The first-ever, nationwide, random sample survey of Muslim Americans finds them to be largely assimilated, happy with their lives, and moderate with respect to many of the issues that have divided Muslims and Westerners around the world.

The Pew Research Center conducted more than 55,000 interviews to obtain a national sample of 1,050 Muslims living in the United States. Interviews were conducted in English, Arabic, Farsi and Urdu. The resulting study, which draws on Pew's survey research among Muslims around the world, finds that Muslim Americans are a highly diverse population, one largely composed of immigrants.

Nonetheless, they are decidedly American in their outlook, values and attitudes. This belief is reflected in Muslim American income and education levels, which generally mirror those of the public.

The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan "fact tank" that provides information on the issues, attitudes and trends shaping America and the world. It does so by conducting public opinion polling and social science research; by reporting news and analyzing news coverage; and by holding forums and briefings. It does not take positions on policy issues.

Visit Muslim Americans: Middle Class and Mostly Mainstream PEW Website

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Overview .............................1
Chapter 1: How Many Muslims Are There in the United States?.................9
Chapter 2: Who Are the Muslim Americans? A Demographic Portrait...............15
Chapter 3: Religious Belief and Practice................................21
Chapter 4: The Muslim Experience: Identity, Assimilation and Community........29
Chapter 5: The Muslim Experience: Challenges, Worries and Problems . 35
Chapter 6: Political and Social Values .............................41
Chapter 7: Foreign Policy, Terrorism, and Concerns about Extremism...........49
Chapter 8: Study Methodology..................57
Survey Topline.....................................75

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FOREWORD

Muslims constitute a growing and increasingly important segment of American society. Yet there is surprisingly little quantitative research about the attitudes and opinions of this segment of the public for two reasons. First, the U.S. Census is forbidden by law from asking questions about religious belief and affiliation, and, as a result, we know very little about the basic demographic characteristics of Muslim Americans. Second, Muslim Americans comprise such a small percentage of the U.S. population that general population surveys do not interview a sufficient number of them to allow for meaningful analysis.

This Pew Research Center study is therefore the first ever nationwide survey to attempt to measure rigorously the demographics, attitudes and experiences of Muslim Americans. It builds on surveys conducted in 2006 by the Pew Global Attitudes Project of Muslim minority publics in Great Britain, France, Germany and Spain. The Muslim American survey also follows on Pew’s global surveys conducted over the past five years with more than 30,000 Muslims in 22 nations around the world since 2002.

The methodological approach employed was the most comprehensive ever used to study Muslim Americans. Nearly 60,000 respondents were interviewed to find a representative sample of Muslims. Interviews were conducted in Arabic, Urdu and Farsi, as well as English. Subsamples of the national poll were large enough to explore how various subgroups of the population -- including recent immigrants, native-born converts, and selected ethnic groups including those of Arab, Pakistani, and African American heritage -- differ in their attitudes The survey also contrasts the views of the Muslim population as a whole with those of the U.S. general population, and with the attitudes of Muslims all around the world, including Western Europe. Finally, findings from the survey make important contributions to the debate over the total size of the Muslim American population.

The survey is a collaborative effort of a number of Pew Research Center projects, including the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press, the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life and the Pew Hispanic Center. The project was overseen by Pew Research Center President Andrew Kohut and Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life Director Luis Lugo. The Pew Research Center’s Director of Survey Research, Scott Keeter, served as project director for the study, with the close assistance of Gregory Smith, Research Fellow at the Pew Forum. Many other Pew researchers participated in the design, execution and analysis of the survey.

Pew researchers sought the counsel of outside experts in the conceptualization and development of the survey project. Amaney Jamal, assistant professor in the Department of Politics at Princeton University and a specialist in the study of Muslim public opinion, served as senior project advisor.

The project's outside advisory board included researchers with expertise in the study of Muslims in America:

• Ihsan Bagby, University of Kentucky
• Zahid H. Bukhari, Muslims in American Public Square Project (MAPS) and the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University
• Louis Cristillo, Teachers College, Columbia University
• Sally Howell, Program in American Culture, University of Michigan
• Peter Mandaville, Center for Global Studies, George Mason University
• Ingrid Matteson, Hartford Seminary
• Farid Senzai, Institute for Social Policy and Understanding

The fieldwork for this project was carried out by Schulman, Ronca & Bucuvalas, Inc., with the particular assistance of Chintan Turakhia, Robert McGaw, Maria Evans and Mark A. Schulman. J. Michael Brick of Westat and Courtney Kennedy of the University of Michigan served as methodological consultants. Shirin Hakimzadeh, Richard Fry, and Jeffrey S. Passel of the Pew Hispanic Center also provided assistance. The team at Princeton Survey Research Associates International – in particular Larry Hugick, Jonathan Best, Stacy DiAngelo and Julie Gasior – helped to develop the sample used to reach Muslims nationwide. Michael P. Battaglia of Abt Associates Inc. provided information that helped in the design of the sampling approach.

The Institute for Social Policy and Understanding provided assistance with focus group work that helped shape the survey questionnaire. Sufia Azmat, Narges Bajoghli, and Randa Jamal assisted with back-translation of the questionnaire.

The survey design was guided by the counsel of our advisors, contractors and consultants, but the Pew Research Center is solely responsible for the interpretation and reporting of the data.

Andrew Kohut
President
Pew Research Center

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