Worldwide, Many See Belief in God as Essential to Morality

Richer Nations Are Exception


Many people around the world think it is necessary to believe in God to be a moral person, according to surveys in 40 countries by the Pew Research Centre. However, this view is more common in poorer countries than in wealthier ones.

In 22 of the 40 countries surveyed, clear majorities say it is necessary to believe in God to be moral and have good values. This position is highly prevalent, if not universal, in Africa and the Middle East.

At least three-quarters in all six countries surveyed in Africa say that faith in God is essential to morality. In the Middle East, roughly seven-in-ten or more agree in Egypt, Jordan, Turkey, the Palestinian territories, Tunisia and Lebanon. Across the two regions, only in Israel does a majority think it is not necessary to believe in God to be an upright person.

Many people in Asia and Latin America also link faith and morality. For example, Indonesians, Pakistanis, Filipinos and Malaysians almost unanimously think that belief in God is central to having good values. People in El Salvador, Brazil, Bolivia and Venezuela overwhelmingly agree. However, most Chinese take the opposite position – that it is not necessary to be a believer to be a moral person. And in Latin America, the Chileans and Argentines are divided.

In North America and Europe, more people agree that it is possible to be non-religious and still be an upright person. At least in nearly every country surveyed take this view, including roughly eight-in-ten or more in France, Spain, the Czech Republic and Britain. In these two regions, Americans are unique – 53 per cent say belief in God is necessary to be moral.

These are among the main findings of the Pew Research Centre surveys conducted among 40,080 people in 40 countries between 2011 and 2013. The survey also finds that publics in richer nations tend to place less emphasis on the need to believe in God to have good values than people in poorer countries do. Two countries, however, stand out as clear exceptions to this pattern: the US and China. Americans are much more likely than their economic counterparts to say belief in God is essential to morality, while the Chinese are much less likely to do so.

Table: Belief in God Essential to Morality?
% who belief it is…
Country
Not necessary to believe in God to be moral
Necessary to believe in God to be moral
North America


US
46
53
Canada
67
31
Europe


Greece
50
49
Poland
51
44
Russia
55
38
Germany
68
33
Italy
71
27
Britain
78
20
Spain
80
19
Czech Republic
78
19
France
85
15
Middle East


Egypt
4
96
Jordan
4
94
Turkey
9
87
Palestinian Territories
13
85
Tunisia
25
74
Lebanon
30
69
Israel
59
37
Asia/Pacific


Indonesia
1
99
Pakistan
1
98
Philippines
7
93
Malaysia
9
89
India
24
70
South Korea
44
54
Japan
55
42
Australia
76
23
China
75
14
Latin America


El Salvador
7
93
Brazil
13
96
Bolivia
19
80
Venezuela
20
80
Mexico
40
56
Argentina
52
47
Chile
55
43
Africa


Ghana
1
99
Nigeria
8
91
Uganda
11
89
Senegal
15
84
Kenya
20
79
South Africa
21
75

Table: Views on Faith and Morality Vary by Age…
% Saying belief in God is necessary to be moral

18 - 29
30 - 49
50+
Oldest-youngest difference
Greece
29
44
62
+33
South Korea
38
51
64
+26
Canada
18
24
41
+23
Japan
29
33
51
+22
Chile
33
43
52
+19
Argentina
37
48
55
+18
Lebanon
61
69
77
+16
Italy
18
20
34
+16
Germany
27
28
40
+13
US
46
50
58
+12
Spain
13
18
23
+10
Russia
34
34
44
+10

…and Education
%Saying belief in God is necessary to be moral

College degree
%
No college degree
%
Difference
US
35
59
+22
Israel
23
42
+19
Canada
17
36
+19
Italy
13
29
+16
Greece
36
51
+15
Germany
20
35
+15
Spain
11
22
+11
Czech Republic
11
21
+10
France
10
19
+9

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