c. 1999 Religion News Service

UNDATED _ A new study by Princeton sociologists reports that evangelical Christian families are far more progressive in action than the words of their leaders might suggest.”The Evangelical Family Paradox: Conservative Rhetoric, Progressive Practice,”is the latest study in an ongoing research endeavor by W. Bradford Wilcox, a doctoral student at Princeton University, and John P. Bartkowski, a professor of sociology at Princeton. It was published in the summer issue of the non-sectarian, non-partisan quarterly journal the Responsive Community.

Wilcox and Bartkowski call their findings a paradox because they found,”Evangelical family practice does not match evangelical family rhetoric.” Rhetoric from evangelical leaders, such as the Southern Baptist Convention’s 1998 resolution that called on wives to”submit … graciously”to their husbands, is often disconnected from the day-to-day experiences of evangelical families, the researchers say.

The researchers find evangelical men and women often share in parenting and household duties. Wilcox said evangelical women often are”relieved”when their husbands take the lead in getting their families to church or having a home Bible study.

He and Bartkowski argue that the rhetoric is designed to distinguish evangelical families from other American families.”It’s an effort to sort of flag their difference …, in a sense, to signal their purity,”said Wilcox in an interview.”But why doesn’t this powerful family focus translate into differences in the relationships between husbands and wives, given the conservative gender rhetoric and attitudes found among evangelicals?”the researchers ask.

For reasons ranging from socioeconomic mobility to heightened emotional expressiveness, evangelical families are at least as progressive _ if not more so _ than other American families.

Despite public proclamations of conservative family values, evangelical family practices such as male participation in household tasks like cooking and cleaning do not differ from other American couples.

On the contrary,”evangelical fathers are more involved with their children than other fathers,”the report states.”They have dinner with their children and volunteer for youth activities like soccer and Scouts more than other fathers,”it continues.”In many ways, then, evangelical men more closely resemble the iconic new father of the 1990s _ the expressive, egalitarian family man _ than do other men,”it says.

At the same time, though, Wilcox, who was a fellow at the Brookings Institution, has found that conservative Protestants are twice as likely to use corporal punishment than other parents.”It’s a neo-traditional style of parenting, where you combine more spanking with more hugging and praising,”Wilcox said.

The study identifies socioeconomic changes among evangelicals as a possible root of the new progressive evangelical family.

The reports says that from 1972 to 1994, the percentage of evangelical Americans who were college graduates doubled, leading to a more middle-class leaning in the evangelical community.”I think evangelicals have moved to a large extent from a more working class background to a more middle class,”said Wilcox.

But socioeconomic mobility does not entirely account for the difference between evangelical parents and other parents.”The warm, expressive character of evangelical parenting appears, in part, to be an outgrowth of the increasingly therapeutic character of American evangelicalism more generally,”the report states, citing the displays of emotion that are observable at Promise Keepers rallies and megachurch support group meetings.

Wilcox hopes that this study will shed light on this evangelical family issue, particularly for feminists who are critical of groups like the Promise Keepers for what they see as rigid gender roles.”I think it’s important to balance those criticisms with an appreciation for the extent to which conservative Protestants have made efforts to focus the attention of their constituents or their members on the needs of families and children,”said Wilcox.

AMB END LEBOWITZ