Resonance or Alienation: An Empirical Study on the Influencing Factors of Religious Belief Choices among China’s Generation Z

Abstract

The relationship between secularity or modernity and religious belief choices is a hot topic of academic concern. However, there has been scarce attention from the academic community regarding the religious belief choices and driving factors of China’s Generation Z, who have grown up in a secular or modern society. In this paper, we use the Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS) and a modified Cost and Rewards Scale to measure this group’s tendency towards “religious centrality”, and investigate the inherent driving factors using logistic regression. The results show that the religiousness of China’s Generation Z is higher than the overall level of religious beliefs in China. Their choice of religious beliefs is the result of a rational consideration and balance of “religious rewards”, but most of them are not driven by the consideration of “afterlife rewards” as the supernatural core factor of religion. Instead, they are driven by the actual benefits brought by the choice of religious beliefs and the factors that affect these benefits, such as religious socialization. This conclusion validates the opinions of Stark and Finke, as well as Hartmut Rosa, and breaks the status quo of single research model and method in previous relevant studies.

1. Introduction

Generation Z refers to the generation born between 1997 and 2010. They grew up in an era of digitization and information, with “secularization” and “modernity” as two of the main characteristics of their living environment, making this group form unique values and attitudes towards religious beliefs (Zinurova et al. 2022). Secularization (the modern concept of the world) describes a process in which eternal ideas, values, and institutions lose their public status and influence and even their plausibility in modern societies (Gay 1998). John G. Stackhouse said it is one of the features of postmodernity that human thought has the confidence to reach the truth if there is enough time and energy (Stackhouse 2002). Obviously, in contemporary culture, applied science plays a crucial role in epistemology, and truth can be grasped in the process of human experiences. “Master and control become key implications for the modern mind” (Stackhouse 2002); “master and control” here means human construction or a lack of God’s will. Modernism has some common ground with postmodernism: holding a view of variety, refusing great truth, avoiding emptiness and collectivities, and taking pride in its own products as beautiful, good, and true in an absolute sense. In the eyes of postmodernism, the mind should be polymorphic, and rapid shifting is normal.

Hartmut Rosa concludes that the feature of modern society is acceleration and alienation. He argues that if society maintains its stable patterns through dynamism, i.e., if society needs gradual growth, acceleration, and innovation precisely to reproduce its structures and maintain the status quo, this society is modern. “Modernity” is driven by mankind’s “triple A approach” to the world, where people in modern societies believe that a good life lies in making more and more things in the world available, attainable, and accessible. But it is precisely because the range of things within human reach is expanding and ever-accelerating that the growing modern society reveals its frightening side, such as in the human-accelerated exploitation of nature becoming a threat to humankind itself, i.e., alienation. As humans deepen their grasp and control over nature, life, and the world, they also distance themselves profoundly from it, making the world we live in seem disillusioned, cold, and hostile. Hartmut Rosa calls this state “burnout” (Rosa 2013). Rosa’s focus is on finding an alternative to the dynamic stability pattern of modern society, or in other words, another way of relating to and existing in the world, which he calls “a mode of resonance.” The main feature of resonance is that one feels genuinely moved by the people or things one encounters and is able to respond to this “call” with one’s mind and body. Ultimately, humans undergo transformation in this interactive process, i.e., transforming themselves in the jointly generated meaning (Rosa 2019).

Rosa’s discourse aroused our strong interest in the religiousness of contemporary young people in China, and the factors influencing their religious belief choices under the special background of secularization and atheistic thoughts in China today. This paper takes China’s Generation Z as the research object to examine their “religious centrality” tendency under the background of secularization and modernity, and focuses on investigating the influencing factors leading to this tendency. In China, a country advocating atheism, Chinese youth have received an atheistic education since childhood, but some of them still show a certain degree of religiousness, such as going to religious places to pray to gods and Buddhas, burning incense, asking for signatures, or participating in church worship activities, and so on. Thus, we want to know, what is the specific situation of religious belief choices among China’s Generation Z? Are the reasons leading to the “religiousness” results of China’s Generation Z due to resonance with the sacred, or due to considerations of personal instrumentality? In other words, are the religious beliefs of China’s Generation Z based on resonance with the sacred existence, religious doctrines, rituals, etc. (Rosa 2019)? Or is it because the social acceleration of development has brought competitive pressure, or pressure from life circles, forcing them to enter the mode of “competition, optimization, and speed”, and in this process, the choice of religious beliefs becomes a factor affecting their access to resources and reducing costs (Rosa 2013)? How do they make rational measurements of the “cost and reward” in their decision-making on religious beliefs (Stark and Finke 2000)?

Regarding previous studies on the influencing factors of religious belief choices among Generation Z, scholars’ research is mostly based on the theoretical frameworks of rational choice theory and social impact theory in sociology. Rational choice theory and social impact theory are two important theoretical perspectives for analyzing individual choice behaviors. The former emphasizes individuals’ rational analysis and choice, while the latter focuses on the role of the social environment (Coleman 1990; Cialdini 2016; Stark and Finke 2000). According to existing research results, the main factors affecting the religious belief choices of Generation Z involve social, cultural, family, education, personal, and other levels. Social factors include religious diversity, religious freedom, social change, religious identity, etc. In addition, social support and social circles, media, and peer groups are also important social factors (Evolvi 2021; Zhang and Chang 2017; Roberts et al. 2001). Family background, family education, and family religious traditions and practices have a profound impact on Generation Z’s attitudes and choices towards beliefs (Goodman and Justin 2020; Huang 2013; Walker 2019; Mohammadrezaie et al. 2011; Ozdikmenli-Demir and Şahin-Kutuk 2012). Different national cultures, regional cultures, traditional beliefs, and religious cultural heritage may also play a role in the formation and selection of religious beliefs (Yue 2017; Lavrič and Flere 2010). Educational factors have largely shaped the worldviews, moral views, and religious concepts of Generation Z. Educational opportunities, educational content, and religious education in schools or universities may also affect their cognition and understanding of religion (Khan et al. 2018; Liang and Dong 2019; Martin 2004). Individual personality, interests, needs, and special practical experiences will affect their attitudes and choices towards religion. Individual factors may also include personal growth experiences, cognition and understanding of religion, and beliefs in supernatural phenomena (Han and Wang 2014; Ganzach and Gotlibovski 2014; Thalbourne et al. 1995; Tobacyk and Milford 1983; Roig et al. 1998). Studies on the influencing factors of religious belief choices among China’s Generation Z involve the above levels, but the research design is relatively singular and is mainly dominated by research for countermeasures of ideological and political education. These studies generally focus on Chinese youth groups including university students as research objects, conduct questionnaire surveys and statistics on their religious beliefs, and provide suggestions for ideological and political education based on the statistical data (Liu et al. 2013; Sun and Li 2013). There are also very few quantitative studies on specific factors influencing religious belief choices (Han and Wang 2014; Huang 2013), but most of them are research in the “status quo–causes–countermeasures” model, neglecting the concern for the inherent driving force of religious beliefs among China’s Generation Z, especially in the face of the dilemma between rationality and faith when choosing religious beliefs under the special background of atheistic education in China.

This study focuses on the inherent influencing factors driving the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z, examining whether their religious belief choices are the result of resonance or alienation. We believe that to clarify this issue, we must first understand the degree of religiousness of China’s Generation Z, and then explore the inherent reasons leading to this degree of religiousness on this basis. There is a strong correlation between the two. Considering the special social environment, cultural background, and political background in which China’s Generation Z grew up, we first use Stefan Huber and Odilo W. Huber’s Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS) to measure the centrality, importance, or significance of religious meaning in the personality of China’s Generation Z, aiming to objectively present the degree of religiousness of this group. On this basis, we fully consider the particularity of China’s Generation Z, revise the Cost and Rewards Scale developed by Lavric S. and Flere S., and use it to further examine the inherent driving factors behind their religious belief choices; more specifically, we examine whether their choices are based on identification with religious-related dimensions, or resonance with religion, or the result of a rational consideration and balance of certain practical costs and benefits. The application of these two scales is the first in Chinese academic circles of religion. The CRS scale has been used in more than 100 sociology of religion, psychology of religion, and related religious research in 25 countries around the world (Huber and Huber 2012), but it has not yet been applied in mainland China, especially applied research in the special group of Generation Z in China. In addition, inspired by the related theories of acceleration, alienation, and resonance proposed by Rosa, we used the modified Cost and Rewards Scale (Lavrič and Flere 2010) to measure the internal driving factors of China’s Generation Z’s religious belief choices. This scale has also not been applied in China. At present, there is a lack of research on the inherent driving factors influencing the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z at home and abroad. The conclusions of this study will make up for this status quo. It has not only methodological significance but also important theoretical and practical significance.

2. Data and Methods

2.1. Questionnaire Design and Variable Processing

On the basis of previous studies, we redesigned the questionnaire to better reflect the real situation of religious belief choices among China’s Generation Z.

First, previous studies on Chinese people’s religious beliefs are relatively singular. Most scholars mainly use the question “Do you have religious beliefs” to measure Chinese people’s religious beliefs. In order to more accurately reflect the religious beliefs of China’s Generation Z, we use the Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS) of Huber and Huber (2012) to measure the religious beliefs of China’s Generation Z. The Centrality of Religiosity Scale consists of 15 items: (1) How often do you think about religious issues? (2) To what extent do you believe that God or something divine exists? (3) How often do you take part in religious activities? (4) How often do you meditate? (5) How often do you experience situations in which you have the feeling that God or something divine intervenes in your life? (6) How interested are you in learning more about religious topics? (7) To what extent do you believe in an afterlife—e.g., immortality of the soul, resurrection of the dead, or reincarnation? (8) How important is it to take part in religious services? (9) How important is personal prayer for you? (10) How often do you experience situations in which you have the feeling that God or something divine wants to communicate or reveal something to you? (11) How often do you keep yourself informed about religious questions through radio, television, internet, newspapers, or books? (12) In your opinion, how probable is it that a higher power really exists? (13) How important is it for you to be connected to a religious community? (14) How often do you pray spontaneously when inspired by daily situations? (15) How often do you experience situations in which you have the feeling that God or something divine is present? The answer options are designed as: 1 for “very frequently, strongly believe, very interested, very important, or very probable”, 5 for “very infrequently, strongly disbelieve, very uninterested, very unimportant, or very improbable”. Thus, scores from 1 to 5 indicate a decreasing frequency or degree. For ease of interpretation, the items were recoded during data processing in this paper. After recoding, scores from 1 to 5 indicate an increasing frequency or degree.

Second, in order to accurately measure the driving factors of religious belief choices among China’s Generation Z, we revised the Cost and Rewards Scale designed by Lavrič and Flere (2010) and conducted multidimensional measurements of the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. In the religious investment dimension (RIC), the scale uses 7 items for measurement, which are: (1) Wear certain religious symbols or clothing, even on occasions where it might embarrass you? (2) Not consume certain foods or drinks for a longer period of time? (3) Refrain from sexual relations? (4) Refuse specific medical interventions? (5) Renounce the use of certain achievements of modern technology? (6) Renounce all or most of your property? (7) Sacrifice your own life? From the item answer design, 1 means very willing, 5 means completely unwilling, and 1 to 5 indicates decreasing willingness. In the afterlife rewards dimension (OR), the scale uses 3 items for measurement, which are: (1) I don’t care much about this (secular) world; (2) Compared with what awaits me in my afterlife, what happens to me in this life is not really important; (3) True believers shall be rewarded in the afterlife. From the item answer design, 1 means strongly agree, 5 means completely disagree, and 1 to 5 indicates decreasing agreement. In religious capital (RHC), the question: “Your knowledge about the teachings, stories, and principles of your religion is” is used for measurement: from 1 to 6 indicates from extremely poor to extremely rich. In religious socialization (RIS), the scale uses 3 items for measurement, which are: (1) My father is (was) a very religious man; (2) My mother is (was) a very religious woman; (3) During my childhood, religiosity permeated our family. From the item option design, from 1 to 5 indicates from strongly agree to completely disagree. In the price of religious nonparticipation (PRN), the scale uses 5 items for measurement, which are: (1) Disappointment, disapproval of parents; (2) Disappointment, disapproval of close friends; (3) Disappointment, disapproval of ministers, priests, etc.; (4) It would threaten a romantic love relationship; (5) I would feel I’m betraying my national identity. In the item answer design, from 1 to 5 indicates from strongly agree to completely disagree. In the comfort of religious services (CRS), “Please describe the religious services performed by your religious institution” is used for measurement: from 1 to 6 indicates from very uncomfortable to very comfortable. In the support of religion for raising children (SUC), “Would you prefer to have your religious institution help you with the upbringing of your children?” is used for measurement: from 1 to 5 indicates from very willing to very unwilling. For ease of interpretation, the items related to the religious sacrifice dimension, afterlife reward dimension, religious socialization dimension, price for religious nonparticipation dimension, and support from religion for raising children dimension were recoded in data processing in this paper. After recoding, 1 to 5 indicates from completely dissatisfied/completely disagree/very unwilling to very satisfied/strongly agree/very willing.

Third, to further demonstrate the reliability of the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z, the question “Do you believe in religion?” is used for further verification. The answer to this question is set to 1 for believing in religion and 2 for not believing in religion. On this basis, the questionnaire also includes the demographic information of China’s Generation Z, including gender, year of birth, household registration status, education level, political status, marital status, location, health status, personal annual income, individual socioeconomic status, father’s health status, and mother’s health status. For ease of statistics, religion, gender, ethnicity, household registration, political status, and marital status in this paper are set as dummy variables. Age is calculated based on year of birth. Self-health status, father’s health status, and mother’s health status are recoded (from 1 to 5 indicates from completely unhealthy to very healthy). Education status is set as an ordinal variable.

2.2. Data Collection and Analysis Strategy

After designing a good questionnaire, we conducted a pre-survey and then distributed and collected the questionnaire through China’s leading market research platform (Questionnaire Star). The platform has a huge survey population. With the help of big data means, the questionnaire can be scientifically distributed randomly to Generation Z in different regions, identities, and ages, which can effectively ensure the reliability and representativeness of the survey results. After two rounds of data collection and the screening out of invalid samples, this study collected a total of 351 valid samples.

According to the previous research design, the analysis strategy of this paper is as follows: First, with the help of the Religiosity Scale and religious beliefs variables, discuss the status quo of religious beliefs of China’s Generation Z. Second, use the Cost and Rewards Scale to use logistic regression to explore the driving factors of religious belief choices. Third, conduct heterogeneity analysis to explore the differences in religious belief choices among China’s Generation Z.

3. Results

3.1. The Status Quo of Religious Belief Choices among China’s Generation Z

We conducted a status quo analysis of the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The specific results are shown in

Table 1. Summary of religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z.

Items	Total	Mean	SD	Min	Median	Max
01. How often do you think about religious issues?	351	2.54	0.92	1.00	3.00	5.00
02. To what extent do you believe that God or something divine exists?	351	2.55	0.95	1.00	3.00	5.00
03. How often do you take part in religious services?	351	1.81	0.88	1.00	2.00	5.00
04. How often do you pray?	351	2.19	0.99	1.00	2.00	5.00
05. How often do you experience situations in which you have the feeling that God or something divine intervenes in your life?	351	2.07	0.95	1.00	2.00	5.00
06. How interested are you in learning more about religious topics?	351	2.85	0.98	1.00	3.00	5.00
07. To what extend do you believe in an afterlife—e.g., immortality of the soul, resurrection of the dead, or reincarnation?	351	2.59	1.07	1.00	3.00	5.00
08. How important is to take part in religious services?	351	2.50	1.01	1.00	2.00	5.00
09. How important is personal prayer for you?	351	2.65	1.02	1.00	3.00	5.00
10. How often do you experience situations in which you have the feeling that God or something divine wants to communicate or to reveal something to you?	351	2.10	1.05	1.00	2.00	5.00
11. How often do you keep yourself informed about religious questions through radio, television, internet, newspapers, or books?	351	2.49	0.91	1.00	2.00	5.00
12. In your opinion, how probable is it that a higher power really exists?	351	3.01	1.13	1.00	3.00	5.00
13. How important is it for you to be connected to a religious community?	351	2.37	1.05	1.00	2.00	5.00
14. How often do you pray spontaneously when inspired by daily situations?	351	2.30	1.07	1.00	2.00	5.00
15. How often do you experience situations in which you have the feeling that God or something divine in present?	351	2.16	1.01	1.00	2.00	5.00

. The results show that the average frequency for China’s Generation Z to think about religious issues is 2.54, with the minimum frequency and maximum frequency being 1 and 5, respectively, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z think about religious issues with a low frequency. The average degree to which China’s Generation Z believe that God or something divine exists is 2.55, with minimum and maximum values of 5, respectively, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z do not really believe that God or something divine exists. The average frequency for China’s Generation Z to participate in religious activities is 1.81, indicating that the vast majority of China’s Generation Z rarely participate in religious activities. The average frequency for China’s Generation Z to pray is 2.19, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z rarely pray. The average frequency for China’s Generation Z to experience situations where they feel that God or something divine intervenes in their lives is 2.07, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z rarely feel that God or something divine intervenes in their lives. The mean value of China’s Generation Z’s interest in religious topics is 2.85, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z are generally interested in religious topics. The mean value of China’s Generation Z’s belief in the afterlife (such as the immortality of the soul, resurrection of the dead, or reincarnation) is 2.59, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z do not really believe in the afterlife. The mean value of the importance that China’s Generation Z attaches to participating in religious services is 2.5, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z do not consider participating in religious services to be very important. The mean value of the importance that China’s Generation Z attaches to personal prayer is 2.65 and 3, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z do not consider personal prayer to be very important. The average frequency for China’s Generation Z to experience situations where they feel that God or something sacred wants to communicate with them or reveal something to them is 2.1 and 2, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z rarely feel that God or something sacred wants to communicate with them or reveal something. The mean value of China’s Generation Z keeping themselves informed about religious issues through radio, television, Internet, newspapers, books, and other channels is 2.49, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z rarely keep themselves informed about religious issues through radio, television, Internet, newspapers, books, and other channels. The mean value of China’s Generation Z’s opinion on the probability that a higher power really exists is 2.37, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z think it is not very likely that a higher power really exists. The mean value of the importance that China’s Generation Z attaches to maintaining contact with religious communities is 2.37, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z do not consider maintaining contact with religious communities to be very important. The mean value of China’s Generation Z praying spontaneously when inspired by daily situations is 2.3, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z rarely pray spontaneously when inspired by daily situations. The mean value of China’s Generation Z experiencing situations where they feel the presence of God or something divine is 2.16, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z rarely feel the presence of God or something divine.

On the basis of the specific descriptive statistics of the religious scores of China’s Generation Z, we calculated the religiosity of China’s Generation Z1. The results show that the average religiosity of China’s Generation Z is 2.41, with minimum, maximum, and standard deviation values of 1, 4.33, and 0.7, respectively. The distribution of religiosity in the survey samples of China’s Generation Z is shown in

Table 2. CRS-score of China’s Generation Z.

CRS-Score	“Not-Religious”						“Religious”									“Highly-Religious”
	1.0	1.2	1.4	1.6	1.8	2.0	2.2	2.4	2.6	2.8	3.0	3.2	3.4	3.6	3.8	4.0	4.2	4.4	4.6	4.8	5.0
CH 1	11	10	18	30	25	41	45	35	31	27	20	24	9	10	10	3	2	0	0	0	0
PT 2	3	2.8	5.1	8.5	7.1	11.7	12.8	10	8.8	7.7	5.7	6.8	2.6	2.8	2.8	0.9	0.6	0.6	0	0	0

¹ CH = China’s Generation Z; ² PT = Percentage of China’s Generation Z.

. Specifically, the number of survey samples without religiosity is 135, accounting for 38.4%. The number of survey samples with religiosity is 211, accounting for 60.1%. The number of survey samples with a high religiosity is 5, accounting for 1.4%. The study shows that China’s Generation Z has a relatively low level of religiosity. We compared the religiosity of China’s Generation Z with that of other countries (Huber and Huber 2012), including Germany (CRS = 2.84), Switzerland (CRS = 3.15), Poland (CRS = 3.69), Italy (CRS = 3.66), France (CRS = 2.50), Israel (CRS = 3.29), the United States (CRS = 3.92), Nigeria (CRS = 4.58), Indonesia (CRS = 4.12), India (CRS = 3.88), and so on. We found that the religiosity of China’s Generation Z is almost the lowest.

To further investigate the religious beliefs and choices among China’s Generation Z, this study conducted a survey on their religious affiliations. The results revealed that among the survey respondents, 77 individuals identified as religious believers, accounting for 21.9% of the sample, while 274 individuals, constituting 78.1%, stated that they do not adhere to any religious beliefs. It is worth noting that historically, the proportion of religious believers in China has remained below 15% (Zhang and Lu 2018; CFPS 2012; Win-Gallup 2012). Hence, the proportion of religious believers among China’s Generation Z appears to be relatively higher.

The study proposes that one of the reasons for the slightly higher religious adherence rate among China’s Generation Z compared to the overall Chinese population is the variation in the measurement methods used by researchers to assess religious inclinations. In conventional social surveys, the measurement of religious beliefs often involves inquiring about the specific religious affiliation of the respondents and providing corresponding religious categories for them to choose from. Even if additional religious measurements are included, they typically revolve around whether the respondents identify with a particular religion. In this study, while the item “whether one believes in religion” was also used as an auxiliary measure for the religious inclinations of China’s Generation Z, the respondents had already answered various items related to religious inclinations before being asked about their religious beliefs. As a result, the respondents provided their answers regarding religious beliefs based on a fundamental understanding of their own religious inclinations. Therefore, the statistical findings present a more authentic reflection of the religious beliefs among China’s Generation Z, which aligns with the earlier statistics on the average religious inclination score.

3.2. “Religious Rewards” and Religious Belief Choices of China’s Generation Z

To ascertain whether the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z stem from resonating with the divine existence, religious doctrines, and rituals, or whether they result from alienation due to the competitive and stressful nature of rapid social development, this study utilizes Stark and Finke’s (2000) cost and reward framework to delve into the driving factors behind the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. Following Stark and Finke’s (2000) approach, “religious rewards” are defined as the tangible benefits arising from adopting religious beliefs and the factors that influence these gains, such as religious socialization.

3.2.1. Statistical Analysis of the Relevant Concept of “Religious Rewards”

In order to clarify the driving factors of the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z, we first conducted descriptive statistics on the relevant items in the Cost and Rewards Scale (as shown in

Table 3. Summary of relevant influencing factors.

Types	Items	Mean	SD	Min	Median	Max	Total Mean
RIC 1	1.Wear certain religious symbols or clothing, even on occasions where it might embarrass you?	2.02	0.89	1.00	2.00	5.00	1.97
	2.Not consume certain foods or drinks for a longer period of time?	2.37	1.10	1.00	2.00	5.00
	3. Refrain from sexual relations?	2.49	1.18	1.00	2.00	5.00
	4.Refuse specific medical interventions?	2.04	1.06	1.00	2.00	5.00
	5.Renounce the use of certain achievements of modern technology?	1.81	0.88	1.00	2.00	5.00
	6.Renounce all or most of your property?	1.46	0.83	1.00	1.00	5.00
	7.Sacrifice your own life?	1.57	0.81	1.00	1.00	5.00
OR 2	1.Heaven is my home, and so I do not worry much about this world.	2.30	1.01	1.00	2.00	5.00	2.08
	2.What happens to me in this life is not really important compared to what awaits me in my afterlife.	1.87	1.02	1.00	2.00	5.00
	3.True believers shall be rewarded in the afterlife.	2.07	1.05	1.00	2.00	5.00
RHC 3	My knowledge about the teachings, stories and principles of my religion is very poor/extensive.	2.77	1.14	1.00	3.00	6.00	2.77
RIS 4	1. My father is (was) a very religious man.	1.71	1.03	1.00	1.00	5.00	1.87
	2. My mother is (was) a very religious woman.	1.88	1.13	1.00	1.00	5.00
	3. During my childhood, religiosity permeated our family.	2.02	1.11	1.00	2.00	5.00
PRN 5	1. Disappointment, disapproval of parents.	2.26	1.14	1.00	2.00	5.00	2.08
	2. Disappointment, disapproval of close friends.	1.96	1.06	1.00	2.00	5.00
	3. Disappointment, disapproval of ministers, priests, etc.	2.39	1.21	1.00	2.00	5.00
	4. It would threaten a romantic love relationship.	1.95	1.07	1.00	2.00	5.00
	5. I would feel I’m betraying my national identity.	1.83	1.09	1.00	1.00	5.00
CFS 6	How would you characterize religious services performed by your religious institution?	3.01	1.10	1.00	3.00	6.00	3.01
SUC 7	Would you prefer to have your religious institution help you with the upbringing of your children?	2.32	1.10	1.00	2.00	5.00	2.32

¹ RIC = Religious identity costs; ² OR = Otherworldly rewards; ³ RHC = Religious human capital; ⁴ RIS = Religious socialization; ⁵ PRN = Price of religious nonparticipation; ⁶ CFS = Comfort from religious services. ⁷ SUC = Support in the upbringing of children.

). The results show that the average score of China’s Generation Z on the religious investment dimension is 1.97, indicating that the religious investment dimension of this group is relatively low. Although the average scores of Items 1 to 4 are slightly higher than the mean (2.02, 2.37, 2.49, 2.04, respectively), overall, the vast majority of China’s Generation Z are not very willing to “wear certain religious symbols or clothing, even on occasions where it might embarrass you”, “not consume certain foods or drinks for a longer period of time”, “refrain from sexual relations”, “refuse specific medical interventions“, “renounce the use of certain achievements of modern technology”, “renounce all or most of your property”, or “sacrifice your own life”. In the afterlife reward dimension, the average score of China’s Generation Z is 2.08. From the average scores of Items 1 to 3, which are 2.30, 1.87, and 2.07, respectively, it can be observed that a large proportion of Generation Z do not really agree with the statements “I don’t care much about this (secular) world”, “Compared with what awaits me in my afterlife, what happens to me in this life is not really important”, and “True believers shall be rewarded in the afterlife”. In the religious capital dimension, the average score of China’s Generation Z is 2.77, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z have a relatively poor knowledge about stories or doctrines. In the religious socialization dimension, the average score of China’s Generation Z is 1.87. From the average scores of Items 1 to 3, which are 1.71, 1.88, and 2.02, respectively, it can be observed that the vast majority of China’s Generation Z do not really agree with the statements “My father is (was) a very religious man”, “My mother is (was) a very religious woman”, and “During my childhood, religiosity permeated our family”. In the price of religious nonparticipation dimension, the average score of China’s Generation Z is 2.08. From the average scores of Items 1 to 5, which are 2.26, 1.96, 2.39, 1.95, and 1.83, respectively, it can be observed that the vast majority of China’s Generation Z do not really agree that if they give up religious beliefs, their parents will be disappointed or opposed, close friends will be disappointed or opposed, priests and pastors will be disappointed or opposed, threaten romantic love relationships, or they would feel they were betraying the country. In terms of comfort from religious services, the average score of China’s Generation Z is 3.01, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z feel that the religious services provided by religious institutions are relatively comfortable. In the support dimension of religion for raising children, the average score of China’s Generation Z is 2.32, indicating that most of China’s Generation Z are not very willing to allow their religious institutions to help raise their children.

3.2.2. Regression Results of the Impact of “Religious Rewards” on Religious Belief Choices among China’s Generation Z

Based on previous research design, this paper uses logistic regression models to empirically test the correlation between religious rewards and the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z2 (research results as shown in

Table 4. The regression results of the impact of religious rewards on the religious belief choices of Generation Z in China.

Variables	Model 1	Model 2	Model 3	Model 4	Model 5	Model 6	Model 7
OR	0.788 **						0.187
	4.28						0.73
RIS		1.497 **					1.192 **
		7.87					5.80
PRN			0.502 **				−0.162
			3.23				−0.64
RHC				0.959 **			0.474 *
				6.26			2.38
CRS					0.994 **		0.379
					6.17		1.89
SUC						0.795 **	0.398 *
						5.71	2.26
CV 1	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Constant	−4.797 *	−6.075 **	−3.104	−5.875 **	−5.688 **	−4.210 *	−9.806 **
	−2.42	−2.74	−1.67	−2.75	−2.68	−2.15	−3.67
N	351	351	351	351	351	351	351
LR chi2(16)	39.53	112.72	30.4	70.29	70.58	57.19	144.52
Pseudo R2	0.11	0.31	0.08	0.19	0.19	0.15	0.39

¹ CV = Covariates; Yes = Controlled; * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01.

). In the model, the dependent variable “religious belief choice” is mainly measured by the item “Do you believe in religion?”. Model 1 empirically tests the impact of afterlife rewards on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The results show that after controlling for gender, age, household registration status, education status, political status, marital status, health status, personal income, location, and other control variables, afterlife rewards have a significant positive impact on religious belief choices. The marginal effects show that when the afterlife rewards increase by 1 unit, the probability that China’s Generation Z believe in religion will increase by 11.88%. Model 2 examines the impact of religious socialization on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The results show that on the basis of controlling for demographic information, religious socialization is significantly positively correlated with the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The marginal effects show that for every one-unit increase in religious socialization, the proportion of China’s Generation Z choosing to believe in religion will increase by 16.92%. Model 3 empirically tests the correlation between the price of religious nonparticipation and religious belief choices among China’s Generation Z. The results show that on the basis of controlling for demographic information, the price of religious nonparticipation will significantly positively affect the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The marginal effect results indicate that for every one-unit increase in the price of religious nonparticipation, the probability that China’s Generation Z believe in religion will increase by 7.83%. Model 4 examines the impact of religious capital on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The results show that on the basis of controlling for demographic information, religious capital has a significant positive impact on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The marginal effect results show that for every one-unit increase in religious capital, the probability that China’s Generation Z believe in religion will increase by 12.99%. Model 5 tests the impact of comfort from religious services on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The results show that on the basis of controlling for demographic information, the comfort from religious services has a significant positive impact on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The marginal effect results show that for every one-unit increase in the comfort from religious services, the probability that China’s Generation Z choose to believe in religion will increase by 13.47%. Model 6 examines the impact of religion’s support for raising children on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The results show that on the basis of controlling for demographic information, religion’s support for raising children has a significant positive impact on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The marginal effects show that for every one-unit increase in religion’s support for raising children, the probability that China’s Generation Z choose to believe in religion will increase by 11.32%. In order to more accurately examine the impact of afterlife rewards, religious socialization, the price of religious nonparticipation, religious capital, comfort from religious services, and religion’s support for raising children on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z, we put these factors into the model for examination at the same time. Model 7 shows that on the basis of controlling for demographic information, factors such as religious socialization, religious capital, comfort from religious services, and religion’s support for raising children will significantly affect the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The marginal effect results show that for every one-unit increase in religious socialization, religious capital, and religion’s support for raising children, the probability that China’s Generation Z choose to believe in religion will increase by 11.76%, 4.68%, and 3.93%, respectively. However, the statistical results in Model 7 did not find a significant correlation between afterlife rewards, the price of religious nonparticipation, comfort from religious services, and the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. Although previous studies have mainly used religious rewards to predict religious investment, this study found that there is a significant positive correlation between religious investment and religious belief choices. Therefore, this paper also uses religious-reward-related factors to predict the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. This paper finds that although the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z are still driven by rational choice, they are not driven by afterlife rewards as found in Western cultural contexts but by factors such as religious socialization, religious capital, and religion’s support for raising children, among which the most important driving factor is the religious socialization dimension.

3.2.3. Comparison of the Impact of “Religious Rewards” on Religious Belief Choices among China’s Generation Z Based on Hukou Status

The household registration system plays an important role in shaping people’s identity and behavior patterns, because agricultural and non-agricultural accounts mean the represent a difference in educational resources that a person obtains during the growth process, as well as the difference in the growth environment (Tan et al. 2022). In order to explore the differences in the impact of religious rewards on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z based on household registration status, we conducted a heterogeneity analysis on the basis of benchmark regression (results as shown in

Table 5. Heterogeneity analysis of the impact religious rewards on the religious belief choices of Generation Z in China.

Types	OR	RIS	PRN	RHC	CRS	SUC	CV 1	Constant	N	LR	R2
Rural	−1.427	2.434 **	−0.526	0.129	0.994 *	0.892 *	Yes	−8.257	111	64.93	0.53
	−1.79	3.73	−0.89	0.29	2.11	2.23		−1.42
Urban	0.578	1.126 **	−0.184	0.670 *	0.233	0.215	Yes	−10.458 **	240	102.91	0.42
	1.85	4.36	−0.60	2.48	0.90	0.85		−2.76

¹ CV = Covariates; Yes = Controlled; * p < 0.05; ** p < 0.01.

). Among China’s Generation Z with agricultural household registration status, religious socialization, comfort from religious services, and religion’s support for raising children have a significant positive impact on their religious belief choices, while afterlife rewards, the price of religious nonparticipation, and religious capital have no significant impact on their religious belief choices. Among China’s Generation Z with non-agricultural household registration status, religious socialization and religious capital have a significant positive impact on their religious belief choices, but afterlife rewards, the price of religious nonparticipation, comfort from religious services, and religion’s support for raising children do not significantly affect their religious belief choices.

4. Discussion

China’s Generation Z grew up in the digital age with “secularization” and “modernity” as the overall features, so the factors influencing their religious belief choices are influenced by the commonality of the times, as well as the particularity of their growth background. We believe that there is a strong correlation between the religiosity of China’s Generation Z and the factors that can influence their religious belief choices. Therefore, we first use Stefan Huber and Odilo W. Huber’s Centrality of Religiosity Scale (CRS) to measure the centrality, importance, or significance of religious meaning in the personality of China’s Generation Z, aiming to objectively present the degree of religiosity of this group. On this basis, we fully consider the particularity of China’s Generation Z, revise the Cost and Rewards Scale developed by Lavric S. and Flere S., and use it to further examine the inherent driving factors behind their religious belief choices: that is, whether their choices are based on identification with religious-related dimensions, or resonance with religion, or the result of rational consideration and the balance of certain practical costs and benefits. Our use of these two scales is the first in Chinese academic circles, and currently there is a lack of research on the inherent driving factors influencing the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z at home and abroad. The conclusions of this study will make up for this status quo. It has not only methodological significance but also important theoretical and practical significance.

According to the analysis results, compared with other countries summarized by Huber S and Huber OW, the religiosity of China’s Generation Z is almost the lowest. But it is noteworthy that the proportion of China’s Generation Z who believe in religion is slightly higher than the overall proportion of religious believers in China. The reason for this may be related to the research design in this paper. Before asking respondents whether they have religious beliefs, they have answered the questions contained in each item of the religious centrality scale. Therefore, respondents answered the question of whether they have religious beliefs based on a basic understanding of their own degree of religiosity, and the statistical results reflect the religious beliefs of China’s Generation Z more realistically, which is consistent with the average religious scores obtained earlier.

According to the analysis results based on the revised Cost and Rewards Scale, it is found that there is a significant positive correlation between “religious rewards” (according to Lavric S. and Flere S., “religious rewards” are defined as the actual benefits brought by the choice of religious beliefs and the factors affecting these benefits) and the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z, indicating that the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z are indeed driven by rational choice (Stark and Finke 2000). However, they are not driven by afterlife rewards as found in Western cultural contexts, but by factors such as religious socialization, religious capital, and religion’s support for raising children, among which the most important driving factor is the religious socialization dimension. In addition, Chinese scholars emphasize the important role of the household registration system in shaping people’s identity and behavior patterns. Therefore, this paper pays special attention to the role of household registration differences in the impact of “religious rewards” on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z. The results show that the three factors of religious socialization, comfort from religious services, and religion’s support for raising children have a significant positive impact on the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z with agricultural household registration status, while other factors are not significant; religious socialization and religious capital have a significant positive impact on China’s Generation Z with non-agricultural household registration status, while other factors are not significant. This result shows that the different growth environments of rural and urban China lead to differences in the inherent driving factors of religious belief choices among China’s Generation Z.

Thus far, we can try to answer the initial question raised, that is, whether the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z are the result of resonance or alienation. According to the analysis results, the answer is the result of alienation. Their religious belief choices are the result of rational consideration and the balance of “religious rewards”. Specifically, the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z are not driven by the “afterlife rewards” promised by religious beliefs, but by the actual benefits brought by the choice of religious beliefs and the factors that affect these benefits, such as religious socialization, religious capital, and religion’s support for raising children. The most important driving factor is the religious socialization dimension. Although the religiosity of China’s Generation Z is higher than the overall level of religious beliefs in China, most of them do not choose religious beliefs because of resonance with the sacred dimension, such as divine revelation and religious knowledge. They are not driven by consideration of “afterlife rewards” as the supernatural core factor of religion, but by consideration of those more “secularized” factors.

The modern concept of “the world” is different from “the world” in the New Testament. “The world” in the New Testament is a cosmos where Jesus is offered “all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor” (Matt. 4:8; Pelikan 1999). In contrast, the modern world is secularized, there turns out to be very little room for God, and people in modern times want to maintain autonomous “control” over reality by their rational technical means (Gay 1998). Hartmut Rosa points out that in modern society, people believe that a good life lies in the extent to which we obtain, control, and use natural and social resources, which ultimately leads our lives to become disillusioned, cold, and hostile, losing resonance and being moved in life, and ultimately losing the meaning of life. Therefore, his series of discussions on modern society are aimed at trying to find an alternative to the dynamic stability model of modern society, or in other words, another way of relating to and existing in the world, which he calls “a mode of resonance”. The main feature of resonance is that one feels genuinely moved by the people or things one encounters, and is able to respond to this “call” with one’s mind and body. In this encounter, there is self-efficacy, and humans can ultimately undergo transformation in this interactive process, that is, transforming themselves in the jointly generated meaning (Rosa 2019).

But at the same time, resonance is also difficult to control, because we do not know what we will resonate with in someone or something, nor can we determine what the result of the resonance will be. However, Rosa is very certain that this process of resonance is very important for human beings. It is an indispensable element in understanding human behavior, and it is also a way for humans to relate to the world. More importantly, the purpose of establishing a solid “resonance” model is to “construct norms for obtaining a higher quality and better life”. He elaborates on the norms of the resonance model from three dimensions. The first dimension is the “horizontal axis” of resonance, which connects us with others through love, friendship, and democratic politics. The second dimension is the diagonal axis, which connects us with material objects in patterns of work, exercise, education, or consumption. The third dimension is the vertical axis, which makes us understand how we are connected to the world, nature, life, and some ultimate reality as a whole, especially in modernity; the vertical resonance axis is established through religion, nature, art, and ideas (Rosa 2019).

China’s Generation Z, between rationality and faith, show more rationality while having a certain “religiosity”, and display more “modern” and “secular” characteristics. This feature is the inevitable product of the digital, modern, and secular era, as well as the inevitable product of China’s special atheistic social and cultural background. As Stark and Frinke said, the human choice of religious beliefs is the result of rational thinking. At the same time, as Hartmut Rosa further pointed out, the object of this rational thinking is more the need for instrumentality beyond “religious resonance”, such as gaining resources and reducing costs. Can we establish a resonance model in religious beliefs as envisioned by Hartmut Rosa? Although there may be insurmountable difficulties in our era, this proposal provides a hopeful discussion and attempt for us to pursue a better and more harmonious life.

The conclusions revealed in this paper actually fall into the category of the important epistemological topic of the relationship between rationality and faith, which has been a major concern of the international academic community from ancient Greece to the present. In this field, many research results with epistemological and practical significance have been produced, such as a large number of philosophical and epistemological theoretical discussions on the relationship between rationality and faith, as well as related theoretical research and empirical research on religious rational choice. Since the research focus of this paper is concentrated on the analysis of the “influencing factors” of the religious belief choices of China’s Generation Z, and the limited theoretical discussion based on the conclusions of this paper, it does not involve too many of the above theories. However, the relationship between rationality and faith and religious rational choice theory are very beneficial for future in-depth discussions on the issue of religious beliefs of Generation Z. Furthermore, the sample size is relatively small, and we need to further improve the representativeness of our study. This is also an aspect that our future research needs to continue to pay attention to.