Contraceptive patterns of religious and racial groups in the United States, 1955-76: convergence and distinctiveness.

Using a nationally representative sample of 14 000 married women aged 15-44, there is convergence among white Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish couples in contraceptive patterns between 1955 and the mid-1970s, but large differences remained at the latter date, even after multivariate controls. Among black couples, differences by religious affiliation are smaller, but differences between white and black couples within religion categories are substantial. Religious differences are not artifacts of an incomplete demographic transition, and religious affiliation is an indispensable datum for understanding contraceptive choice in the United States. -Authors