Understanding the Transmission of Religious Traits Across Generations - Evidence from Germany

This paper addresses issues related to religious identity which have been the subject of extensive debate recently. Theoretical literature in economics focuses on parents who are utility maximizing agents with access to socialization of their children and have specific preferences over ethnic and religious traits they wish to transmit to their children. In the context of this wider theoretical literature, the first part of the empirical analysis answers the question about the extent in which religious identity is transmitted from one generation to the next by using longitudinal data from Germany. By using several religious groups in the sample, it is checked whether the differences in transmission rates are religion specific. Individuals' religiosity is identified according to their intensity of practicing religious services. Results show that parents play an important role in the development of religious identity of their children. A strong and significant persistence of religious identity is found. It is also documented that not only the religious identity but also the religiosity is strongly transmitted by parents to their offsprings. It is showed that the transmission is strongest among Muslim families.

Second part investigates how socio-economic characteristics influence the transmission of religious traits across generations. Furthermore, the paper explores whether the migration background plays a role in the transmission process. The transmission or religious traits across generations varies according to the socio-economic characteristics of both parents and children. Finally, the empirical research shows that the migration background is an important factor in the transmission process. Results reveal that vertical transmission is higher among immigrant families by using data from Indonesia and Turkey.