Special Collection
Welcome to Mapping America!
Mapping America is a weekly release that uses federal survey data to show how the intact married family that worships weekly is the greatest generator of human and social goods and the core strength of the United States. The federal surveys used include the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, the General Social Surveys, and the National Survey of Children's Health.
Each new issue correlates religious attendance, family structure, or both with topics such as marital happiness, drug use, and fighting. Each "maps" America and gives a snapshot of who we are or how we behave on each issue.
Though only launched in 2008, Mapping America is already being used by many in the pro-family movement. For instance, Julaine Appling of the Wisconsin Family Council frequently uses the weekly Mapping America: "We find these helpful and useful in a number of areas. Right now we use them frequently to help shape our 'Wisconsin Family Minute' radio spots." Dr. Michael Ross of Defending Our Father's House says, "These data are of vital importance to my work in advocating for the legal and institutional integrity of marriage and family."
For this special collection of Mapping America, we have selected the most interesting and engaging "maps," those combining religious attendance and family structure. It is our hope that Mapping America will make the "core strength of the nation" more obvious to more and more people, thus encouraging the restoration of faithful marriage and religious worship.
Patrick F. Fagan, Ph.D.
Senior Fellow and Director, Marriage and Religion Research Institute (MARRI)