Caste, Class, and Urbanization: The Shaping of Religious Community in Contemporary India

Abstract

Building on the implications of qualitative work from India and urbanism theories, I aim to understand whether religious bonding social capital in contemporary India increases with greater urbanization and whether such increases are moderated by caste or social class position. Results from multinomial logistic regression on 1,417 Hindu respondents in a nationally representative sample of India (World Values Survey-India 2001) indicate that religious bonding is fostered by urbanism and that this association is stronger for upper castes. But there is little evidence that social class similarly moderates the association between urbanism and religious bonding. In light of these findings, religious bonding might be better understood as rooted in the interaction of caste dynamics and changes in the urban environment, rather than as a result of greater affluence. The data are also consistent with work underscoring the importance of disentangling social class and caste among Hindus in contemporary India.

Psychological Sense of Community Responsibility and Diversity in Old Age: A Qualitative Study of Urban Older Adults in India

“…The older adult informant who identified as 'highly educated' most likely belong to the highest caste of "Brahmin". In urban areas of India, such as Mumbai, religious practice (including social duties) has been demonstrated as of greater importance for "Brahmins" compared to lower casts [54]. Finally, Hindu philosophy prescribes older adult individuals to withdraw from the material world and the social bonds, such as the family and community life [31] [32] [33].…”

Perceptions of Race-Based Discrimination Among First-Generation Asian Indians in the United States

“…To meaningfully understand the first-generation Asian Indian immigrant experience, it is important to explore their pre-and postimmigration experiences. Asian Indians have been socialized against a backdrop of the caste system that has created social, educational, occupational, health, and political restrictions on individuals from lower castes while privileging the middle and upper classes (Stroope, 2012). Although the caste system originated within Hinduism, Asian Indians from other religious backgrounds (e.g., Christianity) have adopted variations of this system (Kauffman, 1981).…”

Education and religion: Individual, congregational, and cross-level interaction effects on biblical literalism

“…Because of this tendency, the analyses include a measure of whether or not a child lives in the home (yes = 1). I control for income (less than $10,000-$100,000 or more); Norris and Inglehart (2004) argue that material security diminishes attachment to religious beliefs (but see Stroope, 2011). Following the idea that the maintenance of religious belief depends on social integration in the fellowship of believers (Berger, 1967;Lofland and Stark, 1965), I also include measures for frequency of worship service attendance (1-7), longevity of attendance at the congregation (1-8), and congregational friends (1-4).…”