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    6 facts about Buddhism in China

    While only 4% of Chinese adults formally identify as Buddhists, formal affiliation doesn’t reflect the full extent of Buddhist belief and practice.

  • report

    Government policy toward religion in the People’s Republic of China – a brief history

    The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is officially atheist, and its members are not permitted to join any religion. The party’s attitude aligns with the Marxist view that religion is a temporary historical phenomenon that will disappear as societies advance. Although this stance has not changed in the seven decades since the state’s founding, policies on […]

  • report

    Kirsten Lesage

    Kirsten Lesage is a Research Associate on Pew Research Center’s Religion and Public Life team, specializing in international survey research. Her research explores religious identities, beliefs and practices around the world. She has worked on surveys examining ‘religious switching’ in 36 countries, religion and spirituality in East Asian societies, and religious tolerance. Kirsten holds a doctorate in developmental psychology from the […]

  • report

    3. Would electing more officials from different backgrounds improve policy?

    Many people generally believe that policies in their country would improve if the types of people in politics changed. Having more women, young adults or people from poor backgrounds in office are seen as beneficial, especially by people on the political left. Fewer expect positive change to come from having more businesspeople, labor union members […]

  • report

    3. Religious beliefs

    Overwhelming shares of Muslims, Christians and Hindus in the countries surveyed say they believe in God, including many who are absolutely certain in this belief. But Buddhists are less likely to believe in God, and in this survey we sought to expand religious measurement tools beyond questions – such as about belief in God – […]

  • report

    4. Religious practices

    From the 98% of Indonesians who say religion is very important in their lives to the 96% of Cambodians who burn incense, people in the countries surveyed generally appear to be highly religious, based both on the self-assessed, overall importance of religion in their lives and on a variety of specific religious practices. The survey […]

  • fact sheet

    Asian Americans: A Survey Data Snapshot

    Here’s how Asian Americans describe their own identities, their views of the U.S. and their ancestral homelands, their political and religious affiliations, and more.

  • report

    3. Views on the consequences of the Israel-Hamas war

    Americans are uncertain how the Israel-Hamas war might change the Middle East. Many are unsure whether the war will increase or decrease the likelihood of an independent Palestinian state, as well as whether the current fighting will make the Israeli people safer. In addition, a sizable share of U.S adults are unsure what is the […]

  • report

    Methodology

    This report relies primarily on data from seven waves of the Chinese General Social Survey (between 2010-21) and four waves of data from the China Family Panel Studies (between 2012-18) to discuss China’s religious landscape and how it has changed in recent years. Additionally, some analysis uses the China Labor-force Dynamics Survey (between 2012-14), World […]

  • report

    3. Buddhism

    Buddhism (Fojiao 佛教) is the largest officially recognized religion in China. The share of Buddhists in China ranges from 4% to 33%, depending on the measure used and whether it is based on surveys that ask about formal affiliation with Buddhism or beliefs and practices associated with Buddhism. The share of Chinese adults who formally […]

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