Type | Journal Article |
---|---|
Author | E. Bradley |
Abstract | In their recent analysis of five counties in North Carolina, Ellison and George (1994) reported a positive association between frequency of church attendance and a variety of social resources. Using the "Americans' Changing Lives" data, this study replicates Ellison and George's analysis. The results of this study do not differ substantively from Ellison and George's observations in a southeastern community. In comparison to less frequent churchgoers, attenders report larger networks, more frequent telephone and in-person contacts, and enhanced perceptions of the supportive quality of their relationships. Also, this study finds no evidence to suggest that the observed social resource advantages among frequent attenders are the product of an overrepresentation of extroverted individuals and/or an underrepresentation of more neurotic persons among regular churchgoers. Finally, religious attendance does not appear to be more important to the constitution of individual social resources in the South than elsewhere. |
Publication | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion |
Volume | 34 |
Issue | 2 |
Pages | 259-267 |
Date | Jun., 1995 |
ISSN | 00218294 |
Short Title | Religious Involvement and Social Resources |
URL | http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.bu.edu/stable/1386771 |
Accessed | Fri Sep 25 12:05:47 2009 |
Library Catalog | JSTOR |
Extra | ArticleType: primary_article / Full publication date: Jun., 1995 / Copyright © 1995 Society for the Scientific Study of Religion |
Date Added | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
Modified | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
In comparison to less frequent churchgoers, attenders report larger networks, more frequent telephone and in-person contacts, and enhanced perceptions of the supportive quality of their relationships. Also, this study finds no evidence to suggest that the observed social resource advantages among frequent attenders are the product of an overrepresentation of extroverted individuals and/or an underrepresentation of more neurotic persons among regular churchgoers.
Type | Journal Article |
---|---|
Author | Christopher G. Ellison |
Author | Linda K. George |
Abstract | Although many studies suggest that religious participation enhances the social resources of individuals, there is little empirical evidence on this issue. This study develops a theoretical model linking institutional religious participation, social ties, and social support. Hypotheses derived from this model are then tested using data on a large (N = 2956) southeastern community sample. Frequent churchgoers report larger social networks, more contact with network members, more types of social support received, and more favorable perceptions of the quality of their social relationships than do their unchurched counterparts. Further, most of these empirical patterns withstand statistical controls for a wide range of covariates. A number of promising directions for future research on religious differences in social resources are identified. |
Publication | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion |
Volume | 33 |
Issue | 1 |
Pages | 46-61 |
Date | Mar., 1994 |
DOI | 10.2307/1386636 |
ISSN | 00218294 |
URL | http://www.jstor.org/stable/1386636 |
Accessed | Mon Sep 7 13:45:03 2009 |
Library Catalog | JSTOR |
Extra | ArticleType: primary_article / Full publication date: Mar., 1994 / Copyright © 1994 Society for the Scientific Study of Religion |
Date Added | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
Modified | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
This study develops a theoretical model linking institutional religious participation, social ties, and social support. Frequent churchgoers report larger social networks, more contact with network members, more types of social support received, and more favorable perceptions of the quality of their social relationships than do their unchurched counterparts.
Type | Journal Article |
---|---|
Author | Jennifer Nooney |
Author | Eric Woodrum |
Abstract | This study assesses religious coping and church-based social support as mechanisms explaining religious benefits to mental health. We build on recent research and test an explanatory model using the 1998 General Social Survey. The model considers both institutional and individual aspects of religiousness, and their interrelations, as predictors of mental health outcomes. It considers negative effects of religion along with the well-known positive effects. We found that benefits of attendance, a measure of institutional participation, are mediated by church-based social support. Benefits of prayer, an individual form of religiousness, are mediated by the similarly privatized religious coping. Institutional measures of religion were found to impact individuals' religious coping styles. Implications are suggested for the scientific study of religion as well as for the applied efforts of clergy, pastoral counselors, and lay church members concerned with improving religious benefits. |
Publication | Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion |
Volume | 41 |
Issue | 2 |
Pages | 359-368 |
Date | Jun., 2002 |
ISSN | 00218294 |
Short Title | Religious Coping and Church-Based Social Support as Predictors of Mental Health Outcomes |
URL | http://www.jstor.org/stable/1388014 |
Accessed | Mon Sep 7 13:51:31 2009 |
Library Catalog | JSTOR |
Extra | ArticleType: primary_article / Full publication date: Jun., 2002 / Copyright © 2002 Society for the Scientific Study of Religion |
Date Added | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
Modified | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
This study assesses religious coping and church-based social support as mechanisms explaining religious benefits to mental health.
Type | Journal Article |
---|---|
Author | Robert Joseph Taylor |
Author | Linda M. Chatters |
Abstract | Socio-demographic and religious factors were examined as predictors of the receipt of support from church members among a national sample of black Americans (n= 2,107). Among the religious variables, church attendance, church membership, subjective religiosity, and religious affiliation were all significantly related to the receipt of support. Demographic differences were apparent with men and younger respondents being more likely, while divorced respondents were less likely to receive support. Having a higher income and residency in rural areas were associated with never needing assistance from church members versus simply never receiving aid. The discussion focused on further areas of investigation for church-based support networks and their interface with family and friend networks. |
Publication | Review of Religious Research |
Volume | 30 |
Issue | 2 |
Pages | 193-203 |
Date | Dec., 1988 |
ISSN | 0034673X |
URL | http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.bu.edu/stable/3511355 |
Accessed | Sat Oct 17 16:13:40 2009 |
Library Catalog | JSTOR |
Extra | ArticleType: primary_article / Full publication date: Dec., 1988 / Copyright © 1988 Religious Research Association, Inc. |
Date Added | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
Modified | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
Socio-demographic and religious factors were examined as predictors of the receipt of support from church members among a national sample of black Americans (n= 2,107). Among the religious variables, church attendance, church membership, subjective religiosity, and religious affiliation were all significantly related to the receipt of support.
Type | Journal Article |
---|---|
Author | Juliana van Olphen |
Author | Amy Schulz |
Author | Barbara Israel |
Author | Linda Chatters |
Author | Laura Klem |
Author | Edith Parker |
Author | David Williams |
Abstract | BACKGROUND: A significant body of research suggests that religious involvement is related to better mental and physical health. Religion or spirituality was identified as an important health protective factor by women participating in the East Side Village Health Worker Partnership (ESVHWP), a community-based participatory research initiative on Detroit's east side. However, relatively little research to date has examined the mechanisms through which religion may exert a positive effect on health. OBJECTIVE: The research presented here examines the direct effects of different forms of religious involvement on health, and the mediating effects of social support received in the church as a potential mechanism that may account for observed relationships between church attendance and health. DESIGN: This study involved a random sample household survey of 679 African-American women living on the east side of Detroit, conducted as part of the ESVHWP. MAIN RESULTS: Results of multivariate analyses show that respondents who pray less often report a greater number of depressive symptoms, and that faith, as an important source of strength in one's daily life, is positively associated with chronic conditions such as asthma or arthritis. Tests of the mediating effect of social support in the church indicated that social support received from church members mediates the positive relationship between church attendance and specific indicators of health. CONCLUSIONS: These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that one of the major ways religious involvement benefits health is through expanding an individual's social connections. The implications of these findings for research and practice are discussed. |
Publication | Journal of General Internal Medicine |
Volume | 18 |
Issue | 7 |
Pages | 549-557 |
Date | Jul 2003 |
Journal Abbr | J Gen Intern Med |
ISSN | 0884-8734 |
URL | http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12848838 |
Accessed | Thu Nov 12 23:26:06 2009 |
Library Catalog | NCBI PubMed |
Extra | PMID: 12848838 |
Date Added | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
Modified | Sat Oct 1 16:55:15 2011 |
The research presented here examines the direct effects of different forms of religious involvement on health, and the mediating effects of social support received in the church as a potential mechanism that may account for observed relationships between church attendance and health. Conclusions: These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that one of the major ways religious involvement benefits health is through expanding an individual’s social connections.