This doctoral dissertation research project uses survey research and multivariate data analysis to investigate how Protestantism affects the propensity of Guatemalan and Costa Rican citizens to engage in various forms of political action, including voting, campaign activity, contacting public officials, and community activism. The study focuses on the direct effects (of religious affiliation and beliefs), the indirect effects (via the effects of Protestantism on literacy, gender roles, and economic status), and interactive effects (between Protestantism and variant political and social environments) of Protestantism. The significance of this research is that it will lead to a) a description of the multiple forms of Protestantism that are currently diffusing throughout Latin America, and b) analysis of the multiplicity of effects that any given kind of Protestantism may have in different social and political contexts in Latin America. The study will address both traditional concerns with religion as a predictor of political attitudes and actions and questions of how religion may be viewed by politicians and parties as a vehicle for mobilizing or demobilizing various populations. This research will also have implications for the study of religion and politics in other regions where variant forms of religion interact within a larger social context to produce regognizable patterns of political action.
