75% of Young Jewish Americans Engage With Judaism Regularly, Study Finds

Project Prism examined the lives, values and changing Jewish identities of more than 2,000 Jewish-American adults ages 22 to 40.

By Shula Rosen

Three-quarters of young Jewish-American adults incorporate Judaism into their daily lives, even as many remain outside traditional communal institutions and a sizable minority have pulled back from Jewish spaces because of the current social and political environment, a recent study found.

Project Prism, conducted by Sense Worldwide and commissioned by the Jim Joseph Foundation, examined the lives, values and changing Jewish identities of more than 2,000 Jewish-American adults ages 22 to 40.

The research focused particularly on people who rarely or never participate in traditional Jewish communal institutions.

The study found that 75% regularly incorporate Jewish elements into their lives.

For 45%, however, that involvement takes place entirely through informal activities rather than institutions. Those practices include family meals, celebrating Jewish holidays at home and conversations about cultural issues.

At the same time, 39% said recent social and political events had prompted them to reduce their involvement or become more selective about participating in Jewish spaces.

Among respondents who had pulled back, 48% described the environment around discussions of Israel and Palestine as hostile and unproductive. Another 42% said such conversations lacked nuance, while 40% cited concerns about one-sided messaging.

Participants also indicated that Jewish activities should be flexible, manageable and easy to join.

They expressed a desire for environments where differing viewpoints and complicated issues can be discussed without participants facing social pressure or penalties for their positions.

The research also identified socially immersive Jewish experiences as an important factor in developing a lasting sense of belonging.

Such experiences included overnight summer camps, youth groups, Israel travel programs and Jewish schools.

Participation itself appeared to have lasting significance.

The study found that simply attending such an experience was more closely associated with positive outcomes later in life than whether participants reported feeling that they belonged while taking part.

The findings indicate that participation in established Jewish organizations is not the only measure of Jewish engagement among younger adults, with many maintaining connections to Jewish life through private, family-based and cultural practices.