Religious Contexts and Violence in Emerging and Traditional Immigrant Destinations

The study used negative binomial models regressing homicides, robberies, and aggravated assaults on adherence to three major religious traditions (mainline Protestant, evangelical Protestant, and Catholic), as well as immigration and other key macro-structural controls. The analysis was disaggregated for three types of U. S. counties in 2010: emerging, traditional, and other immigrant destinations. The study found that religious traditions varied in their relationship with known violence across destination types: Catholic adherence was protective against crime (net of controls) only in established immigrant destinations, but evangelical Protestant adherence was associated with higher levels of robbery and aggravated assault in the same locales. Religious adherence had no links to violence in emerging immigrant destinations. Broadly, the findings indicate that the religious context is an important part of the evolving story of immigration, though it is multifaceted and context-dependent. (publisher abstract modified)