Religion and Perception: The Association Between Religious Preference and Satisfaction with Government Spending on Law Enforcement

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Faculty Sponsor: Emmanuel Kaparakis

Live Poster Session: Zoom Link

Xavier Kim

I’m a junior pursuing a double major in Computer Science and Psychology. I was mostly raised in Seoul, South Korea, and currently reside in the greater Seattle area. On campus, I am involved in the Reasoning and Decision Making Lab and the Korean Student Association. I decided to enroll in QAC 201 because I wanted to explore technical softwares designed for data analysis, such as Stata.

Abstract: This study explores the association between religious preference and satisfaction with government spending on law enforcement in the United States, using data from the 2021 General Social Survey (n=3,535). Respondents were categorized as non-religious, Protestant, or Catholic, and satisfaction was measured on a self-assessed scale of whether the government spends too much, too little, or the right amount on law enforcement. Results from chi-square tests and multiple linear regression analyses reveal a significant relationship between religious preference and satisfaction with law enforcement spending, even after controlling for political views and demographic variables. These findings highlight the significant role of religion as well as political orientation in shaping public attitudes toward government spending.

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