placestats

Christian share vs. Single-parent households

Fades after adjusting for income

A country is not a person. Countries where more people are counted as belonging to this group also tend to differ on the other measure, and that is all. It does not follow that the people in the group are the people with the different score. Making that leap is called the ecological fallacy: reading a pattern across places as a fact about individual people. It is the most common misuse of this kind of data. Religion also varies strongly with region, history and national income, so much of what looks religious here is really those. That is what the adjusted figures are for. The religion shares are estimates for two years only, and the survey questions are asked in rounds that can be ten years apart.

Across 146 countries, Christian share and Single-parent households rise and fall together at r = +0.50 (on a scale from −1 to +1, where 0 means no link). Comparing only countries with similar income (GDP per person) leaves r = +0.51, which could easily be chance (q = 0.062, allowing for the many pairs tested, and allowing for countries in the same region being alike).

Comparing countries across the middle half of christian share, 10.6% to 88.1% of population, single-parent households is 3.78% of households higher at the top of that range than the bottom. Comparing only countries with similar national income, the gap is 3.84% of households.

Link before adjusting (r)+0.503p = 9.9e-11 · 146 countries
After adjusting for national income+0.510p = 5.8e-11 · likely range [+0.38, +0.62]
p, allowing for regions0.008standard error 0.129 · 7 regions
Check for luck (q)0.062across 12,497 pairs

How to read these.r runs from −1 (one goes up as the other goes down) to +1 (they rise together), and 0 means no link. Adjusting for national income means comparing countries with the same GDP per person, so differences in wealth can’t explain the link. Income is used in percentage terms, since an extra $1,000 means more to a poor country than to a rich one. p is how likely a link this strong would be if there were really none. Below 0.05 means it is unlikely to be chance. Very small values are written in short form: 1.1e-32 means a decimal point followed by 31 zeros and then 11, so very close to zero. The likely range is where the true figure probably lies, and a range that crosses zero means the link could easily be chance. Countries in the same region tend to resemble each other, so the third figure allows for that, which gives a fairer p. The standard error is the typical size of the error in r. Finally, testing this many pairs means some will look strong by luck alone. A q below 0.05 means this link is unlikely to be one of those.

Christian share · % of populationlink with income -0.01 · independent
Single-parent households · % of householdslink with income +0.03 · independent

Neither of these is closely tied to national income, so adjusting for income is a real test here, not a formality.

“Link with income” is how closely each measure tracks GDP per person across countries, from −1 to +1.

Every country as a dot

Christian share · % of population →Single-parent households · % of households →0.0194%99.5%0%22.1%Aruba: 81.4% of population, 11.5% of householdsAfghanistan: 0.0194% of population, 0.99% of householdsAngola: 93% of population, 13.4% of householdsAlbania: 17.8% of population, 6.53% of householdsArgentina: 88.5% of population, 13.4% of householdsArmenia: 97.3% of population, 7.37% of householdsAustralia: 46.8% of population, 9.93% of householdsAustria: 68.2% of population, 8.84% of householdsBurundi: 95% of population, 14.8% of householdsBelgium: 51% of population, 9.18% of householdsBenin: 53.2% of population, 10.7% of householdsBurkina Faso: 28% of population, 4.27% of householdsBangladesh: 0.3% of population, 5.95% of householdsBulgaria: 79.5% of population, 6.98% of householdsBahamas, The: 97.6% of population, 12.9% of householdsBosnia and Herzegovina: 44.7% of population, 6.27% of householdsBelarus: 85.1% of population, 14.1% of householdsBelize: 74.4% of population, 12.6% of householdsBolivia: 88.9% of population, 16.7% of householdsBrazil: 80.7% of population, 10.5% of householdsBarbados: 77.3% of population, 16.3% of householdsBrunei Darussalam: 6.69% of population, 0% of householdsBhutan: 0.55% of population, 4.91% of householdsCentral African Republic: 90.7% of population, 9.01% of householdsCanada: 53.3% of population, 8.85% of householdsChile: 68.3% of population, 11.1% of householdsCote d'Ivoire: 44.9% of population, 6.1% of householdsCameroon: 69.8% of population, 8.7% of householdsCongo, Dem. Rep.: 96.3% of population, 13.8% of householdsCongo, Rep.: 92.2% of population, 9.17% of householdsColombia: 86.2% of population, 12.7% of householdsComoros: 0.51% of population, 8.93% of householdsCosta Rica: 87.9% of population, 15.7% of householdsCyprus: 67.7% of population, 6.16% of householdsCzechia: 26.4% of population, 10.3% of householdsGermany: 56.2% of population, 7.33% of householdsDominican Republic: 77.6% of population, 15% of householdsAlgeria: 0.295% of population, 6.65% of householdsEgypt, Arab Rep.: 4.82% of population, 7.09% of householdsSpain: 69.5% of population, 9.36% of householdsEthiopia: 61.6% of population, 9.05% of householdsFinland: 72.3% of population, 6.68% of householdsFiji: 69.5% of population, 5.8% of householdsFrance: 46.5% of population, 8.57% of householdsGabon: 83.7% of population, 8.63% of householdsUnited Kingdom: 49.4% of population, 10.7% of householdsGeorgia: 88.2% of population, 8.85% of householdsGhana: 71.3% of population, 13.4% of householdsGuinea: 11.7% of population, 4.41% of householdsGambia, The: 2.89% of population, 4.97% of householdsGuinea-Bissau: 21.7% of population, 4.76% of householdsGreece: 89.5% of population, 8.15% of householdsGuatemala: 92% of population, 12.6% of householdsGuyana: 65.9% of population, 11.9% of householdsHong Kong SAR, China: 18.7% of population, 11.9% of householdsHonduras: 88.5% of population, 13.1% of householdsCroatia: 90.9% of population, 10% of householdsHaiti: 88.7% of population, 12.7% of householdsHungary: 72.4% of population, 11.1% of householdsIndonesia: 10.3% of population, 5.64% of householdsIndia: 2.21% of population, 7.22% of householdsIreland: 81.2% of population, 9.74% of householdsIran, Islamic Rep.: 0.143% of population, 0% of householdsIraq: 0.375% of population, 4.34% of householdsItaly: 80.5% of population, 9.91% of householdsJamaica: 68.6% of population, 16.2% of householdsJordan: 2.81% of population, 7.64% of householdsJapan: 2.25% of population, 8.9% of householdsKazakhstan: 19.3% of population, 9.63% of householdsKenya: 85.7% of population, 12.4% of householdsKyrgyz Republic: 5.75% of population, 8.33% of householdsCambodia: 0.316% of population, 6% of householdsKiribati: 97.6% of population, 4.58% of householdsKorea, Rep.: 32% of population, 9.73% of householdsLao PDR: 1.54% of population, 5.06% of householdsLiberia: 85.2% of population, 9.93% of householdsSt. Lucia: 91.7% of population, 15% of householdsLesotho: 97.3% of population, 11% of householdsLithuania: 92.2% of population, 4.53% of householdsLuxembourg: 65.9% of population, 7.97% of householdsLatvia: 77.3% of population, 22.1% of householdsMacao SAR, China: 10.1% of population, 9% of householdsMorocco: 0.0855% of population, 7.28% of householdsMoldova: 99.5% of population, 10.4% of householdsMadagascar: 74.2% of population, 9.53% of householdsMaldives: 1.65% of population, 9.03% of householdsMexico: 89.2% of population, 10.2% of householdsNorth Macedonia: 64.7% of population, 7.01% of householdsMali: 2.57% of population, 8.23% of householdsMalta: 88.6% of population, 9.28% of householdsMyanmar: 6.14% of population, 8.52% of householdsMontenegro: 76% of population, 8.36% of householdsMongolia: 1.34% of population, 7.98% of householdsMozambique: 61.3% of population, 11.6% of householdsMauritania: 0.234% of population, 15.3% of householdsMalawi: 87.4% of population, 14.7% of householdsNamibia: 90.5% of population, 8.41% of householdsNiger: 0.556% of population, 8.5% of householdsNigeria: 43.4% of population, 9.3% of householdsNorway: 71.4% of population, 8.38% of householdsNepal: 1.76% of population, 11.3% of householdsNew Zealand: 40.3% of population, 8.22% of householdsPakistan: 1.27% of population, 6.43% of householdsPanama: 91.2% of population, 11.5% of householdsPeru: 94.5% of population, 13.7% of householdsPhilippines: 91.5% of population, 7.93% of householdsPoland: 91.2% of population, 11.4% of householdsPuerto Rico (US): 88.8% of population, 16.3% of householdsPortugal: 85.1% of population, 9.01% of householdsParaguay: 93.5% of population, 9.31% of householdsWest Bank and Gaza: 1% of population, 5.64% of householdsQatar: 12.5% of population, 1.45% of householdsRomania: 98.5% of population, 8.38% of householdsRussian Federation: 69.9% of population, 11.5% of householdsRwanda: 97% of population, 14.5% of householdsSudan: 0.488% of population, 7.72% of householdsSenegal: 2.4% of population, 6.12% of householdsSingapore: 18.8% of population, 0% of householdsSierra Leone: 19.8% of population, 7.2% of householdsEl Salvador: 87.1% of population, 11.7% of householdsSomalia, Fed. Rep.: 0.0262% of population, 13.9% of householdsSerbia: 91.5% of population, 8.15% of householdsSao Tome and Principe: 84.4% of population, 15.7% of householdsSuriname: 52.8% of population, 11.3% of householdsSlovak Republic: 73.7% of population, 10.5% of householdsSlovenia: 65.4% of population, 13.2% of householdsEswatini: 93.2% of population, 12.9% of householdsChad: 38.9% of population, 10.6% of householdsTogo: 56.9% of population, 11.8% of householdsThailand: 1.03% of population, 7.1% of householdsTajikistan: 1% of population, 6.4% of householdsTurkmenistan: 5.62% of population, 7.56% of householdsTimor-Leste: 99.5% of population, 8.22% of householdsTonga: 97.8% of population, 6.99% of householdsTunisia: 0.247% of population, 8.52% of householdsTanzania: 64.7% of population, 7.3% of householdsUganda: 87.7% of population, 11.3% of householdsUkraine: 83.4% of population, 10% of householdsUruguay: 44.5% of population, 9.48% of householdsUnited States: 64% of population, 9.13% of householdsViet Nam: 8.33% of population, 7.25% of householdsSamoa: 97.6% of population, 4.55% of householdsKosovo: 5.6% of population, 5.6% of householdsSouth Africa: 85.3% of population, 11.6% of householdsZambia: 98.3% of population, 9.64% of householdsZimbabwe: 87.2% of population, 13% of householdsAFGBOLBRNIRNKIRLTULVAMRTPRISOMWSM

best-fit line line after adjusting

Four ways to measure the link

MethodrpCountries
Standard (Pearson), not adjusted+0.5039.9e-11146
By rank (Spearman), not adjusted+0.4643.5e-9146
Standard (Pearson), adjusted for national income+0.5105.8e-11146
By rank (Spearman), adjusted for national income+0.4653.8e-9146

The rank version uses only each country’s place in line, from lowest to highest, so a few extreme countries count for less. The adjusted and unadjusted versions use the same 146 countries: those that report both measures and GDP per person. So the gap between them comes from the adjustment, not from a change in which countries are counted. Drop in the size of r after adjusting: -0.007 (a minus sign means it grew).

How solid is it?

Leaving out one country at a time, r ranges from +0.498 (without IRN) to +0.535 (without MRT). The bar above shows that range on a scale from −1 to +1, with the solid line at the full result. The single country that moves r most: MRT (+0.025).

Within each region

Countries are not separate, unrelated cases, and neighbors share a lot. A link that holds inside each region is far more believable than one that shows up only when comparing regions.

nr
East Asia & Pacific21-0.00
Europe & Central Asia40+0.20
Latin America & Caribbean25+0.22
Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan12+0.37
Sub-Saharan Africa41+0.50

By income third

If the link shows up only in the richest third of countries, it is a feature of rich countries, not a general pattern.

nr
Poorest third49+0.42
Middle third48+0.67
Richest third49+0.26

By largest religious group

Countries grouped by a label they share, such as main religion, rather than by a number. Groups of fewer than twelve countries are not shown. These groups differ in income, region and history all at once. So a gap between them is a place to start asking questions, not an answer.

nr
Christians92+0.06
Muslims37+0.05

By last european coloniser

Countries grouped by a label they share, such as main religion, rather than by a number. Groups of fewer than twelve countries are not shown. These groups differ in income, region and history all at once. So a gap between them is a place to start asking questions, not an answer.

nr
France22+0.30
Never a European colony15+0.35
Spain16+0.49
United Kingdom43+0.50

Without outliers (countries far outside the middle half of countries on either measure, by more than one and a half times the width of that middle half): r = +0.490 after dropping 4 countries.

Two series, one country

Both measures over the years for one country you pick. The two charts are stacked so they share only the years along the bottom.

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Over time, within countries

Everything above compares countries with each other at one moment. This section compares each country only with itself over 0years. So a link here can’t come from anything about a country that stays the same, such as its history, geography, institutions or culture.

Not enough history inside each country to look at this over time. That needs countries measured for several years in a row, and at least one of these measures is measured too rarely.

The data


% of population
% of households		Years
Timor-Leste TLS99.5%8.22%2020, 2016
Moldova MDA99.5%10.4%2020, 2014
Romania ROU98.5%8.38%2020, 2011
Zambia ZMB98.3%9.64%2020, 2018
Tonga TON97.8%6.99%2020, 2019
Samoa WSM97.6%4.55%2020, 2019
Bahamas, The BHS97.6%12.9%2020, 2010
Kiribati KIR97.6%4.58%2020, 2018
Lesotho LSO97.3%11%2020, 2018
Armenia ARM97.3%7.37%2020, 2016
Rwanda RWA97%14.5%2020
Congo, Dem. Rep. COD96.3%13.8%2020, 2017
Burundi BDI95%14.8%2020, 2016
Peru PER94.5%13.7%2020, 2017
Paraguay PRY93.5%9.31%2020, 2016

Pew Research Center, Religious Composition by Country, 2010-2020. Pew Research Center bears no responsibility for the analyses or interpretations of the data presented here.
United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2022). Database on Household Size and Composition 2022.
One of these measures is published under a licence that forbids changes. Values are shown exactly as published and must not be republished in a changed or rescaled form.

Sources

Christian share

Share of the population identifying as Christian

Pew Research Center · via Our World in Data · Pew Research Center terms of use, excerpts with attribution · updated decennial · comparable from 2010 only

All Christian traditions together. The world's largest religion, and the one whose spread most closely follows income. Adjusting for GDP is there to remove that. No "better" direction is set.

Single-parent households

Share of single-parent households

United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division · via Our World in Data · CC BY 3.0 IGO · updated irregular (2017, 2019 and 2022 editions)

Households made up of one parent and that parent's children, of any age, and nobody else. A lone parent living with the grandparents is counted as an extended family instead. So this understates single parenthood most where several generations live together. It is the one worldwide series: about 180 countries, but each with only one to three readings. The readings are gathered from household surveys (DHS and MICS), census records and UN Demographic Yearbook tables, which sort households differently. So a jump within a country is as likely to be a change of source as a change in families. Few readings come after 2019. No "better" direction is set: it describes how people live, not a score.

How this was computed

Data used: most recent value in 2010-2025; values come from 2010–2021. To adjust for income, each measure is first predicted from GDP per person (in percentage terms, on a log scale) with a straight-line fit. Only what is left over is then compared. This is called a partial correlation. The line is drawn the standard way (ordinary least squares), which picks the line that comes closest to all the countries at once. The error margins allow for countries in the same region resembling each other, using 7 World Bank regions. The q-value corrects for testing all 12,497 pairs at once, using the Benjamini–Hochberg method. Underlying data last updated DYB 2024. How the country data works · explore Christian share and Single-parent households

This page shows that two measures go together. It does not show that Christian share changes Single-parent households, or the reverse. These figures also describe countries, not individual people. See the ecological fallacy.

More links with Christian share or Single-parent households