2024 Attender Survey

What is this survey and who is conducting it?

This survey is a part of our Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations (EPIC) research project and Faith Communities Today (FACT) research initiative which aims to provide religious leaders of all traditions with data-based, critical information about the changing nature of congregational life and how to respond effectively. Faith Communities Today has conducted research for more than 25 years and has been a valuable resource for religious leaders. Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations is one of our more recent projects that is tracking the congregational landscape since the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Hartford Institute for Religion Research is conducting this research in partnership with several denominations and faith groups who are members of FACT. A list of FACT member groups can be found here. Hartford Institute for Religion Research has been conducting applied research to provide religious leaders with data for more than 40 years.

What is unique about this survey?

Unlike other components of the EPIC study and FACT research, which gathered information from one representative of each congregation, this approach aims to capture the experiences of those who attend congregations. This is a unique approach that is seldom attempted, making this survey a valuable opportunity to gain insights from attenders of religious communities across the country.

What kinds of questions does this survey ask?

From this study we hope to get insight into a variety of facets of congregational life. We explore several topics including (but not limited to):

How religious participation has changed in recent years
What people think about the online worship experience
What the factors attract new people to some congregations over others

To see a copy of the Attender Survey questionnaire please see the Resources section at the bottom of this page.

Who should take the survey?

Any attender of a participating congregation over the age of 18 is invited to complete the Attender Survey. This includes people who attend in-person and those who attend online, those who have only just started attending the congregation and those who have attended for decades.

There is a short Congregational Profile Survey that accompanies the Attender Survey. Only one representative per congregation (usually the clergy leader) needs to respond to that survey.

How do I participate?

Congregational Leaders

For an explanation of how to participate, please watch this Information for Congregational Leaders Video. An Intro Video and poster template found in the Resources section at the bottom of this page can be used when advertising the survey to your attenders.

Attenders

To complete the online survey, please use the link provided by your congregation’s leader. Every participating congregation has their own unique link to the survey. The survey can be completed on a computer, tablet, or smartphone.

How long does it take to participate?

The questionnaire takes less than 15 minutes to complete.

What if I want to participate but do not want to take the survey online?

We understand that not all participants are able to or comfortable taking an online survey. Ask your congregation’s leader for the pdf version of the questionnaire. After filling out the paper survey, return it to your congregation’s leader who will send all paper surveys from a congregation back to us in one batch.

Why did I get different questions than someone else?

The Attender Survey uses a split ballot method, meaning all participants will have 50% of the survey the same and for the other half they are randomly assigned one of two different sections. This approach is used to gather data on more questions without adding length to the survey.

How many people are participating in this research?

We anticipate having about 35,000 total participants in this survey.

What might our congregation receive for participating in this survey?

As a thank you for contributing to this research effort, we are offering the following expressions of gratitude to participating congregations: 1) A $200 Amazon gift card; 2) an individualized report of the congregation’s responses to the Attender Survey; and 3) a copy of the national summary report from the whole Attender Survey. There is a place at the end of the Congregational Profile Survey where the person completing that survey can indicate their interest in receiving any or all of these items and provide an email address where we will direct these items.

Gift cards will be emailed out at the conclusion of data collection—anticipated to be December 2024. Individualized reports for participating congregations can only be offered to congregations where more than 10 congregants respond to the Attender Survey. These reports will be generated and emailed out in the early spring of 2025. The national summary report analyzing the full Attender Survey sample will be released by mid-spring of 2025.

When will the results from this survey be available?

Data collection for this survey is on-going through the end of 2024 and we anticipate analyzing the data and releasing a report by mid-spring of 2025.