Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/252021 
Year of Publication: 
2022
Series/Report no.: 
CESifo Working Paper No. 9504
Publisher: 
Center for Economic Studies and ifo Institute (CESifo), Munich
Abstract: 
We study whether compulsory religious education in schools affects students' religiosity as adults. We exploit the staggered termination of compulsory religious education across German states in models with state and cohort fixed effects. Using three different datasets, we find that abolishing compulsory religious education significantly reduced religiosity of affected students in adulthood. It also reduced the religious actions of personal prayer, church-going, and church membership. Beyond religious attitudes, the reform led to more equalized gender roles, fewer marriages and children, and higher labor-market participation and earnings. The reform did not affect ethical and political values or non-religious school outcomes.
Subjects: 
religious education
religiosity
school reforms
JEL: 
Z12
I28
H75
Document Type: 
Working Paper
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