demonstrated in popular media (see Blumner 2004) and historical accounts (see Jacoby
2004; Turner 1985; McGrath 2004; and Feldman 2005). Although the term atheist and
non-believer have been used interchangeably (Filsinger 1976), an atheist’s belief system
varies greatly from other religious “nones” such as people who are non-religious but
spiritual. Perceptions about atheists also diverge from people claiming at least some
sort of belief or faith. Based on these negative perceptions, atheists seem to be
conceptually different than other religious “nones” because they are specifically
identified rather than referred to as merely non-religious. Because beliefs and
perceptions of religious “nones” are not consistent across sub-groups, they should not
all be classified as a homogeneous group. To fully understand and mitigate American
society’s negative perceptions of atheists, researchers must be able to differentiate
among the religious “nones” and identify atheists. Differentiating religious “nones” will
allow scholars to closely examine atheists and challenge misconceptions of this small,
misunderstood group.
THEORETICAL AND METHODOLOGICAL CONCERNS
Religious “Nones”
The category of religious “none” consists of a variety of individuals with different
beliefs and practices. Specifying no religious preference or affiliation serves as the
common thread compiling this group. Vernon (1968b) indicates that atheists, agnostics,
and those with no preference or affiliation are all included under the label of religious
“none.” Subsequent research has used the term religious “none” or variants such as
non-religious, no religious affiliation, or no religious preference to combine the
2
Convention