This chapter analyses data from the World Values Survey and attempts to construct a parametric index of Religious Morality. As mentioned in the methodology chapter, we constructed this index using a factor analytic model. This was done with the so-called promax factor analysis, i.e. a factor analysis that allows a proper consideration of the statistical relationships between the factors obtained. In fact, the attitude for or against abortion is the defining variable for the factor ‘Rejection of traditional sexual morality’, which has an Eigenvalue of 6.8 and alone explains 32% of the total variance of our entire factor analytic model. We named the second factor ‘religious believers’, which has an eigenvalue of 3.2 and explains 15% of the total variance. The next factor is “Acceptance of Corruption” with an Eigenvalue of 1.9 and an explained variance of 8.9%. The last factor with an eigenvalue greater than 1.0 is ‘religious activists’ with an explained variance of 4.9%. The map of the world’s countries according to the parametric index of religious morality clearly shows that adherence to the Ten Commandments is highest in the countries of the Global South and lowest in the countries of the Global North. Southern Latin America and the Global East occupy a kind of middle ground. Among European countries, our research shows that adherence to the Ten Commandments is more pronounced in Poland, Romania, some Balkan countries, Portugal and Lithuania. The rejection of traditional sexual morality has a very strong negative correlation with the religious believers and religious activists factors, and there is a positive correlation between the rejection of traditional sexual morality and support for corruption. Following the tradition of factor analytic research, we multiplied the factor scores by the eigenvalues from our factor analytic model, and we had to assign a negative sign to the eigenvalues for rejection of traditional sexual morality and support for corruption in order to calculate the parametric index of religious morality. The top ten countries in our parametric index of religious morality are Libya, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Maldives, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Myanmar, Indonesia, Tunisia and Zimbabwe, while the bottom ten countries are the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Canada, the United Kingdom, Norway, France, Australia and Switzerland. In this chapter, we have also analysed the indices of religious morality and its components for supporters of the various political parties around the world.

Empirical Results Based on the Parametric Index of Religious Morality

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发表日期：

2025年

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Arno Tausch

摘要

This chapter analyses data from the World Values Survey and attempts to construct a parametric index of Religious Morality. As mentioned in the methodology chapter, we constructed this index using a factor analytic model. This was done with the so-called promax factor analysis, i.e. a factor analysis that allows a proper consideration of the statistical relationships between the factors obtained. In fact, the attitude for or against abortion is the defining variable for the factor ‘Rejection of traditional sexual morality’, which has an Eigenvalue of 6.8 and alone explains 32% of the total variance of our entire factor analytic model. We named the second factor ‘religious believers’, which has an eigenvalue of 3.2 and explains 15% of the total variance. The next factor is “Acceptance of Corruption” with an Eigenvalue of 1.9 and an explained variance of 8.9%. The last factor with an eigenvalue greater than 1.0 is ‘religious activists’ with an explained variance of 4.9%. The map of the world’s countries according to the parametric index of religious morality clearly shows that adherence to the Ten Commandments is highest in the countries of the Global South and lowest in the countries of the Global North. Southern Latin America and the Global East occupy a kind of middle ground. Among European countries, our research shows that adherence to the Ten Commandments is more pronounced in Poland, Romania, some Balkan countries, Portugal and Lithuania. The rejection of traditional sexual morality has a very strong negative correlation with the religious believers and religious activists factors, and there is a positive correlation between the rejection of traditional sexual morality and support for corruption. Following the tradition of factor analytic research, we multiplied the factor scores by the eigenvalues from our factor analytic model, and we had to assign a negative sign to the eigenvalues for rejection of traditional sexual morality and support for corruption in order to calculate the parametric index of religious morality. The top ten countries in our parametric index of religious morality are Libya, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Maldives, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Myanmar, Indonesia, Tunisia and Zimbabwe, while the bottom ten countries are the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Canada, the United Kingdom, Norway, France, Australia and Switzerland. In this chapter, we have also analysed the indices of religious morality and its components for supporters of the various political parties around the world.