A study released by Arizona Christian University's Cultural Research Center Director George Barna showed that young adults are at a "spiritual disadvantage" when their parents do not have a biblical worldview.
The Christian Post revealed that the study, "The Worldview Dilemma of American Parents," is the first report of the Arizona Cultural Research Center's "American Worldview Inventory 2022." The study was conducted in January on 600 American parents who have children aged 12 and below. The parents answered a set of questions that measured their beliefs and behavior under eight worldview application categories.
The study, released on March 8, acknowledged the reality that every adult has a worldview. The study said this worldview is significantly developed by parents in their children before they become teenagers.
"But there's a problem," Barna said.
"More than nine out of 10 parents of children under age 13 have a muddled worldview," he stressed.
The research showed 67% or two thirds of pre-teen parents identified themselves as Christians but only 2% admit possessing a biblical worldview. The research showed that since a majority of the parents are Millennials, they are the least to likely possess a biblical worldview. The study also showed that the younger the parent, the more they veer away from a biblical worldview.
Barna elaborated that parents teach their children what they know and often model what they believe. As such, they can only give what they have even in terms of their beliefs on life and spirituality. Barna clarified that a child's worldview is influenced by many agents but the parents' remain the primary influence. Parents also act as the gatekeeper of the other influences that may affect their children.
In line with the alternative worldviews, the study identified them as Moralistic Therapeutic, Secular Humanism, Postmodernism, Nihilism, Deism, Marxism/Critical Theory, and Eastern Mysticism/New Age. The study showed less than 1% of parents singularly embrace any of these worldviews.
"That leaves more than nine out of 10 parents of pre-teens--a full 94%--having a worldview known as Syncretism, a blending of multiple worldviews in which no single life philosophy is dominant, producing a worldview that is diverse and often self-contradictory," Barna disclosed.
While a large majority of the parents possess four of the competing worldviews. The study indicated that six out of 10 parents have a very limited advocacy found in Secular Humanism, Postmodernism, Marxism, and Nihilism. This means that young adults would most likely have a variety of beliefs operating in the way they perceive and act in the world.
These parents dismiss the Bible as an accurate and reliable source on the truth of God. Only four out of 10 pre-teen parents do believe that the Bible is credible in containing God's words for humanity. Of these believers, 45% admit to reading the Bible at least weekly.
An interesting aspect of the study showed that Protestants were eight times more likely to have a biblical worldview. Evangelical churches showed thrice more likely. However, 19% of these respondents disclosed attending such types of churches.
Wealth is said to be factor affecting an individual's biblical worldview. Respondents who belong to a middle-income household were most likely to hold a biblical worldview. While parents earning $40,000 to $75,000 annually embrace Biblical Theism. Children who belong to working class homes or low-income households only have an average level biblical worldview. On the extreme side, parents who earn more than $100,000 annually rarely possess a worldview according to the Bible.
