Impacts of religion on environmental worldviews: The Teton Valley case

Environmental worldviews are rooted in culture, and religion defines many cultures. While several studies have addressed the relationship between religion and environmental worldviews, few studies controlled for nonreligious regional culture and political affiliation. We addressed this gap with a case study in the Teton Valley of Idaho and Wyoming, USA. After controlling for demographic factors, environmental worldviews significantly related to being Mormon (member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints), being Christian, not being affiliated with organized religion, political affiliation, and regional culture (n=401, F=22.71, R2=.41). Environmental worldviews, however, were not related to religiosity. Those not affiliated with organized religion were most environmentally oriented, Mormon respondents were the least environmentally oriented, and Roman Catholics and other Christians fell in the middle. Longer term residents scored significantly lower than newcomers, and Republicans scored significantly lower than Independents, who scored significantly lower than Democrats.