A new study of data from the 1991-2004 US General Social Surveys finds that church attendance and biblical belief are linked with lower levels of marital unfaithfulness.  As well, religious believers exhibit interesting variations across denominations.

"What matters the most is being involved in a religious organization," says Amy Burdette, co-author of the study and a post-doctoral scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "Those who attend church more are less likely to cheat, and those who have more conservative views of the Bible are less likely to cheat."

That said, Baptists are one-third less likely to wander than those with no religious affiliation, researchers found, and Catholics display similar odds. Moderate Protestants such as Presbyterians and Lutherans have 37 per cent lower odds of cheating than the unaffiliated, while liberal Protestants such as those in the United and Anglican churches are 31 per cent more faithful.

Non-traditional conservative groups such as Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses display no less likelihood of cheating than people with no religious affiliation.

The study was published in the December issue of the Journal of Family Issues.  Those who do not subscribe to the journal can buy it via this page for US$15.  An abstract is posted here.

h/t: Alice the Camel