Catholics in Indiana, A Social and Religious Profile, 1994

DOI

10.17605/OSF.IO/59GB8

Citation

Davidson, J. D. (2020, September 11). Catholics in Indiana, A Social and Religious Profile, 1994.

Summary

This statewide questionnaire was designed to gather information about the beliefs and practices of Indiana Catholics. This study was a follow-up to several focus group studies conducted in each Indiana diocese. A self-administered questionnaire was sent to Catholics at least 18 years of age. Respondents were asked questions regarding their religious upbringing, life course experiences and personal attitudes regarding faith and morals.

The ARDA has added five additional variables to the original data set to enhance the users' experience on our site.

Data File

Cases: 4554
Variables: 277
Weight Variable: None

Data Collection

April-September 1994

Funded By

The Lilly Endowment, Inc.

Collection Procedures

Self-administered questionnaire

Sampling Procedures

A proportionate-to-size 10 percent random sample of Indiana's 490 parishes resulted in 49 parishes being selected for the study. The pastors and staffs of these 49 parishes provided parish rolls that were "cleaned" to exclude people under the age of 18, non-Catholics who were married to Catholics, and elderly persons who were physically or mentally unable to participate in the survey.

From these "cleaned" rolls, 1 percent samples of parishioners from the three largest dioceses (Indianapolis, Gary and Fort Wayne-South Bend) and 2 percent samples from the two smallest dioceses (Lafayette and Evansville) were selected.

In the first mailing, 4,807 questionnaires were sent out. There were three additional mailings encouraging nonrespondents to complete the survey. Non-Catholic and surrogate returns were deleted from the final results. Ultimately, the researchers received 2,636 legitimate responses (57 percent of the eligible respondents). The responses of the two smallest dioceses were then reproduced (multiplied by two) in order for them to be properly weighted in the statewide analysis.

Principal Investigators

James D. Davidson, Purdue University

Related Publications

Davidson, James D., Andrea S. Williams, Richard A. Lamanna, Jan Stenftenagel, Kathleen Maas Weigert, William J. Whalen, and Patricia Wittberg, S.C. 1997. The Search for Common Ground: What Unites and Divides Catholic Americans. Huntington, Ind.: Our Sunday Visitor.

Williams, Andrea S. and James D. Davidson. 1996. "Catholic Conceptions of Faith: A Generational Analysis." Sociology of Religion 57:273-289.