Appropriating the “Soul”: Evolving Understandings in Canada and the United States

Noting a disconnect in the percentage of Canadians and Americans who believe in a soul (75.37% and 84%, respectively) versus those who believe in an afterlife (47.64% and 57.04%), we explore the variables that are correlated with soul belief to better understand how people from these two countries may be conceptualizing the soul. Based on quota samples of just over 1000 individuals from each country, we find that religiosity is not a consistent predictor of believing in a soul, that Christians are more likely to believe in a soul than are those from other religions and the nonreligious, and that holding other supernatural beliefs (e.g., reincarnation, miracles, etc.) increases the odds of believing in a soul. But we also find that there are individuals in both countries who hold no supernatural beliefs yet report believing in a soul, which suggests that what is meant by “soul” is not exclusively supernatural but rather that the term “soul” is evolving in light of changing and declining religiosity in both countries.