Church Attendence

• church attendance stable at 40% since 1940
• Hadaway 1993: 40% church attendance a myth, does not match churches' own figures.
• Hadaway et al 1993: level of attendance claimed by interviewees 83% higher than the researcher's own estimates.
• Attendance gap has increased since 1970s
• Attendance at a Catholic Mass in San Francisco: 1972 - exaggeration by 47% but 1996 - exaggeration by 110%
• Bruce: stable 40% figure masked the decline in attendance
• Seen as socially desirable to attend church