When evaluating ways in which the highly religious and the less religious are different: on average, Americans who say they attend religious services weekly and pray daily also report being happier than those who are less religiously committed, according to Pew Research Center, a think-tank in Washington, DC.
Per the research, four-in-ten highly religious adults say they are generally “very happy,” compared with 29% of those who are less religious.
Also, they noted that volunteerism and donations to the poor are especially common practices for those who are highly religious. Among people who pray daily and attend services weekly, 45% also say they volunteered in the past week (including 23% who did so mainly through a church or other religious organization). Just 28% of Americans who are not highly religious say they volunteered in the past seven days.
The gap is even bigger when it comes to helping the poor: 65% of the highly religious say they donated money, time or goods to help the poor in the past week, compared with 41% of all other U.S. adults.