Research Library

Using national survey data the authors examine how the presence of religion in the workplace affects an individual’s perception of religious discrimination and how this effect varies by the religious tradition of the individual. Published by Review of Religious Research

This paper argues that the Texas social studies curriculum does not offer balanced coverage of world religions, due in large part to intervention by conservative members of the Texas State Board of Education. The paper identifies examples of imbalanced coverage in social studies texts and offers recommendations for broadening coverage of religion in Texas public schools.

This policy brief analyzes the impact of the increasing number of parents who opt their children out of school-entry vaccinations for nonmedical reasons in Texas and argues that the state should make obtaining nonmedical exemptions more rigorous in order to reduce the public health risks and costs associated with vaccine-preventable diseases.

This study of biologists and physicists in the UK found that a majority of the respondents disagree with evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins’ “celebrity scientist” outreach approach and believe his work misrepresents science and the scientific research process.

In this first-ever survey of biologists and physicists in eight regions around the world, the authors analyze the religiosity of scientists or their perceptions of the science-faith interface. The study is published in the Aug. 31, 2016, issue of Socius: Sociologic Research for a Dynamic World.

The authors examine how two science popularizers, Francis Collins and Richard Dawkins, influence perceptions regarding the boundaries between religion and science. Published by Public Understanding of Science.

Five years after the Jasmine Revolution, Tunisia stands alone as the only country in North Africa where the Arab Spring has led to significant reforms and a democratic transition. Reservations have been voiced, however, on the gender equality provisions in the country’s revised constitution.

Islamist parties throughout the world have routinely disregarded environmental concerns in their discourse and actions. However, Islam as a religion places strong emphasis on environmental protection. Thus, it is puzzling that environmental policy is all but absent from most Islamist platforms, writes Middle East Center research scholar A.Kadir Yildirim.

This research summary analyzes the obstacles facing gender-focused policy research institutes (PRIs) in the Middle East North Africa region and explores how PRIs and think tanks can work to promote gender equality.

Modern contraceptive methods, such as condoms, can be stigmatized in Middle Eastern culture due to their perceived connection to illicit sexual activities, and some believe the use of condoms to be incompatible with the teachings of Islam. This issue brief examines condom use rates in the Middle East and the role of cultural orientations in contraceptive choice.