Rj. Glover, RELATIONSHIPS IN MORAL REASONING AND RELIGION AMONG MEMBERS OF CONSERVATIVE, MODERATE, AND LIBERAL RELIGIOUS GROUPS, The Journal of social psychology, 137(2), 1997, pp. 247-254
Relationships between moral reasoning and religiosity, religious orien
tation, age, and education were explored among 210 northwest and centr
al Arkansas participants categorized into conservative, moderate, and
liberal religious groups. Correlational analyses for the entire sample
yielded evidence of relationships among the variables, although those
relationships were not consistent when examined separately within the
three groups. In addition, an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) generat
ed evidence of significantly (p < .01) less principled moral reasoning
among members of the conservative religious groups. Data analyses pro
vided evidence that with regard to concerns of social justice, aspects
of religion may interact with reasoning to enable some individuals to
separate religiousness from moral reasoning.