Item Detail
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29708
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2
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1
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English
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Americans' Views of Muslims and Mormons: A Social Identity Theory Approach
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Politics and Religion
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Cambridge
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Religion and Politics Section of the American Political Science Association
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277–302
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Although American society is religiously pluralistic, not all religious
groups enjoy equal levels of public approval and support. Indeed, America has a
history of viewing members of nontraditional religious groups with
considerable distrust and suspicion. Two religious groups in particular —
Muslims and Mormons — have come under fire in recent years, though not
necessarily for the same reasons. Muslims and Mormons have frequently
been viewed as outside the mainstream of American culture and, perhaps for
that reason, have suffered from discrimination, threats, and violence. This
article examines Americans’ views of these two important and rapidly
growing groups, using social identity theory as the primary vehicle of
analysis. The theory proves useful in helping us explain variance in
Americans’ views of these two groups. While a variety of social, political
and religious variables help to explain Americans’ views of Muslims and
Mormons, religious variables have the greatest impact.