Biblical Literalism and Sexual Morality in Comparative Perspective: Testing the Transposability of a Conservative Religious Schema

Abstract

For some time now, scholars have explored the social consequences of theologically conservative worldviews, particularly biblical literalism. Using international data, this study examines how a literalist schema influences attitudes toward sexual morality across 15 countries. Our comparative inquiry permits us to explore whether or not the efficacy of a literalist schema varies when it is transposed across such diverse cultural contexts, thereby filling a noteworthy gap in theories of religious schemas. We find that biblical literalism is a highly transposable schema that promotes traditional views of sexual morality in all but two of the nations studied. Moreover, we find that the efficacy of this schema in predicting traditional sexual attitudes is enhanced in national contexts where biblical literalism is not a pervasive norm. We conclude by discussing several important implications of these findings, as well as avenues for future research.