Depending on the source, the “nones” (people who identify with no religion in particular) comprise between one-quarter to three in ten of the United States adult population. We know that the nones are heavily Democratic-leaning in their voting patterns.

In the late 2000s and early 2010s, it was common to use the caveat “most nones are not atheists.” But this seems to be a bit of an exaggeration. Indeed, the nones are not all atheists, but it is simultaneously not true that most nones are believers. Or at least, believers in the Abrahamic God most of us are familiar with. Furthermore, regardless of beliefs, the question is whether these nones are friendlier to religion than to secularists.

What the data says

The 2020 Secular Voices Survey conducted by Socioanalítica Research suggests that most nones are “practical atheists.” By this, I mean that many nones may not identify as atheists but have similar attitudes and behaviors. Let’s take a look.

The Secular Voices Survey was conducted in September 2020 among over 2,000 respondents, including more than 600 nonreligious adults. It has questions about the 2020 elections, as well as questions about trust in institutions and attitudes toward groups in the United States. There are also batteries about religious beliefs and behaviors.

The chart above shows responses to four questions about religious beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors among the nones. The black bars represent the answers of all nones, including people who say their religion is either atheist, agnostic, or they have no religion. The orange bars represent people who say their religion is atheist. The purple is respondents who identify their religion as agnostic, green bars are those who identify as just having no religion.

The first question asks respondents how much confidence they have in organized religion. About two-thirds of the nones say they have very little or none. This ranges from 72% of atheists to 62% of those who do not have a religion. Thus, distrust of religion among the nones is prevalent among most. The difference is more a matter of degree than kind.

The same happens with behavior. Three-quarters of the nones say that they seldom or never attend religious services. There are no differences between atheists(74%), agnostics (76%), and those who identify with no religion in particular (75%).

The last two questions I’m including are about belief. The first question asks what is respondent’s source of morality and guidance while the second asks what they believe about the existence of God.

The chart shows responses to the option “religious teachings and beliefs.” Just eight percent of all nones look to religion for moral guidance. This is very low considering that almost two-thirds of the cohort comprises those who say they have no religion, and only one-third are atheists or agnostic. The chart confirms that atheists (5%), agnostics (8%), and people with no particular religion (8%) are very similar in this regard. For comparison, nearly seven in ten white evangelical Protestants (69%) look up to religious teachings and beliefs for moral guidance.

Finally, how many nones believe in God? Fewer than one in five (17%) believe in “a personal God.” Only three percent of atheists and seven percent of agnostics are theists. Nearly one-quarter (24%) of people who do not identify with a religion are theists. White evangelical Protestants are most likely to believe in a personal God (84%).

Even if they do not identify as atheist or agnostic, the nones have no confidence in religion, do not practice religion, and don’t look to religion for guidance. The difference is higher levels of belief in God, but even what “god” means is unclear. It doesn’t seem that many nones share the same god with, for example, white evangelicals.

These facts matter for building organizations. The “nothing in particulars” are the largest cohort among the nones. Many are nonbelievers; half believe there is no God or have doubts about its existence. But as far as I know, major secular organizations have no “nones” caucus. It would be best to be fairly sure about your atheism or agnosticism to join. I don’t necessarily mean membership requirements, but the type of person attracted to join.

Even though we have had a secular boom this century, the nones have not achieved much political power, such as gaining elective office. The nones are an organic voting bloc. While most vote similarly, they have done so with little organization. Imagine what could be possible if we could harness the energy of this young, growing cohort if we didn’t get tangled up in minor theological debates.