Religiosity of nonbelievers in China.

The religiosity of people describing themselves as ‘nonbelievers’ was explored in a Chinese sample. 578 students (310 women, 268 men; M age = 23.5 yr., SD = 3.3) participated in the study. The extent of religious beliefs was measured by the Religiosity subscale of the Social Axiom Survey (SAS). The results indicated that while nonbelievers generally neither believed nor disbelieved in the existence of a supreme being, they did believe that religion has some positive effects—providing a meaning to life as well as helping to keep moral standards. Religiosity in China seems to be a continuous and pluralized construct rather than a dichotomous concept.