In my most recent study of American Catholics (was funded by the Institute for Church life at the University of Notre Dame), I asked a national sample of registered parishioners a series of questions about their pastors. (In the relatively few cases where there was no resident pastor, I asked about the pastoral administrator.)

As I report what my sample of parishioners said, you might want to compare the findings with your perceptions of the pastor at your own parish, and how they compare to the national pattern.

Six of every ten parishioners said their pastors are under 60 years of age. About one-third said their pastor is under 50; another third said he is 50-59; 28 percent said he is over 60; and 10 percent did not know or refused to answer.

I asked if the pastor: (a) "Makes a special effort to know his parishioners," (b) "Is well liked by most members of the parish," (c) "Has strong leadership skills," and (d) "Is moving the parish in new and exciting directions."

---Nearly six of ten parishioners strongly agreed that their pastor makes a special effort to know the parishioners. Another 27 percent agreed somewhat. The rest disagreed (7 percent) or didn't know (9 percent).

---Seven of ten strongly agreed that the pastor is well liked; 19 percent agreed somewhat; only five percent disagreed; and eight percent did not know or didn't respond.

---Six of ten strongly agreed that the pastor has strong leadership skills; 25 percent agreed somewhat; six percent disagreed; nine percent did not know.

---Four of ten strongly agreed that the pastor is moving the parish in new and exciting directions; about one-third agreed somewhat; 14 percent disagreed; and 13 percent did not know.

This, I would say, is a very positive profile of the average Catholic pastor, according to parishioners. But, knowing that some pastors are viewed more favorably than others, I asked about the parishes themselves.

I thought parish size might be a factor. Perhaps pastors in small parishes get to know their parishioners more and, as a result, are viewed more favorably than pastors in large parishes. Perhaps priests with more outgoing personalities and leadership skills are assigned to large parishes.

It turns out that parishioners' perceptions of pastors not closely linked to parish size. The age distributions of priests in small parishes (under 1,000 members) and large parishes (over 3,000 members) are very similar. Parishioners in small parishes and large ones also perceive their pastors in much the same way with regard to leadership skills, the effort they make to know the parishioners, and their success in moving their parishes in new and exciting directions.

However, parishes with between 2,000 and 3,000 members are somewhat different from the others. For whatever reason, pastors of these parishes are least likely to get favorable ratings from their parishioners. It will take additional research before I can tell why.

In the meantime, I invite readers who belong to such parishes to see if they can pinpoint conditions that might be especially challenging for their pastors.

James D. Davidson is professor of sociology at Purdue University. His most recent book is "Catholicism in Motion: The Church in American Society" (Liguori/Triumph, 2005).