New Study Highlights Widespread Spirituality Among Nonreligious Adults Around the World

Most Americans who identify as religiously unaffiliated say they believe in God or a higher power.
New Study Highlights Widespread Spirituality Among Nonreligious Adults Around the World
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Bill Pan
Bill Pan
Reporter
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A growing number of people across the globe are walking away from organized religion, yet many of them still embrace ideas of an unseen spiritual realm, life after death, or divine powers, a new study suggests.

On Thursday, Pew Research Center published its findings on so-called “religious nones,” a category that covers atheists, agnostics, and those who describe their religion as “nothing in particular.” Drawing from surveys conducted in 36 countries, Pew highlighted results from 22 of them, where the unaffiliated made up a large enough sample for separate analysis.

Belief in the Afterlife and the Spiritual Realm

In every one of those 22 nations—including the United States, Canada, and Mexico—at least 19 percent of unaffiliated adults said they believe in an afterlife, Pew said.