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News — Since 2012, University of Arkansas at Little Rock students and professors have been conducting research on the intersection of religion, politics, and community engagement during election years through the .

With the 2024 presidential election just months away, the Little Rock Congregations Study is doing something it’s never done before –  to anyone who would like to use them.

“For the first time ever, we are making our surveys free and publicly available, so that any congregation, whether in Little Rock or around the world, can use them to survey their own members,” said Dr. Rebecca Glazier, director of the Little Rock Congregations Study. “There are survey firms who charge people thousands of dollars for surveys, and ours is totally free. The questions are vetted by congregations, clergy, social scientists, and researchers. Our research shows that community engagement helps everyone, and we want everyone to be able to use this survey to learn about their members and how they want to get involved to help their community.”

The survey has about 75 questions and takes approximately 12 minutes to fill out. However, congregations can edit the survey to fit their individual congregation’s needs. For example, if a congregation is considering adding a preschool or starting a new volunteer program, they can add questions to find out how congregants feel about these issues.

“As a social scientist, I believe that data is powerful,” Glazier said. “Congregations can learn more about their members and especially how they feel about the importance of various community issues and what issues they want to get involved in. We think community engagement can help make people, congregations, and democracy better, and we want to spread that message as far and wide as possible.”

The survey can also help congregations understand the spiritual health of their members. Previous Little Rock Congregations Study research shows that congregations with members who are actively engaged in the community experience better spiritual health.

“When congregation members are involved in the community, they feel better, have better spiritual health, and feel closer to God,” Glazier said. “Finding out what issues your members care about can help you pick the best community programs to dedicate your time and efforts to. Our data show that the end result will be well worth it.”

In 2012, the Little Rock Congregations Study began with Glazier and a single class of students at UA Little Rock working with just five congregations in Little Rock. In 2016, they partnered with the Clinton School of Public Service, received a grant from the American Political Science Association’s Alma Ostrom and Leah Hopkins Awan Civic Education Fund, and expanded to work with 17 congregations.

During 2020, the Little Rock Congregations Study moved data collection online due to the COVID-19 pandemic and were able to work with 35 congregations, producing personalized reports for each congregation. Altogether, more than 200 students at UA Little Rock and the Clinton School have conducted research through the Little Rock Congregations Study.

Those interested in looking at the survey can . Glazier is available to help people interpret their data or generate sample reports. For more information, contact Glazier at [email protected].