I hear what you're saying. And I believe the study results are saying what you're saying too. I just don't know if the results of the questions (though we don't know what those all are) point to that definitive conclusion.
Like this one:
The thought that a religious person will be honest, but an atheist will not
It isn't the thought that a religious person will be honest, and an atheist will not. It is the thought that a religious person is SUPPOSED to be honest, according to the faith they are supposedly living by. Which as we know, doesn't necessarily mean anything, and too often doesn't mean anything. But it is supposed to mean something.
It doesn't have to be making a statement about atheists at all.
Last year I was choosing a mortgage lawyer... from the yellow pages. Knew nothing about them. Had no idea who to choose. Totally blind pick, knowing nothing about any of them. But one of the ads had a lawyer professing christian values. I hesitated, because that doesn't have to mean anything (and might even be a smart marketing tool), but I chose him. He ended up being very honest, and even gave us money back because it cost him less to do things than he had estimated.
I was still shooting blind choosing him, because I knew nothing about him personally. I only knew what he was supposed to be, according to his profession.
Before anyone jumps on that as prejudice... lets say I was faced with another blind pick. One of the advertisments says, atheist with strong humanistic values, or something of the like. He would have been the one who stood out, and I probably would have given him the chance.
Peace,
Tammy