| Updated: Jan. 8, 2021, 7:19 p.m. The gender wage gap is closing at a slower rate in Utah and other states considered to be more religious than in more secular states. But there are ways to fix that, researchers say, and the remedies start by being aware that piety can affect pay. Each of the six major world religions — Buddhism, Christianity, Folk, Hinduism, Islam and Judaism — promotes differentiated gender roles for men and women, which shape social norms, including in the workplace, according to “The Hidden Cost of Prayer: Religiosity and the Gender Wage Gap,” published in October in the Academy of Management Journal.