The survey,
commissioned by American research firm Grey Matter, asked 1,000 American adults
whether they feel the Christian faith generally has a positive impact, a
negative impact, or no real impact on 16 different areas of society, including
sexuality, poverty, business ethics, crime, the role of women in society, and
how people treat the environment.

It found that 72pc
believed the Christian faith has a positive impact on children being raised with
good morals, while 19pc feel the faith has no real impact.

Eight percent said
they believed it has a negative impact in this area.

Seventy two percent
also said they thought that the Christian faith had a positive impact in the
realm of helping the less fortunate, with 20pc perceive no real impact, and 8pc
who feel there was a negative impact.

Fifty-two percent
believe the Christian faith positively impacts keeping the United States as a
strong nation.

Thirty six percent
see no real impact, while 11pc believe the faith has a negative impact.

Forty-nine percent
see a positive impact on the role of women in society, while 33pc perceive no
real impact, and 19pc see a negative impact in this area.

Pluralities of
Americans also said that Christianity had a positive impact
on:

• The amount of crime
  in society: 45pc positive, 33pc no impact, 22pc negative
• The amount of poverty
  in society: 41pc positive, 36pc no impact, 23pc negative
• The amount of
  violence in society: 39pc positive, 34pc no impact, 27pc
  negative
• Differences of
  opinion being discussed in a civil manner: 38pc positive, 42pc no impact, 20pc
  negative
• Ethics in the
  business world: 34pc positive, 44pc no impact, 22pc
  negative
• Participation in
  politics and voting: 33pc positive, 44pc no impact, 23pc
  negative
• The amount of
  substance abuse in society: 33pc positive, 43pc no impact, 23pc
  negative
• How people treat the
  environment: 30pc positive, 54pc no impact, 15pc negative

The most negative
perception is how the Christian faith impacts sexuality in society. Just 26pc
feel the faith has a positive impact in this area, while 37pc see no real
impact, and 37pc believe it has a negative impact.

When the 16 areas
mentioned in the survey are averaged together, the findings show that 13pc of
all Americans believe that Christian faith has a strongly positive impact, 29pc
see a somewhat positive impact.

Thirty seven percent
see no impact, 15pc perceive a somewhat negative impact, and 7pc believe the
faith has a strongly negative impact on American society.