989 27%

1990-1999 29%

2000+ 20%

Did not report year 7%

n = 1,100 100%

I-C. YearDoctorateReceived

Data on the year when their doctoral qualification was obtained, combined with the data on the age profile, shows that most of the scientists received their doctorates after the age of 30.

I-D. CurrentPosition

The sample includes both junior and senior scientists. The respondents are overwhelmingly engaged at present in scientific endeavors (93%), mainly at a university (73%)—for institutional affiliations, see 1-G.

Engineering 34%

Life Sciences 12%

Behavioral/Social Sciences/Humanities 11%

Mathematics 11%

Physics 10%

Chemistry 9%

Medicine/Veterinary/Health 8%

Earth Sciences 3%

Did not report their field 2%

n = 1,100 100%

Mediannumberofpublicationsinpeer-reviewedinternationaljournalsbyfield


Chemistry

Physics

Life Science

Engineering

Earth Science

Med/Vet/Health

Mathematics

Social Science/Humanities

40

40

34

16

15

15

12.5

4

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45

Median number of publications

I-E. ScientificDisciplines

The Indian scientists were asked in an open-ended question about their scientific discipline or scholarly field. These have been grouped into eight fields. This analysis shows there is a concentration in applied fields.

I-F. ScientificPublications

The data on the professional publications of the scientists show that this tends to be higher in the natural sciences.

Acharya Nagarjuna UniversityAlagappa University Aligarh Muslim UniversityAll India Institute of Medical SciencesAndhra University, Visakhapatnam Anna UniversityBanaras Hindu UniversityBarathidasan University, Palkalai PerurBengal Engineering and Science UniversityBharathiar UniversityBhavnagar UniversityBirla Institute of Technology and ScienceBrugarh UniversityCentral Drug Research InstituteCentre for Advanced TechnologyCentre for Advancement of Sustainable AgricultureCentre for DNA Fingerprinting and DiagnosticsCentre for Ecological Sciences, Indian Institute of Science, BangaloreCh. Charan Singh UniversityCochin University of Science & TechnologyDangoria Charitable TrustDeccan College of Engineering and TechnologyDelhi College of EngineeringDepartment of Ocean DevelopmentDepartment of Science and TechnologyDevi Ahilya VishwavidyalayaDhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information & Communication TechnologyDr. Harisingh Gour VishwavidyalayaDr. Y. S. Parmar University of Horticulture & ForestryFakir Mohan UniversityFergusson CollegeForest Research Institute, Dehradun Gandhi Institute of Technology And ManagementGandhigram Rural UniversityGanpat UniversityGarhwal UniversityGulbarga UniversityGuru Jambheshwar UniversityGuru Nanak Dev University Hamdard UniversityIndian Agricultural Research InstituteIndian Association for the Cultivation of ScienceIndian Institute of Information Technology - AllahabadIndian Institute of Information Technology and ManagementIndian Institute of Management, AhmedabadIndian Institute of Management, BangaloreIndian Institute of Management, IndoreIndian Institute of Management, KozhikodeIndian Institute of Management, LucknowIndian Institute of MinesIndian Institute of Rural ManagementIndian Institute of ScienceIndian Institute of Technology Bombay, PowaiIndian Institute of Technology DelhiIndian Institute of Technology Guwahati Indian Institute of Technology KanpurIndian Institute of Technology KharagpurIndian Institute of Technology MadrasIndian Institute of Technology RoorkeeIndian Institute of Tropical Meteorology


Indian National Science Academy Indian Statistical InstituteIndira Gandhi Institute of Development ResearchIndira Gandhi National UniversityInstitute of Mathematical Sciences, ChennaiInternational Center for Genetic Engineering and BiotechnologyInternational Institute for Population Sciences, MumbaiInternational Institute of Information Technology - HyderabadJadavpur UniversityJamia Millia IslamiaJawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education & ResearchJawaharlal Nehru UniversityJaypee Institute of Engineering and TechnologyJaypee Institute of Information TechnologyKakatiya UniversityKalasalingam UniversityKarnatak UniversityKasturba Medical CollegeKing George Medical UniversityLucknow UniversityMaharana Pratap University of Agriculture and TechnologyMaulana Azad Medical CollegeMaulana Azad National Institute of TechnologyMedical College BarodaMohanlal Sukhadia UniversityMotilal Nehru National Institute Of Technology - AllahabadNational Academy of Agricultural Research Management National Geophysical Research InstituteNorth-Eastern Hill University Office of the Principal Scientific Adviser to the Government of IndiaPandit Ravishankar Shukla University Panjab UniversityPhysical Research LaboratoryPost Graduate Institute of Medical Education and ResearchPunjab Agricultural UniversityPunjabi University Raman Research InstituteRani Durgavati VishwavidyalayaSaha Institute of Nuclear PhysicsSambalpur UniversitySaurashtra UniversitySree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and TechnologySri Venkateswara UniversitySt. Stephen’s CollegeTata Institute of Fundamental ResearchTata Institute of Social SciencesTopiwala National Medical CollegeUniversity Institute of Chemical TechnologyUniversity of Agricultural SciencesUniversity of CalcuttaUniversity of CalicutUniversity of DelhiUniversity of HyderabadUniversity of Madras University of MumbaiUniversity of Mysore University of PuneUniversity of RajasthanVeermata Jijabai Technological InstituteWomen’s Christian College

I-G. CurrentInstitutionalAffiliations

5 Part II Opinions on Political, Economic and Scientific Issues

Whatwasthemainreasonthatledyoutobecomeascientist?

Personal interest, curiosity 55%

A teacher/role model 20%

Doing good in the world 11%

Job opportunities 6%

Vocation/calling 6%

Social status, international contact, financial reward 2%

n = 1,100 100%

Inyouropinion,howwellrespectedarescientistsinIndia?

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Very badly Very well

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

perc

ent

816

292714

51

PartIIOpinions on Political, Economic and Scientific Issues

II-A. ReasonsforBecomingaScientist

Most of the scientists chose this career path because of personal interest and curiosity. Some followed a teacher or a role model and others thought of doing good in the world. Only a very small minority were attracted to science for its financial rewards or social status.

II-B. StatusofScienceandScientistsinIndia

On the scale of 1 to 7, a majority of respondents answered four or more, indicating that in their opinion scientists are generally well respected in India.

TowhatextentdoyouthinkthatIndiatodayisfulfillingitsconstitutionalduty“todevelopthescientifictemper,humanismandthespiritofinquiryandreform?”(Article 51Ah)


Towhatextentshouldgovernmentandpublicfundingofsciencebebasedonitstechnologicalbenefitstothenation?

Towhatextentdoyouapproveofprivatesectorcommercialinvolvementinbasicscience?

perc

ent

Not at all Very much

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 6

2429

2314 4

1

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

21212516

1062222421

14965

Very little Very much

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

perc

ent

II-C. ScientificTemper--India’sConstitutionalDuty

In Indian usage, “scientific temper” refers to free inquiry, the application of logic and the avoidance of bias and preconceived notions.

Overall, the majority of responses to this question on the constitutional duty to develop “scientific temper” are negative and critical.

II-D. FundingScience

Most respondents believe that public funding of science should be based on its technological benefits. Furthermore, most approve of private-sector involvement in basic science.

(On a scale from 1 to 7)


Whichisyourpreferredeconomicmodel?

HowwouldyouratethescientificliteracytodayofthefollowinggroupsinIndia?

21% Thefreemarket

56% Mixed economy

21% The free market

9% Socialism

6% Village based/autarchic

8% Unsure

Inyouropinion,istheunder-representationofwomeninthesciencesduetonature(biological,genetic,inheritance)ornurture(learning,culturalinfluence)?

75% Nurture

9% Nature

16% Unsure

School teachers

Young men

Media people

Young women

Government officials

Business people

The population as a whole

Politicians

1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Very low Very high

3.6

3.4

3.1

3.1

2.7

2.6

2.3

1.9

II-E. PreferredEconomicModel

The preference for a mixed economy is consistent with the respondents’ support for both government and private funding of science.

II-F. StatusofWomen

Three out of four of the scientists believe that the current under-representation of women in the sciences (see Part I-A) is due to nurture, that is, to culture influence and learning, rather than nature, i.e., biological and genetic reasons.

II-G. ScientificLiteracyinIndia

Overall the Indian scientists think that scientific literacy in the country is low. They rank school teachers as having the highest rate of scientific literacy while ranking politicians lowest. Interestingly, the media score the third highest, just below young men and above young women. Government officials and business people are also perceived as more scientifically literate than the Indian population as a whole.

(Mean scores)


Inyouropinion,shouldresearchersinthelifesciencesrefrainfromdoingresearchoncows?

Inyouropinion,shouldresearchersinthelifesciencesrefrainfromusingpigsinresearchprojects?

Doyouthinkthattheprocessofbiologicalevolutionisafact?

Doyouthinkthathumanbeings,asweknowthem,developedfromearlierspeciesofanimals?

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Definitely not Probably not Unsure Probably Definitely

6654

2230

8 92 335

perc

ent

II-H. OpinionsRegardingEvolution

The vast majority of the scientists endorse the theory of evolution (88% “definitely” or “probably”) but there is a slight tendency towards “human exceptionalism” with a lower degree of definite commitment to the concept that “human beings developed from earlier species of animals.”

II-I. AnimalResearch

Scientists’ responses on using animals in research offer no differentiation between the two species, cows or pigs. Two-thirds of scientists have no problem with this issue.

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Yes

Unsure

No

percent

64

66

26

22

10

12


Doyouthinkthatthereisanyefficacyinthefollowing?

II-K. EfficacyofTraditionalTherapiesandTechnologies

Among traditional or alternative curative and diagnostic techniques, two clearly stand out. About half of these scientists think homeopathy (50%) and prayer (49%) are efficacious. Less than 20% endorse faith healing, Vaastu and astrology. The least favored therapies, endorsed by only a few scientists, are amulets and dowsing.

II-J. EthicalConstraintsonScience

The levels of opposition to personal engagement in potentially controversial areas of scientific research range widely by issue. Of course, depending on the scientific discipline of the respondent, the individual ethical issue can be either “theoretical” or “practical.” Detailed findings according to scientific fields can be viewed on the survey website.

Wouldyourefusetoworkonanyofthefollowingbecauseofyourmoralorreligiousbeliefs?

Designing Biological Weapons

Designing Nuclear Weapons

Chemical Pollution

Human Cloning

Animal Vivisection

Voluntary Euthanasia

Population Control

Genetic Engineering

Stem Cell Research

34

29

21

16

11

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Percent responding “Yes”

8

8

54

64

Homeopathy

Prayer

Faith Healing

Vaastu

Astrology

Magnetic Therapy

Pranic Therapy

Predictions Based on Horoscopes

Electrotherapy

Reflexology

Palmistry

Predictions Based on Panchangam

Reiki

Urine Therapy

Gem and Stone Therapy

Numerology

Power of Amulets

Dowsing

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Percent responding “Yes” to each item

50

49

16

14

14

2

3

6

7

7

8

8

10

10

10

12

13

13


DoyouapproveordisapproveofdegreecoursesinVedicAstrology?

DoyouapproveordisapproveofuniversitydegreecoursesinAyurvedicmedicine?

Whatdoes“secularism”meantoyou?

II-L. DegreesinVedicAstrologyandAyurvedicMedicine

The scientists are by far more likely to approve of university degree courses in Ayurvedic medicine (90% “strongly” or “somewhat”) than degree courses in Vedic Astrology (44%).

II-M. TheMeaningofSecularism

Secularism has a unique meaning in India. We can classify the first two responses as describing “public secularism.” The vast majority of the scientists perceives this term as tolerance and a large majority recognizes it as it appears in the Indian constitution as religion-government separation. When it comes to “private secularism” or secularity, a majority regards it as meaning the absence of religious affiliation. Only a minority of scientists conceives of secularity as meaning atheism.

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Disapprove Disapprove Unsure Approve Approve strongly somewhat somewhat strongly

17

58

27 32

135

31

3123

perc

ent

Tolerance for various religions and philosophies

Separation of religion from state/government

No identification or affiliation with any religious tradition

Absence of supernatural or religious beliefs

Atheism

83

53

20

40

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100


93

In2005spacescientistswenttoTirupatitoseektheblessingofLordVenkateswarabeforelaunchingtherocketandsatellite.

Doyouapproveordisapproveoftheaction?


II-N. BlessingofRocketLaunching

The Indian scientific community is split on the issue of seeking a religious endorsement of a space research project, which occurred in 2005. Approval of this ritual has the support of 41% of the scientists while 46% disapprove. However, the level of disapproval is more intense with a plurality (33%) “disapproving strongly.”

II-O. ScienceversusReligion

A plurality of the scientists (44%) is willing to criticize and confront religions where they think they contradict accepted scientific theories but a sizeable minority (23%) is opposed.

14%Approve strongly

27%Approve somewhat

13%Unsure

13%Disapprove somewhat

33%Disapprove strongly

Doyouthinkthatscientificorganizationsshouldconfrontreligiouspracticesiftheycontradictacceptedscientifictheories?

44%Yes

33%Sometimes

23%No

Whatisyourcurrentreligion,ifany?

Hindu 66%

Christian 3%

Muslim 3%

Sikh, Buddhist & Other 4%

Atheist/ No religion/ Secular 10%

Did not report their religion 14%

n = 1,100 100%

Areyouavegetarian?

Whenitcomestoyouroutlook,doyouregardyourselfas...?

12 Part III Worldviews and Beliefs

PartIIIWorldviews and Beliefs III-A. CurrentReligion

The majority of the Indian scientists are Hindus and 10% self-identify as atheists or having no religion. Small minorities of the scientists are Christians or Muslims or profess other religions.

III-B. Vegetarianism

A majority of the scientists surveyed is not vegetarian. The vegetarian population (43%) is motivated by both health and religious reasons.

III-C. Secular/ReligiousOutlook

The scientists are most likely to regard their personal outlook as “secular” or “somewhat secular” (75%). Note that in India, secularism means tolerance (see II-M).

59% Secular

16% Somewhat secular

15% Somewhat religious

7% Religious

3% Don’t know

57% No

43% Yes

8% Health reasons

3% Religious reasons

20% Health and religious reasons

12% Other reasons

WhatdoyoubelieveaboutGod?

I don’t believe in God 12%

I don’t know whether there is a God and I don’t believe there is any way to find out 13%

I don’t believe in a personal God but I do believe in a higher power 30%

I find myself believing in God some of the time but not at others 6%

While I have doubts, I feel that I do believe in God 9%

I know God really exists and I have no doubts about it 26%

No answer 4%

n = 1,100 100%


Doyouagreeordisagreewiththefollowingstatements?

Doyoubelievein...?

III-D. BeliefsaboutGod

One-fourth of the scientists take an atheist or agnostic position about belief in the divine while another fourth are firm believers.

III-E. BeliefinMiracles

Most of the scientists reject the idea of divine or human ability to perform miracles. However the level of support for “supernatural” human agency (24%) is noteworthy.

III-F. TraditionalBeliefs

Overall, the majority of scientists rejects all these traditional beliefs. However, the level of rejection varies over a considerable range. More than a quarter believe in the doctrine of Karma but only a very small minority endorses the caste system.

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100

Percent responding “Agree strongly” or “Agree somewhat”

God performs miracles

Holy people perform miracles

38

24

Karma (sins and deeds of past life)

Life after death

Reincarnation

A relationship between comets and human events

Ghosts/Spirits

Caste system

29

26

20

7

7

6

0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100



III-G. Spirituality

The majority of scientists think of themselves as “spiritual.” On a scale of 1 to 7, only 11% are “not at all” spiritual (1) while 14% think of themselves as “very much” spiritual (7).

Towhatextentdoyouthinkofyourselfas“spiritual?”

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

01 2 3 4 5 6 7

Not at all Very much

perc

ent

141924

17711 9

Whatdoes“spiritual”mean?

Commitment to higher human ideals, such as peace, harmony, or well-being 34%

A higher level of human consciousness or awareness 31%

Sensitivity to a force that connects all (living) things 16%

Contact with forces or entities that exist beyond nature 10%

A purely emotional or psychological sense of connection with others and/or nature 9%

n = 1,100 100%

III-H. MeaningoftheTermSpiritual

What do they mean by the term “spiritual”? Among five different conceptions of spirituality, two-thirds opted for either “commitment to higher human ideals, such as peace, harmony, or well- being” (34%), or “a higher level of human consciousness or awareness” (31%).

Whatdoes“spiritual”mean?

Commitment to higher human ideals, such as peace, harmony, or well-being 34%

A higher level of human consciousness or awareness 31%

Sensitivity to a force that connects all (living) things 16%

Contact with forces or entities that exist beyond nature 10%

A purely emotional or psychological sense of connection with others and/or nature 9%

n = 1,100 100%

The ISSSC research team would like to express their appreciation to all the Indian scientists who agreed to participate in the survey and share their worldviews and opinions. The Indian project is the first in a series of international surveys of scientists in various countries representing a variety of cultures.

We would also like to acknowledge David Tatem and the IT Department of Trinity College for their assistance with the administration of the web survey.

Dr.ArielaKeysar, a demographer, is Associate Research Professor of Public Policy and Law and the Associate Director of the Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture (ISSSC) at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. She is a principal investigator of the ISSSC web survey of Indian scientists, which is the first in a series of studies of worldviews and opinions of scientists around the world. She is also a principal investigator of the American Religious Identification Survey 2008, a representative national survey of religion in the U.S., covering over 50,000 respondents. Dr. Keysar is the co-editor of Secularism and Science in the 21st Century and Secularism & Secularity: Contemporary International Perspectives as well as co-author of Religion in a Free Market.

Dr.BarryA.Kosmin is the Founding Director of the Institute for the Study of Secularism in Society and Culture and Research Professor, Public Policy & Law Program at Trinity College. A sociologist, Dr. Kosmin has been a principal investigator of many large national social surveys and opinion polls in Europe, Africa, Asia and the U.S. including the CUNY 1990 National Survey of Religious Identification and the American Religious Identification Surveys of 2001 and 2008. A former joint editor of the journal Patterns of Prejudice, he is co-author of One Nation under God: Religion in Contemporary American Society, Religion in a Free Market and co-editor of the following volumes in the ISSSC series: Secularism and Science in the 21st Century and Secularism & Secularity: Contemporary International Perspectives.

TheAuthors

Thisprojectisaworkinprogress.Furtherfindingsandadditionalstatisticsareavailableandwillbeupdatedperiodicallyatwww.trincoll.edu/secularisminstitute.

InstitutefortheStudyofSecularisminSocietyandCulture

www.trincoll.edu/secularisminstitute

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