Local Geography and Church Attendance: Wayne County, West Virginia

Studies of church participation and attendance often leave geographic variables out altogether, either by using national surveys that do not distinguish between places or by using the coarse, state- or regional-level of geographic identification. Using primary data in a county case study, this study explores local church geography and geographic factors exerting an influence on church attendance and church switching. The author’s church census and surveys of residents challenge and augment previous studies of: 1) regional variation in religious culture; 2) the effects of church and denominational distribution, local culture, church switching, and distance on church attendance; 3) the accuracy of privately-funded, published church censuses