Religion is an abstract term that refers to a wide variety of practices. It is commonly used today to refer to the so-called world religions such as Judaism, Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Confucianism. It is sometimes also used to describe practices in specific cultures or regions of the world, such as Cherokee religion. Many scholars use the concept of religion to sort cultural practices into categories that they believe share common properties. This approach to religion is known as a “monothetic” approach. It is based on the classical view that every instance of a social category will share one defining property with others of its kind.
Other scholars take a “polythetic” approach to the idea of religion. They argue that there are multiple properties that can be found in all religious practices. These include a belief system with a god or gods; sacred objects, places, and activities; moral beliefs; a code of behavior; an organized structure of worship; and usually a leader that is granted godlike status. Research has linked religious beliefs and practices to positive outcomes in life such as higher levels of happiness, generosity, and compassion, lower rates of divorce and out-of-wedlock births, and reduced incidence of mental illness, drug addiction, and prejudice.
Many sociologists and anthropologists use the concept of religion to analyze the development of social structures. They believe that religion is a universal human attribute and therefore can be analyzed in much the same way that social structures like marriage, parenting, and crime are examined. These studies use a range of qualitative and quantitative methods.