Civic participation of secular groups in Canada

Abstract

Using two recent nationally representative Canadian surveys, this paper investigates how secularization affects civic participation, inclusive of political engagement and philanthropy. Three mutually exclusive categories of secularized individuals are considered. The analysis suggests that Canadian secular groups are relatively less engaged with politics and volunteer fewer hours, compared with the actively religious. They are, however, found to contribute significantly more money to secular causes, controlling for a wide range of individual attributes. Various explanations are explored.

Keywords:

• Civic participation
• philantropy
• religion
• Canada

JEL classification:

• D64 – Altruism
• D7 – Analysis of Collective Decision-Making
• D – Microeconomics
• L3 – Nonprofit Organizations and Public Enterprise
• Z12 – Religion