10/03/2026

Saúl Martínez

Researcher

"Vote as you pray: Exposure to Catholic identity and political preferences"

Abstract

This study examines how early-life exposure to Catholic social identity influences adult social identification and the formation of political preferences in Spain. Using quasi-random variation in childhood exposure to Holy Week processions, proxied by weather shocks, I analyze survey data from over 21,800 Spanish respondents. Catholic identity exposure in childhood leads to increased support for conservative political parties in adulthood as well as more conservative-leaning self-identification, while no change is observed in political participation. As evidence for the mechanism, I find that greater exposure in youth leads to stronger adult Catholic identification, more frequent religious service attendance, and a higher likelihood of having a Catholic partner. No effect is found on education, income, proxies for patriotism or trust in people, which could be alternative mechanisms. These results suggest that social exposure in childhood can influence identification with a group and political behavior in adulthood, contributing to the literature on identity, political beliefs formation and religion.

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