Artful Dodger: Per person??

Arthur Brooks made quite a splash a few years ago in his book Who Really Cares. He argued that religious conservatives were far more likely to give than liberals. In fact, if you campare religious conservatives with secular liberals, he is right. Indeed, one third of secularists give nothing to charity. Of the most religious in the country 94% give to charity. And of those who give, the religious give on average at least three times more than those who are not religious. Moreover, the figures bear out that religious conservatives are far more likely to give to non-religious causes than are the non-religious.

Brooks turns out to be far off base, however, in contending that religious conservatives give more often and give more than religious liberals. Basically, he failed to adjust for church attendance. If you adjust for church attendance there is no difference that favors conservatives over liberals. Indeed, religious liberals volunteer more often to help the sick, the needy, and neighborhood and civic groups. For an excellent discussion of this, see chapter 13 of American Grace by Putnam and Campbell.