Danny Nussbaum

Jewish denominations have long been one of the primary lenses used by researchers and communal leaders to view and analyze American Jewish identity and behavior. There are, however, a number of problems with the use of denominational affiliation as an independent variable for understanding contemporary Jewish life. Within denominational groups, there is substantial diversity in individuals’ Jewish behaviors and beliefs. In addition, a growing number of individuals do not identify with a specific denomination. Although, on average, Jewish adults without a denomination are less engaged in Jewish life than those who identify with one of the largest denominations, there is diversity within the no-denomination group as well.
This chapter acknowledges the complexity of denominational identity and provides a data-informed assessment of the degree to which denominational identification continues to be a useful construct to understand the American Jewish experience since 1990. The review is based on reanalysis of national studies and of 25 local Jewish community studies conducted since 2015 by the authors and colleagues at Brandeis University and our research partners. The review begins with a discussion of the denominational identity construct by considering trends in denominational affiliation over time. We then consider the degree to which denominational labels effectively describe Jewish engagement. An alternative, data-driven typology based on self-reported behavior is then applied to identify different groups of Jews to describe engagement. We propose a set of explanations for choosing particular denominational labels. The review concludes with an assessment of the implications of our analyses for understanding how US Jewry identifies and engages with Jewish life.