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The study of religion and politics is a strongly behavioral sub-discipline, and within the American context, scholars place tremendous emphasis on its influence on political attitudes and behaviors, resultuing in a better understanding of religion´s ability to shape voting patterns, party affiliation, and views of public policy.

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1. An Institutionalist Perspective on Religion and Politics; Kevin R. den Dulk and Elizabeth A. Oldmixon 2. Political Preferences and Institutional Structures: Religious Advocacy in the US Congress; Michael T. Heaney and Elizabeth A. Oldmixon 3. Religious-Market Interest Groups: Do They Sing with an Upper Class Accent?; J. Tobin Grant, Sandy H. Kim and Robert Velez 4. Religion and Political Parties: Mediation in the Mass Party Era; Brian Calfano 5. Serving God by Shaping Law: Religious Legal Advocacy in the United States; Daniel Bennett 6. Religion in the American Congress: The Case of the U.S. House of Representatives, 1953-2013; James L. Guth 7. The Importance of Religion to Understanding the Modern Presidency; Mark J. Rozell and Harold F. Bass 8. Regulating Religion: Bureaucracies, Faith-Based Organizations, and Constitutional Limits; David K. Ryden 9. Religious Actors in State Political Institutions; Kimberly H. Conger 10. Explaining Religious Violence across Countries: An Institutional Approach; Nilay Saiya 11. Conclusion: Religious Politics, Pluralism and the United States Constitution; Ted G. Jelen

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"This important new volume injects a much-needed institutionalist perspective into the study of religion and politics, pushing the boundaries of how we study the intersection beyond the usual focus on mass-level political attitudes and behaviors. The book is accessibly written while also having the potential to generate many new and exciting research questions for scholars." - Laura R. Olson, Centennial Professor, Clemson University, USA

"This volume addresses an important and under-explored question in the field of religion and politics: how religion shapes the governing institutions that ultimately determine whether and how religiously-derived preferences are reflected in public policy. Its contributions are diverse but thematically unified, shedding light on the role of religion in all three branches of government along with interest groups, political parties, and the states. The den Dulk and Oldmixon collection is an invaluable companion to the manifold studies of religion and political behavior that have emerged over the last twenty years." - Matthew Wilson, Associate Professor, Southern Methodist University, USA

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