No church is entirely satisfied with the level of financial support it receives from its members. For this reason, the Lilly Endowment commissioned a nation-wide study of giving in U.S. churches, which came to be known as the American Congregational Giving Study. One aspect consisted of a telephone survey of 1,002 U.S. church members. Three denominations were chosen to be studied: the Southern Baptist Convention, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. Respondents were asked about their attitudes toward their denomination and congregation, their personal religious beliefs, their religious contributions and their socioeconomic status.

No church is entirely satisfied with the level of financial support that it receives from its members. For this reason, the Lilly Endowment commissioned a nation-wide study of giving in U.S. churches, which came to be known as the American Congregational Giving Study. One aspect was a five denomination study of church members which included: Assemblies of God, Southern Baptist Convention, Roman Catholic Church, Evangelical Lutheran Church of America and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.).A total of 30 households from each of the 125 congregations were studied.

The congregations were chosen from nine sampling regions, one in each of the nine U.S. census regions. Field workers personally visited each congregation in the sample. They had two tasks. First, they assisted the pastor in the completion of a Congregational Profile, which summarized the major socioeconomic characteristics, beliefs, programs and finances of the congregation. Second, they selected a random sample of 30 congregation members. Each of these was sent a Lay Questionnaire, which asked members about their personal religious beliefs, opinions about both their congregation and denomination and their personal socioeconomic characteristics. The data were collected into two separate data files, one containing the congregational profiles (ACGSCONG) and the other containing the responses from the member questionnaires (ACGSMBRS). The data from each congregational profile and that congregation's member questionnaires are easily merged through their common congregational id (Variable name CONGID).

The purpose of this study is to learn about members' beliefs and attitudes about basic aspects of church life. Results are intended to help churches plan and develop programs for the future. Participating churches were primarily from cities and towns in Illinois and Indiana and include Protestant and Catholic congregations ranging from 47 to more than 2,000 members.

Conducted by the Search Institute, this national study was unprecedented in size and scope, involving within each denomination nationally representative samples of congregations and their adolescents. Individuals from 561 randomly chosen congregations provided in-depth, survey-based data on faith, loyalty, religious biography, congregational life, and the dynamics of Christian education programming. The original project components included Adults, Youth, Coordinators of Christian Education, Pastors and Teachers. Two subsequent components, Core and Leadership have been added. This file contains the Youth component.

The study focuses primarily on formal Christian education, defined as the programs and events a congregation intentionally offers to teach the faith to children, teen-agers, and adults. Christian education includes Sunday school, church school, Bible studies, confirmation, camping, retreats, workshops, youth ministry and youth groups, children and adult choirs, auxiliaries for men and women, prayer groups, religious plays and dramas, Vacation Bible School, new member classes, and intergenerational or family events and programs. Attention is also given to the role of other congregational factors, including what many might call "informal education," or the values, symbols, culture, and patterns of interactions that help describe congregational life.

Conducted by the Search Institute, this national study was unprecedented in size and scope, involving within each denomination nationally representative samples of congregations and their adult members (excluding pastors, coordinators of Christian education, or Christian education teachers). Individuals in 561 randomly chosen congregations provided in-depth, survey-based data on faith, loyalty, religious biography, congregational life, and the dynamics of Christian education programming. The original project components included Adults, Youth, Coordinators of Christian Education, Pastors and Teachers. Two subsequent components, Core and Leadership have been added. This file contains the Adult component.

The study focuses primarily on formal Christian education, defined as the programs and events a congregation intentionally offers to teach the faith to children, teen-agers, and adults. Christian education includes Sunday school, church school, Bible studies, confirmation, camping, retreats, workshops, youth ministry and youth groups, children and adult choirs, auxiliaries for men and women, prayer groups, religious plays and dramas, Vacation Bible School, new member classes, and intergenerational or family events and programs. Attention is also given to the role of other congregational factors, including what many might call "informal education," or the values, symbols, culture and patterns of interactions that help describe congregational life.

Conducted by the Search Institute, this national study was unprecedented in size and scope, involving within each denomination nationally representative samples of congregations and their coordinators of Christian education. Individuals in 561 randomly chosen congregations provided in-depth, survey-based data on faith, loyalty, religious biography, congregational life, and the dynamics of Christian education programming. The original project components included Adults, Youth, Coordinators of Christian Education, Pastors and Teachers. Two subsequent components, Core and Leadership have been added. This file contains the Coordinators component.

The study focuses primarily on formal Christian education, defined as the programs and events a congregation intentionally offers to teach the faith to children, teen-agers, and adults. Christian education includes Sunday school, church school, Bible studies, confirmation, camping, retreats, workshops, youth ministry and youth groups, children and adult choirs, auxiliaries for men and women, prayer groups, religious plays and dramas, Vacation Bible School, new member classes, and intergenerational or family events and programs. Attention is also given to the role of other congregational factors, including what many might call "informal education," or the values, symbols, culture, and patterns of interactions that help describe congregational life.

Conducted by the Search Institute, this national study was unprecedented in size and scope, involving within each denomination nationally representative samples of congregations and their adolescents, pastors, teachers, coordinators of Christian education and other adults. More than 11,000 individuals in 561 randomly chosen congregations provided in-depth, survey-based data on faith, loyalty, religious biography, congregational life, and the dynamics of Christian education programming. The study focuses primarily on formal Christian education, defined as the programs and events a congregation intentionally offers to teach the faith to children, teen-agers, and adults. Christian education includes Sunday school, church school, Bible studies, confirmation, camping, retreats, workshops, youth ministry and youth groups, children and adult choirs, auxiliaries for men and women, prayer groups, religious plays and dramas, Vacation Bible School, new member classes, and intergenerational or family events and programs. Attention is also given to the role of other congregational factors, including what many might call "informal education," or the values, symbols, culture, and patterns of interactions that help describe congregational life. The original project components included Adults, Youth, Coordinators of Christian Education, Pastors and Teachers. Two subsequent components, Core and Leadership have been added. This file contains the Core component. This component was taken from all five of the original files, where 255 questions were asked of all respondents.

Conducted by the Search Institute, this national study was unprecedented in size and scope, involving within each denomination nationally representative samples of congregations and their pastors, teachers, and coordinators of Christian education. Individuals in 561 randomly chosen congregations provided in-depth, survey-based data on faith, loyalty, religious biography, congregational life, and the dynamics of Christian education programming. The study focuses primarily on formal Christian education, defined as the programs and events a congregation intentionally offers to teach the faith to children, teen-agers, and adults. Christian education includes Sunday school, church school, Bible studies, confirmation, camping, retreats, workshops, youth ministry and youth groups, children and adult choirs, auxiliaries for men and women, prayer groups, religious plays and dramas, Vacation Bible School, new member classes, and intergenerational or family events and programs. Attention is also given to the role of other congregational factors, including what many might call "informal education," or the values, symbols, culture, and patterns of interactions that help describe congregational life. The original project components included Adults, Youth, Coordinators of Christian Education, Pastors and Teachers. Two subsequent components, Core and Leadership have been added. This file contains the Leadership component. This component was taken from the Coordinators, Pastors and Teachers data files. Each of these components asked 289 specific questions related to leadership in the church.

Conducted by the Search Institute, this national study was unprecedented in size and scope, involving within each denomination nationally representative samples of congregations and their pastors. Pastors from randomly chosen congregations provided in-depth, survey-based data on faith, loyalty, religious biography, congregational life, and the dynamics of Christian education programming. The original project components included Adults, Youth, Coordinators of Christian Education, Pastors and Teachers. Two subsequent components, Core and Leadership have been added.

The study focuses primarily on formal Christian education, defined as the programs and events a congregation intentionally offers to teach the faith to children, teen-agers, and adults. Christian education includes Sunday school, church school, Bible studies, confirmation, camping, retreats, workshops, youth ministry and youth groups, children and adult choirs, auxiliaries for men and women, prayer groups, religious plays and dramas, Vacation Bible School, new member classes, and intergenerational or family events and programs. Attention is also given to the role of other congregational factors, including what many might call "informal education," or the values, symbols, culture, and patterns of interactions that help describe congregational life.

Conducted by the Search Institute, this national study was unprecedented in size and scope, involving within each denomination nationally representative samples of congregations and their Christian education teachers. Individuals from randomly chosen congregations provided in-depth, survey-based data on faith, loyalty, religious biography, congregational life, and the dynamics of Christian education programming. The original project components included Adults, Youth, Coordinators of Christian Education, Pastors and Teachers. Two subsequent components, Core and Leadership have been added. This file contains the Teachers component.

The study focuses primarily on formal Christian education, defined as the programs and events a congregation intentionally offers to teach the faith to children, teen-agers, and adults. Christian education includes Sunday school, church school, Bible studies, confirmation, camping, retreats, workshops, youth ministry and youth groups, children and adult choirs, auxiliaries for men and women, prayer groups, religious plays and dramas, Vacation Bible School, new member classes, and intergenerational or family events and programs. Attention is also given to the role of other congregational factors, including what many might call "informal education," or the values, symbols, culture, and patterns of interactions that help describe congregational life.

The Endtime Family, or Children of God, data set is an examination of a religious group that is in high tension with its surrounding environment. This data set assesses the validity of applying survey data techniques to high tension religious groups. Additionally, most of the variables are replications of variables from the General Social Survey (GSS) and some variables are replications from the International Social Survey Program, enabling comparisons between the Endtime Family and the general population.

This survey was designed with active participation of the directors of admissions from university-based divinity schools as a way to evaluate the success of certain strategies in their recruiting efforts and the role of financial aid in the student's decision-making process. Between 1992 and 1994, some 50 seminaries used this instrument to survey their incoming students. Presbyterian and United Methodist seminaries are well represented as are the university-related divinity schools.

This study was conducted to gather information on graduating students and was designed with the active participation of the Association of Theological Schools (ATS). Administered just prior to graduation, the exit instrument was aimed specifically at assessing student satisfaction. In addition, student's personal and theological views as well as future plans were among the included items. Approximately 50 seminaries used this instrument to survey their graduates. Presbyterian and United Methodist seminaries are well represented as are the university-related schools.

This is a survey of American adults who are involved in small groups using religious activities in their programs or having activities that may be related to forgiveness. The study was designed by Princeton University professor Robert Wuthnow and conducted by the Gallup Organization in Princeton, New Jersey. Questions focus on a range of potential consequences and correlates of engaging in forgiveness behavior, including group activities, emotional well-being, pro-social and civic behavior, overcoming addictions, and many other issues related to groups and forgiveness.

The Four-State Church Involvement Study investigates the role of individualism as it pertains to church involvement and what that involvement means. Regional variations in these relationships also are examined.

"The objectives of the survey were to obtain a profile of the religious beliefs, attitudes, and practices of members of the participating [Mennonite] denominations...to identify trends in these areas that would provide clues regarding the impact of modernization on Mennonite life and thought....There was also interest in determining whether modernization involved increases in secularism, individualism, and materialism." (Kauffman and Driedger, 1991).

"The National Survey component of the Religious Life Futures Project had two purposes: to collect information concerning the beliefs, values and practices of members of religious orders regarding their personal, spiritual, community and ministerial life and to establish a significant data base for the study of religious life on the individual, congregational and social institution levels. The National Survey was also the primary method of measuring perceptions of the future of religious life in the total population of sisters, brothers and religious priests." (Nygren & Ukeritis, 1993: 99)

This survey of Vineyard Anaheim participants was part of a large research grant from the Lilly Endowment to study rapidly growing non-mainline churches. Vineyard Anaheim (Anaheim, California) was one of four non-mainline churches surveyed.

This survey of Calvary Chapel Downey participants was part of a large research grant from the Lilly Endowment to study rapidly growing non-mainline churches. Calvary Chapel Downey (Downey, CA) was one of four non-mainline churches surveyed.

This survey of Hope Chapel Hermosa Beach participants was part of a large research grant from the Lilly Endowment to study rapidly growing non-mainline churches. Hope Chapel Hermosa Beach (Hermosa Beach, CA) was one of four non-mainline churches surveyed.

This survey of Hope Chapel Kaneohe participants was part of a large research grant from the Lilly Endowment to study rapidly growing non-mainline churches. Hope Chapel Kaneohe (Kaneohe, HI) was one of four non-mainline churches surveyed.

This survey was part of a large research grant from the Lilly Endowment to study rapidly growing non-mainline churches. Vineyard and Calvary Chapel North American and International pastors were surveyed in order to understand the growth of new evangelical movements.

This study was conducted to gather information on and assess the readiness of divinity students to be good parish ministers. Profiles of the Ministry I includes general biographical information on seminarians from 115 seminaries in a variety of degree programs.

This file contains information on all congregations in the Reformed Church in America (RCA) from 1818 to 2000. The data are from the “Orange Book” directories of the RCA. They include all information that is recorded there for each congregation, from ministers’ names to “total contributions.” Churches are identified by name, with a deliberate attempt to include multiple names where applicable. Also included are the city, classis(es), synod(s), and county where the church is located. Annual national fertility rates are included on each church’s records, as are decadal U.S. population and Consumer Price Index figures.

Beginning in the 1980s claims of “Satanic ritual abuse” received considerable attention in the popular media. Ritual abuse survivors claim to have been physically and sexually molested by secretive, underground groups of Satanists. Many ritual abuse survivors further claim that Satanists have the ability to erase memories of their abuse. Hence, survivors often attempt to recover “repressed” memories of ritual abuse with the help of therapists. With the spread of ritual abuse claims in the 1990s, dozens of therapists began to specialize in the subject.

In 1994 the principal investigator conducted an anonymous survey of ritual abuse survivors. In addition to questions about the survivors’ abuse history, the survey included items designed to reproduce Bennett’s Past Month Isolation Scale (PMI) and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CESD). A set of demographic questions asked respondents about their gender, age, occupation, income, education, race and marital status.

Ritual abuse survivors are difficult to survey. A common theme in the therapeutic literature about ritual abuse is the constant danger posed by the Satanic cults that survivors claim to have escaped. The ritual abuse literature reports that Satanists will use “triggers” to lure the survivor back into the cult, or may try to kill the survivor should his or her memories threaten the group. Thus, survivors and their therapists display considerable reticence about talking to outsiders regarding their claimed experiences. To our knowledge this release represents the first publicly available data on this controversial movement.

The purpose of this project was to develop a profile of churches in Minnesota by focusing on rural congregations in 10 different denominations. These denominations included: Assemblies of God; Baptist General Conference; Christian and Missionary Alliance; Episcopal Church; Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Evangelical Free Church of America; Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); Roman Catholic Church; United Church of Christ; and United Methodist Church. The questionnaire was designed to secure information about the types of congregations in Minnesota, the patterns of membership and finance, the range of activities in the life of the typical church, the ways pastors and lay persons see people being attracted to and encouraged to remain in rural ministry, and other relevant information about the present status of congregations in the state. In consultations with denominational leaders, research results were used to assist theological schools in better serving their congregations and denominations. The Pastor's Survey was completed by pastors from the randomly selected churches.

The purpose of this project was to develop a profile of churches in Minnesota by focusing on rural congregations in 10 different denominations. These denominations included: Assemblies of God; Baptist General Conference; Christian and Missionary Alliance; Episcopal Church; Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; Evangelical Free Church of America; Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.); Roman Catholic Church; United Church of Christ; and United Methodist Church. The questionnaire was designed to secure information about the types of congregations in Minnesota, the patterns of membership and finance, the range of activities in the life of the typical church, the ways pastors and lay persons see people being attracted to and encouraged to remain in rural ministry, and other relevant information about the present status of congregations in the state. In consultations with denominational leaders, research results were used to assist theological schools in better serving their congregations and denominations. The Lay Leader's Survey was completed by lay leaders identified by their church's pastor.

After the success of a survey of British Soka Gakkai, a Japanese based religion (a form of Buddhism), a counterpart survey in the United States was undertaken. Many of the items included in the U.S. survey (SGI-USA) reproduced questions from the National Opinion Research Center's General Social Survey (GSS), making direct comparisons possible between members of Soka Gakkai and the general American public. Other questions reproduced items included in the survey of SGI members in the United Kingdom. Consequently, this survey provides one of the most comprehensive surveys of an alternative religion in the United states, a survey which is comparable to both a similar sample in the United Kingdom and the general population of the United States.

The purpose of this study was to learn about the role local clergy and their congregations play in shaping community life in Indianapolis and the extent of the clergy's active involvement in neighborhood and community affairs. The study also was designed to collect descriptive data regarding the characteristics, attitudes, religious beliefs and practices, and professional activities of Christian clergy in the city.

This study sought to answer three fundamental questions about religious commitment: What is the nature of religious commitment? What are the social and psychological sources of religious commitment? What are the social and psychological consequences of religious commitment? (Stark, Rodney and Charles Y. Glock,1968, p. 2-3).

“Over 300,000 worshipers in over 2,000 congregations across America participated in the U.S. Congregational Life Survey—-making it the largest survey of worshipers in America ever conducted. Three types of surveys were completed in each participating congregation: (a) an Attendee survey completed by all worshipers age 15 and older who attended worship services during the weekend of April 29, 2001; (b) a Congregational Profile describing the congregation’s facilities, staff, programs, and worship services completed by one person in the congregation; and (c) a Leader Survey completed by the pastor, priest, minister, rabbi, or other leader. Together the information collected provides a unique three-dimensional look at religious life in America.” (From Appendix 1, A Field Guide to U.S. Congregations: Who’s Going Where and Why. U.S. Congregational Life Survey Methodology.) This data file contains data for the United Church of Christ random sample Attenders only. The Congregational Life Survey also has a Congregational profile for the United Church of Christ congregations and a Leader survey of the United Church of Christ leaders.

“Over 300,000 worshipers in over 2,000 congregations across America participated in the U.S. Congregational Life Survey—-making it the largest survey of worshipers in America ever conducted. Three types of surveys were completed in each participating congregation: (a) an Attendee survey completed by all worshipers age 15 and older who attended worship services during the weekend of April 29, 2001; (b) a Congregational Profile describing the congregation’s facilities, staff, programs, and worship services completed by one person in the congregation; and (c) a Leader Survey completed by the pastor, priest, minister, rabbi, or other leader. Together the information collected provides a unique three-dimensional look at religious life in America.” (From Appendix 1, A Field Guide to U.S. Congregations: Who’s Going Where and Why. U.S. Congregational Life Survey Methodology.) This data file contains data for the United Church of Christ Leaders from the random sample of United Church of Christ congregations. The Congregational Life Survey also has a Congregational profile for the United Church of Christ congregations and an Attender survey of the United Church of Christ worshipers.

“Over 300,000 worshipers in over 2,000 congregations across America participated in the U.S. Congregational Life Survey—-making it the largest survey of worshipers in America ever conducted. Three types of surveys were completed in each participating congregation: (a) an Attendee survey completed by all worshipers age 15 and older who attended worship services during the weekend of April 29, 2001; (b) a Congregational Profile describing the congregation’s facilities, staff, programs, and worship services completed by one person in the congregation; and (c) a Leader Survey completed by the pastor, priest, minister, rabbi, or other leader. Together the information collected provides a unique three-dimensional look at religious life in America.” (From Appendix 1, A Field Guide to U.S. Congregations: Who’s Going Where and Why. U.S. Congregational Life Survey Methodology.) This data file contains data from the Congregational Profile for the United Church of Christ congregations. The Congregational Life Survey also has a Leader survey of the United Church of Christ leaders and an Attender survey of the United Church of Christ worshipers.

Survey data on new religious movements (NRM) in the United States are difficult to find, particularly when the movements in question are reticent to talk with outsiders. UFO abductees are individuals who believe they have been kidnapped by extra-terrestrials. Many abductees believe that extraterrestrials have the ability to erase memories of the abduction. In the 1980s a number of support groups for abductees appeared in the United States with the expressed purpose of helping abductees to recover their memories of alien abductions. The principal investigator was able to survey the membership of one such group, the UFO Contact Center International (now defunct) in 1990.

The survey contained a series of demographic questions, including gender, age, marital status and history, and occupation. At the group’s request, the survey also included several items regarding the abduction experience itself, such as the number of reported abductions, the abductees’ feelings about the experience, dates of abductions, and methods used to recover memories. These data provide a snapshot of the UFO abduction movement as it appeared in 1990.

Recently North America has witnessed the rapid growth of a new set of thriving sects, independent churches, and new evangelical churches. This study focuses on the members of one of these movements, the Vineyard Christian Fellowship. Although in relative terms the Vineyard remains somewhat small, it has had a significant impact on the religious landscape. The movement, which originated in Southern California, has spread throughout the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia. Currently there are over 300 Vineyards within the United States alone. The success of the Vineyard raises several important questions. This study attempts to address some of these questions by focusing on the religious background of Vineyard switchers and converts, the reasons for their coming to Vineyard, and the ways in which they express their religiosity. In all, a total of 1,009 surveys were collected from 14 Vineyard congregations in California and Washington.

More than 1,300 female and male clergy, seminary faculty, church executives and lay people of nine major Protestant denominations were interviewed regarding their views on church ministry and involvement in the community. These data also provide information regarding men and women's attitudes towards female leadership in the church, as well as information regarding clergy members' seminary and ministry experiences.