Restrictions Rise on Religious Beliefs
Restrictions on religious beliefs and practices rose between mid-2006 and mid-2009 in 23 of the world’s 198 countries, including several of the world’s most populous nations.
Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World
Countries with very high social hostilities have severe levels of violence and intimidation on many or all of the 13 measures that make up the Social Hostilities Index. In Iraq, for example, ongoing sectarian conflict between Sunni and Shia Muslims frequently led to terrorist acts, including attacks on important religious sites in the country. For instance, more […]
Respondents’ thoughts Hyperconnected. Always on. These terms have been invented to describe the environment created when people are linked continuously through tech devices to other humans and to global intelligence. Teens and young adults have been at the forefront of the rapid adoption of the mobile internet and the always-on lifestyle it has made possible. […]
This report on global restrictions on religion follows the same methodology as the baseline report, with one major difference. This report also tracks changes over time in the extent to which governments and societal groups around the world restrict religious beliefs and practices. Measuring Change As part of its original study on global restrictions on […]
During the three-year period from mid-2006 to mid-2009, national, provincial or local governments harassed or attempted to intimidate religious groups in 142 of the 198 countries or territories included in this study (72%). Harassment of religious groups by individuals or groups in society was even more widespread, occurring in 153 countries (77%). Harassment and intimidation […]
In December 2009, the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life published its first report analyzing the extent to which governments and societies around the world impinge on religious beliefs and practices. The report found that about 70% of the world’s population was living in countries where governments imposed high restrictions on religion […]
Download the summary of results with questions: Summary of Results with questions PDF (1.03 MB 21 Pages) Government Restrictions on Religion To assess the level of restrictions on religion by governments around the world, the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life selected the following 20 questions for the Government Restrictions Index (GRI). […]