The Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion & Public Life, launched in 2001, seeks to promote a deeper understanding of issues at the intersection of religion and public affairs.
The Pew Forum conducts surveys, demographic analyses and other social science research on important aspects of religion and public life in the U.S. and around the world. It also provides a neutral venue for discussions of timely issues through roundtables and briefings.
Religion and American Society
The Pew Forum examines a wide range of issues concerning religion and American society, from the shifting religious composition of the U.S. to the influence of religion on politics. The Pew Forum also covers a range of policy issues that often have a religious component – from abortion and gay marriage to stem cell research and church-state controversies.
Religion and World Affairs
The Pew Forum explores the role religion plays in world affairs through a range of research products, from large public opinion surveys on religion and society to in-depth demographic analyses of the current distribution and future growth trajectory of major religious groups. The Pew Forum also produces research that documents the extent of government and social restrictions on religion around the world.
The Pew Forum is directed by Luis Lugo and is part of the Pew Research Center, a Washington-based nonpartisan, nonadvocacy organization. It does not take positions on any of the issues it covers or on policy debates.