Protected by Faith? Religion and COVID-19 Vaccination Uptake among Young Adults in Germany

Abstract While religion has been widely discussed as a barrier to COVID-19 vaccination, the link between religiosity and vaccination behavior remains underexplored, especially in secular societies and for actual vaccination instead of intentions. This study examines whether and how religiosity is associated with COVID-19 vaccination uptake in Germany, using data from the CILS4EU-DE study, collected from March 2022 onward. Multiple-group structural equation models show that higher religiosity is associated with lower vaccination uptake, but only among Muslims. Although feelings of divine protection do not directly explain this link, they are indirectly associated with lower vaccination uptake by fostering conspiracy beliefs. These findings highlight the need for context-sensitive theorizing on religion as a determinant of health behavior.