Source: Joseph M. Strayhorn and Jillian C. Strayhorn,
“Religiosity and Teen Birth Rate in the United States,”
Reproductive Health 6.14 (September 2009). This study explored
the relationship between religiosity and teen birth rates in the
United States. Researchers gathered state-based data relating to
religiosity, teen birth rates, abortion rates, and income levels
from publicly accessible resources. In order to determine the
religiosity of a state, researchers compiled data from the U.S.
Religious Landscapes Survey, by the Pew Forum on Religion and
Public Life. The survey, conducted in 2007 and 2008, used a
sample of 35,957 participants who answered questions through a
telephone survey. Researchers used eight questions from the
survey to gauge religiosity. They then noted the percentage of
participants in each state who answered with the most
conservative religious responses (below). Finally, the authors
assigned a composite score for religiosity to each state by
averaging the percentages from the eight ques