Basic Theories and Models of Religious Change
The Metanexus Institute, which advances research, education and outreach on the constructive engagement of science and religion, has made a grant under its Templeton Advanced Research Project to support an examination of religious change. Tom W. Smith, the study's director, describes it as “the most comprehensive review to date on what people believe about God and other transcendental matters and how those beliefs have changed across time and countries." Major data sources such as the General Social Survey and the International Social Survey Program studies will be analyzed to examine people’s views across cohorts, time, and nations.