Religiosity, Sexual Behaviour And Sexual Attitudes In A Representative Sample Of Australian Adults

Introduction and objectives Many studies have examined the influence on sexual attitudes and behavior of religious belief (i.e., religious denomination) or religiosity (e.g., attendance at services). However, few studies have examined the combined effects of religion and religiosity on sexual attitudes and behavior. The aim of this study was to attempt to answer the question: What is the relationship between religion and religiosity and sexual behaviors/attitudes? Methods Interviews were conducted a representative sample of 19,307 Australians aged 16-59 years (response rate 73.1%). The study compared members of four religious groups (Protestant, Catholic, Buddhist, Muslim) and two levels of frequency of attendance at religious services (less than monthly, at least monthly). Analyses were adjusted for potential confounding by demographic variables. The outcomes were five sexual behaviors and five corresponding measures of sexual attitudes - premarital sex, non-monogamy, watching sexually explicit movies, homosexual activity, and termination of pregnancy. Results The answer to the question “What is the relationship between religion and religiosity and sexual behaviors/attitudes?” appears to be “It depends on the religion, the degree of religiosity, and the behavior of interest.” The data revealed some main effects of religion: religious participants were less likely to have had premarital sex, homosexual sex, or an abortion. There were also main effects for religiosity: more frequent attendance at religious services was related to a lower likelihood of premarital sex, homosexual sex, or an abortion. Analyses of interaction effects revealed that in most cases religious people who attended services infrequently were more similar to their non-religious peers than their more religious peers in terms of both sexual behavior and attitudes. Conclusions. The results of this study highlight the importance in studies of sexuality and religion of considering not only religion or religiosity, but the intersection between these two variables.

Conflict of Interest: None disclosed
Financial Support/Funding: Commonwealth Department Of Health And Ageing Victorian Health Promotion Foundation Health Department Of New South Wales Health Department Of Queensland Health Department Of Western Australia Central Sydney Area Health Service
Sydney, Australia, April 2007