When politics shapes religion: how ideological party affiliation relates to Brazilian religious behavior

Abstract: Reversing the causality arrow recently, a number of researchers studying the American electorate have attested that their ideological-partisan positions could also shape their religious behavior. The explanation of this impact goes through the notion of religious identity as endogenous and not independent of the political process. On the other hand, the discussion about religion in Brazil has been focused on the traditional approach, currently analyzing whether and how the religious identity of Brazilians has affected their attitudes and political behavior and not the opposite. Using data from the World Values ​​Survey [WVS] (1990-2014) and statistical tests, this article aimed to map the relationship between politics and religion in Brazil, seeking to understand how over time the categories of ideology and partisanship relate to the three main facets of Religion: belonging, believing and behaving (behavior).

Keywords:
Religion; Political Behavior; Social Identity Theory; Brazil