Perceived Openness to Experience Accounts for Religious Homogamy

Two studies tested the hypothesis that religious homogamy—assortative mating on the basis of religion—can be partly explained by inferences about religious individuals’ openness to experience, rather than attitudes toward religion per se. Results of Study 1 indicated that non-religious participants perceived non-religious targets to be higher in openness and more appealing as romantic partners, with the first effect statistically accounting for the second. Study 2, which manipulated “religious” and “open” behaviors independently, showed that openness guided dating judgments for both non-religious and religious participants, albeit in opposite directions. Thus, regardless of their own religious beliefs, individuals appear to infer the same kind of behaviors from others’ religiosity, behaviors that are seen positively by religious individuals, but negatively by non-religious individuals. These inferences, in turn, partially explain all individuals’ preferences for partners of the same religious orientation.