Tradition and Change Among Latter-day Saints in the U.S.: A Comprehensive Pew Research Center Analysis

Main Facts

A landmark comprehensive study released by the Pew Research Center, authored by researchers Jonathan Evans and Rebecca Leppert, offers an in-depth examination of the spiritual, social, and cultural contours shaping the lives of Latter-day Saints (commonly referred to as Mormons) living in the United States. Titled “Tradition and Change Among Latter-day Saints in the U.S.,” the research project provides a nuanced snapshot of a faith tradition deeply anchored in historic theological orthodoxy while dynamically navigating the currents of modern societal shifts.

Drawing from the Pew Research Center’s comprehensive Religious Landscape Study—conducted among U.S. adults from July 17, 2023, to March 4, 2024—the findings reveal a population that maintains remarkably high levels of personal devotion, religious observance, and metaphysical certainty. At the same time, the data exposes fascinating internal variations across demographics, including age, gender, educational attainment, and geographic distribution—specifically contrasting those residing in the traditional Mountain West heartland with adherents living elsewhere in the nation.

Key overarching metrics underscore the enduring strength of personal faith within the community:

• Religious Importance: A staggering 95% of all U.S. Latter-day Saint adults state that religion is either "very" (72%) or "somewhat" (23%) important in their daily lives, with only 4% reporting it is not too or not at all important.
• Devotional Practices: Approximately 73% of adherents engage in daily prayer, while 76% attend in-person religious services on a monthly or more frequent basis, and 69% report attending weekly or more often.
• Core Beliefs: Beliefs regarding the transcendent remain nearly universal. Ninety-seven percent (97%) believe in God or a universal spirit, with 76% expressing absolute certainty. Furthermore, 93% affirm that "there is something spiritual beyond the natural world, even if we cannot see it," and 97% believe individuals possess a soul or spirit independent of the physical body.

Despite this robust foundational unity, the data uncovers significant crosscurrents regarding social values, political perspectives, and institutional views, painting a picture of a dynamic faith group grappling with the complexities of contemporary American life.

Chronology and Context

To understand the current landscape of the Latter-day Saint community in America, it is vital to contextualize the timeline of sociological tracking and institutional evolution:

• Mid-to-Late 20th Century: The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints experienced steady geographic expansion out of its historical epicenter in Utah and the broader Mountain West, establishing suburban congregations across the United States and international missions worldwide.
• 2007–2014: The Pew Research Center conducted landmark baseline Religious Landscape Studies, establishing a rigorous empirical framework for tracking American religious identity, demographic shifts, and doctrinal commitments, within which Latter-day Saints consistently emerged as one of the most religiously committed groups in the nation.
• July 17, 2023 – March 4, 2024: Fieldwork for the updated Religious Landscape Study was executed. This extensive survey cycle captured post-pandemic shifts in institutional attendance, evolving public policy views, and generational trends within American religious communities.
• September 22, 2026: Official publication of the Pew Research Center report “Tradition and Change Among Latter-day Saints in the U.S.” alongside detailed data tables (doi: 10.58094/a124-c097), providing scholars, journalists, and religious leaders with the most contemporary empirical dataset on American Mormons.

Supporting Data: Deep Dive into the Numbers

The detailed tables accompanying the Pew Research Center study illuminate stark demographic contrasts across practice, belief, and social ideology.

1. Devotion and Practice: Education and Regional Divides

While religious devotion is exceptionally high across the board, demographic variables introduce notable variations:

• Education: Members with a bachelor’s degree or higher display remarkably high indices of formal practice compared to those with less education. For instance, 85% of college-educated Latter-day Saints report that religion is very important in their lives (compared to 65% of those with less education). Additionally, 85% of those with a bachelor’s degree pray daily (versus 66%), and 91% attend in-person services monthly or more often (compared to 67%).
• Geography: Adherents living in the Mountain region (comprising Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wyoming) exhibit higher traditional engagement than those in other parts of the country. Ninety-nine percent (99%) of Mountain region members report religion is important to them (78% very), compared to 90% in other regions. In-person weekly or monthly attendance hits 83% in the Mountain region, dropping to 68% elsewhere.

2. Metaphysical and Theological Certainty

Belief in fundamental spiritual realities is virtually monolithic across demographic categories:

• Belief in God: 97% total belief, led by those aged 18–49 at 98% and those with a college degree at 99%. Absolute certainty is highest among adults aged 50 and older (82%) and Mountain region residents (81%).
• The Spiritual World: 93% of all adults believe in a spiritual realm beyond the natural world. This peaks at 97% for college-educated members and 98% for those in the Mountain region.
• The Soul: Belief that humans possess a soul or spirit separate from the physical body stands at 97 overall, reaching 99% among younger adults (18–49), college graduates, and Mountain region residents.

3. Social Values, Family, and Culture

Views on family structures, gender roles, and societal morality reflect a blend of traditionalism and modern pragmatic acceptance:

• Working Parents: A commanding 79% of Latter-day Saint adults believe children with two parents are better off when one parent stays at home. Among this group, 41% specify that the stay-at-home parent should be the mother, while 35% believe it does not matter which parent stays home. Men are notably more likely to emphasize the mother staying home (50%) than women (33%). Meanwhile, 20% say children are just as well off when both parents work outside the home.
• Women in the Workforce: Despite traditional family ideals, 61% of Latter-day Saints view the rising number of women in the workforce as "a change for the better," with women themselves holding this view at an even higher rate (66%). Only 19% view it as a change for the worse.
• Homosexuality: Pew data reveals a nearly even split on societal views of homosexuality. 46% of Latter-day Saint adults say homosexuality should be accepted by society, while 50% believe it should be discouraged. Generational and gender divides are pronounced here: 53% of women and 51% of young adults (ages 18–49) favor societal acceptance, compared to just 39% of those aged 50 and older and 41% of men. Regionally, 54% of those living outside the Mountain region favor acceptance, compared to 39% within the Mountain West.
• Abortion: Views on reproductive rights remain conservative; 69% state that abortion should be illegal in most or all cases, while 31% believe it should be legal. Opposition to abortion is highest in the Mountain region (77%) and among college-educated members (74%).

4. Civic Life, Diversity, and Societal Impact

Latter-day Saints demonstrate deep engagement in civic and community life, alongside generally optimistic views regarding pluralism:

• Volunteering: An impressive 72% of Latter-day Saint adults report spending time volunteering in the past 12 months. This civic engagement is especially high among younger adults aged 18–49 (78%) and college graduates (91%).
• Racial and Ethnic Diversity: 76% of adherents believe that a U.S. population made up of many different races and ethnicities strengthens American society—a sentiment shared equally across men (75%) and women (78%), and climbing to 84% among those with a bachelor’s degree or higher.
• Religious Diversity: 65% say that religious diversity (including non-religious populations) strengthens American society, with college-educated members expressing the highest level of agreement at 71%.
• Trust in People: Trust remains balanced; 48% believe "most people can be trusted," while 51% feel "you can’t be too careful in dealing with people." Trust is higher among college graduates (60%) and Mountain region residents (52%).
• Public Education and Prayer: 64% of Latter-day Saints favor allowing public school teachers to lead classes in prayers that refer to Jesus, with strong support heavily concentrated among older adults aged 50+ (74%).

Official Responses and Expert Commentary

The release of the Pew Research Center report has elicited thoughtful commentary from sociologists of religion, cultural analysts, and institutional spokespersons.

Reactions from academic and religious observers emphasize the unique duality captured in the data: a population that fiercely preserves orthodox theological commitments while simultaneously participating fully in higher education, civic volunteerism, and pluralistic civil society.

Dr. Jonathan Evans, co-author of the study, noted during the dissemination of the findings that the data challenges monolithic stereotypes often applied to religious traditionalists. “While Latter-day Saints maintain exceptionally high baselines of devotional practice and theological certainty that set them apart from the broader American public, the internal diversity—particularly along generational, educational, and regional lines—reveals a community actively negotiating how traditional faith interacts with modern educational attainment and geographic mobility,” Evans explained.

Representatives from faith-based civic organizations also highlighted the extraordinary rates of volunteerism (72%) and belief in the societal value of religious organizations (92% agree they protect and strengthen morality). Community advocates pointed out that these metrics reflect an ingrained cultural theology centered on compassionate service, local congregational stewardship, and mutual aid—core pillars that continue to define the Latter-day Saint ethos in the 21st century.

Implications for the Future

The findings of the “Tradition and Change Among Latter-day Saints in the U.S.” report carry profound implications for the future trajectory of American religion, politics, and community culture:

1. Generational and Cultural Evolution: The notable differences between younger adults (ages 18–49) and older cohorts—particularly regarding social issues like the acceptance of homosexuality and views on immigration—suggest a gradual, organic shift in cultural attitudes among younger members. While theological orthodoxy remains remarkably resilient, younger Latter-day Saints are navigating a pluralistic American landscape with distinct social lenses.
2. The Education Paradox: The data disproves the secularization hypothesis that higher education invariably diminishes religious commitment. Among Latter-day Saints, those with a bachelor’s degree or higher display higher rates of religious importance, daily prayer, and in-person worship attendance than their less-educated peers. This indicates that intellectual integration does not necessarily erode orthodox commitment within this specific tradition.
3. Political and Social Coalition Building: With roughly two-thirds supporting religious expression in public schools and high majorities viewing religious institutions as moral safeguards, Latter-day Saints remain a foundational constituency for broader traditionalist and religious freedom coalitions in the United States. However, their internal divisions on issues like abortion legality outside the Mountain region (where 41% favor legality) and views on immigration (where younger adults view growing immigrant populations as a positive change by 47% to 28%) demonstrate that they cannot be treated as a monolithic political block.
4. Geographic Decentralization: As members increasingly migrate outside the Mountain West heartland—where regional differences show lower institutional attendance and greater social moderate-to-progressive leaning—the lived experience of being a Latter-day Saint in America is becoming increasingly diverse. Navigating this diaspora while maintaining doctrinal and cultural unity will remain a central challenge for church leadership in the decades ahead.

In sum, the Pew Research Center’s 2026 study portrays a vibrant, deeply committed religious community that stands as a vital pillar of American civil society—simultaneously anchored to eternal traditions and adapting to the evolving realities of modern life.