Religion and women's sex role traditionalism

The relationship between religion and sex role orientation is examined in a 1964 study of 4843 white, married, college graduate women. It was hypothesized that 1) women with different religious affiliations differ in their levels of sex role traditionalism, with Catholics and fundamental Protestants being the most traditional, followed by mainline Protestants, then Jews, and finally by the religiously unaffiliated, who are expected to be the least traditional, and 2) these differences can be explained by differences in social characteristics or degree of religious involvement. Sex role traditionalism was measured by asking respondents to identify with either a feminist (career-oriented) or traditional (family-oriented) viewpoint. Baptists and Catholics had the most traditional sex role attitudes, followed by fundamentalists, then mainline Protestants. Women with no religion and Jewish women were most likely to identify themselves as feminists. The relationship of socioeconomic characteristics and sex role attitudes was weak, while the degree of religious involvement seemed to have an independent effect on traditionalism. 2 factors limit the generalizability of study results. Research suggests that a convergence in fertility behavior between Protestants and Catholics has taken place since 1964, although the basic connection between family values and religion persists. Also, a sample of college graduate women is likely to overrepresent agnostics and athiests and underrepresent other unaffiliated individuals, as well as to be weighted toward the upper socioeconomic groups.     

Policy Research and Politics: Some Inferences from the “Coleman Report” for the Policy Role of the Social Scientist

Abstract

The major objectives in this paper are to examine (1) the distribution of socioeconomic characteristics for Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland, and (2) the processes of educational, occupational, and income attainment for each religious group. The analysis shows that Catholic and Protestant employed males are not appreciably different in their educational characteristics; however, occupational and income differences are more substantial. The Protestant-Catholic income differences, for example, represent about one-fifth of the mean Catholic income. The analysis also shows that the process of status attainment differs for Protestants and Catholics. The income returns to each additional year of schooling, for example, are higher for Protestants than for Catholics.     

Research Note: Religious Affiliation and Poverty Explanations: Individual,Structural, and Divine Causes

Abstract

Prior studies of people's explanations for poverty have relied upon individual, structural, and fatalistic explanations. This paper explores an additional explanation for poverty, divine intervention. Using a sample of 360 college students, I show that divine intervention is a distinct explanation for poverty. I then examine if or how six religious groups—conservative, African American, and mainline Protestants, Catholics, the nonaffiliated, and those with “other” beliefs—differ in their views of individual, structural, and divine explanations for poverty. Results show that members of conservative Protestant denominations are more individualistic than Catholics and the nonaffiliated. African American Protestants were significantly more structuralist than conservative Protestants. African American Protestants are more likely than conservative Protestants, and both are more likely than Catholics, the nonaffiliated, and those with “other” beliefs, to believe that divine intervention is an important explanation for poverty.     

Happily Religious: The Surprising Sources of Happiness Among Lesbian,Gay, Bisexual,and Transgender Adults

This article analyzes the impact of religion on reported levels of subjective well‐being (general happiness) among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) adults. Although previous studies find religious affiliation to be a significant predictor of subjective well‐being among the general population in the United States, limited quantitative research investigates general happiness among sexual and gender minorities. This study augments the existing literature by using a national survey of LGBT adults conducted by the Pew Research Center in 2013. The results show that religious affiliation is a significant predictor of LGBT individuals’ happiness. LGBT individuals who identify as Catholic, agnostic or atheist, or with no particular religious affiliation report lower levels of happiness compared to mainline Protestants. Surprisingly, no significant differences are found between mainline Protestants (whose church doctrine often accepts same‐sex relations) and evangelical Protestants (whose church doctrine often condemns same‐sex relations). In addition, income is the only control variable that affects general happiness. Our analysis reveals interesting differences in the determinants of subjective well‐being between the LGBT and general population.     

Sex roles and depression among working spouses in the rural south

Two explanations for sex differences in psychiatric impairment (depressive symptomatology) are tested on a rural sample of white respondents drawn from Middle Tennessee. Gove's notions of role strain and role overload and Radloff's ideas concerning learned helplessness are placed in the context of traditional rural values undergoing change. The results reveal that there are no overall sex differences in depressive symptom scores among these respondents except when considering employment and marital status; married working females are more depressed than their male counterparts. Multiple Classification Analyses indicate that helplessness is the most efficacious explanation of sex differences. The implications of these findings for future research on depressive symptoms are discussed.     

Family Size and College Aspirations: A Note on Catholic-Protestant Differences

Data from a study of college aspirations among 40,000 Minnesota adolescents indicate that the relationship of family size to aspirations is somewhat higher among Protestants than Catholics. Overall aspirational differences between religious groups are minor. Further analysis suggests that these differences are probably not a function of financial capacities but rather of more basic socialization practices. The data are used to illustrate an alternative approach in analyzing the relevance of religion to contemporary society: examining processual differences between religious groups rather than concentrating only on outcomes–such as net differences in aspirations. The paper concludes by speculating that social process may be critical in distinguishing Protestants from Catholics but has generally been neglected in contemporary research on religion.     

Changes in Americans’ Views of Prayer and Reading the Bible in Public Schools: Time Periods,Birth Cohorts,and Religious Traditions

I use repeated cross‐sectional survey data spanning the years 1974 to 2010 to examine changes in Americans’ views of prayer and reading the Bible in public schools. Results from logistic regression models show that support for prayer and reading the Bible in public schools was relatively high in the 1970s and that differences between evangelical Protestants and both Catholics and mainline Protestants grew from the 1970s to the first decade of the twenty‐first century. Hierarchical age‐period‐cohort models demonstrate that changes in support for school prayer are due to both period and birth cohort changes, that baby boom cohorts are relatively likely to oppose prayer and reading the Bible in school, and that growing differences in support for prayer and reading the Bible in school between evangelical Protestants and both Catholics and mainline Protestants are predominantly due to changes across birth cohorts. Although religious liberals and conservatives have become more alike in many ways, evangelical Protestants have diverged from affiliates of other major religious traditions in their support for prayer in public schools. These results are relevant to debates regarding the social impact of religious affiliation, generational differences, and Americans’ views of the role of religion in the public sphere.     

Religious Affiliation and Marital Duration Among Those Who File for Divorce in California, 1966-1971

A two percent random sample of couples filing for divorce in California from 1966 through 1971 provides the data base for this study of religious affiliation and duration of marriage to separation. Our goal is twofold: to test the hypothesis that religious affiliation is related to marital duration to separation in the divorcing population, and to examine the conditions under which this relationship holds by using elaboration analysis. Our findings are in the expected direction for the most part, namely, that the percentage of individuals whose marriages lasted five years or more before separation was higher for Jewish and slightly higher for other (Conservative) Protestants, than for the National Council Protestants (Liberal) or Roman Catholics or those reporting no religious affiliation. Thus religious affiliation does make some differences. In addition, this finding holds true for the most part when we controlled on a series of third variables to see what impact they had on the zero order relationship.     

Assessing God Locus of Control as a Factor in College Students’ Alcohol Use and Sexual Behavior

Abstract. Objectives: This study explored God locus of control beliefs (ie, God's control over behavior) regarding their influence on alcohol use and sexual behavior as an alternative religiosity measure to religious behaviors, which does not capture perceived influence of religiosity. Additionally, demographic differences in religious beliefs were explored. Methods: College students aged 18–24 (N = 324) completed a survey between April 2012 and March 2013. Principal components and multivariate analyses were conducted. Results: Findings suggest that measures provide reliable, valid data from college students. God locus of control is linked to not consuming alcohol or engaging in sex. There were differences regarding relationship status and religious denomination. Conclusions: God locus of control beliefs are an appropriate construct for collecting data about college students’ religiosity. Furthermore, health educators at faith-based institutions could incorporate this construct into their programming, encouraging abstinence but also behaving responsibly for those who do drink and are sexually experienced.     

Unbuckling the Bible Belt: A State-Level Analysis of Religious Factors and Google Searches for Porn

While the link between individual religious characteristics and pornography consumption is well established, relatively little research has considered how the wider religious context may influence pornography use. Exceptions in the literature to date have relied on relatively broad, subjective measures of religious commitment, largely ignoring issues of religious belonging, belief, or practice. This study moves the conversation forward by examining how a variety of state-level religious factors predict Google searches for the term porn, net of relevant sociodemog raphic and ideological controls. Our multivariate findings indicate that higher percentages of Evangelical Protestants, theists, and biblical literalists in a state predict higher frequencies of searching for porn, as do higher church attendance rates. Conversely, higher percentages of religiously unaffiliated persons in a state predict lower frequencies of searching for porn. Higher percentages of total religious adherents, Catholics, or mainline Protestants in a state are unrelated to searching for porn with controls in place. Contrary to recent research, our analyses also show that higher percentages of political conservatives in a state predicted lower frequencies of porn searches. Our findings support theories that more salient, traditional religious influences in a state may influence residents—whether religious or not—toward more covert sexual experiences.     

Religion, social mobility and education in Scotland

The relationship among religion, education and social mobility in Scotland is analysed statistically using the Scottish Household Survey of 2001 . The large sample size allows much greater statistical power for this purpose than any previous source, and thus allows a more reliable assessment of claims that the stratifying effect of religion in Scotland may have declined. The questions investigated are as follows. What are the religious differences in the distributions of class origins and class destinations, in the movement between these (absolute mobility), and in the association of these (relative mobility, or social fluidity)? Do changes in social fluidity across cohorts vary among people with different religious affiliation? Are there religious differences in the association of origins and education, in the association of education and destinations, or in the role of education in social fluidity, and do any of these vary over cohorts? The conclusions are that, in younger cohorts, there is no religious difference in social status, and that in older cohorts Catholics are generally of lower status than Protestants and the non‐religious. Social fluidity does not, however, vary among religious groups, even for older cohorts, and does not change over time. The reason for convergence in social status of religious groups over time is probably the equalizing of educational attainment among the groups: there is no evidence for any of the cohorts that the labour‐market rewards to education differ by religion.     

Religious involvement, religious context, and self-assessed health in Europe

In the present study, the authors examine the extent to which effects of individual religious involvement on self-assessed health are influenced by the religious context (i.e., religious involvement at the country level). The authors test their expectations using individual level data (N = 127,257) on 28 countries from the European Social Surveys (2002-2008). Results of multilevel analyses show that individual religious attendance is positively related to self-assessed health in Europe. Protestants appear to feel healthier than Catholics. Moreover, modeling cross-level interactions demonstrates that religious denominations at the national level are influential: The health advantage of Protestants as compared to Catholics is greater as the percentage of Protestants in a country is higher, yet smaller as countries have a higher percentage of Catholics. The association between religious attendance and self-assessed health does not depend on the national level of religious attendance.     

Newspaper Coverage of Christianity in South Korea, 1996–2005

This study analyzes a sample of 2,614 news articles dealing with religions published in Chosun Ilbo from 1996 to 2005, focusing on how this major newspaper covered Christianity in terms of its tone and frames. The results show that this religion was portrayed in a neutral or positive manner and that both Protestants and megachurches were mostly considered providers of social work services. These findings have implications for academic, media, and religious sectors.     

Religiosity as a Determinant of Educational Attainment: The Case of Conservative Protestant Women in the United States

This paper examines the role of religiosity as a determinant of the educational attainment of women raised as conservative Protestants in the United States. A human capital model based on the demand and supply of funds for investments in education is used to develop hypotheses about various causal links between religiosity and years of schooling. The hypotheses are tested using data from the 1995 National Survey of Family Growth, a large-scale survey addressed to a representative sample of women in the United States. Among respondents raised as conservative Protestants, those who attended religious services frequently during their adolescent years are found to complete one more year of schooling than their counterparts who were less observant. The gap is smaller, but still sizeable and statistically significant, when other factors are held constant in a multivariate analysis. The empirical results are consistent with the hypothesis that positive demand-side influences are dominant and explain the observed association between religiosity and educational attainment.     

Nonsuicidal Self-injury in a College Population: General Trends and Sex Differences

Abstract

Objective: To describe basic nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) characteristics and to explore sex differences. Methods: A random sample from 8 universities were invited to participate in a Web-based survey in 2006–2007; 38.9% (n = 14,372) participated. Analysis assessed sex differences in NSSI prevalence, practices, severity, perceived dependency, and help-seeking; adjusted odds ratios for NSSI characteristics were calculated by sex status. Results: Lifetime NSSI prevalence rates averaged 15.3%. Females were more likely than males to self-injure because they were upset (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.6; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.3–2.1) or in hopes that someone would notice them (AOR = 1.6, 95% CI = 1.1–2.7). Males were 1.6 times (95% CI = 1.2–2.2) more likely to report anger and 4.0 times (95% CI = 2.3–6.8) more likely to report intoxication as an initiating factor. Sexual orientation predicted NSSI, particularly for women (Wald F = 8.81, p ≤ .000). Only 8.9% of the NSSI sample reported disclosing NSSI to a mental health professional. Conclusions: NSSI is common in college populations but varies significantly by sex and sexual orientation. NSSI disclosure is low among both sexes.     

Identity Consequences of Religious Changing: Effects of Motivation for Change on Identity Outcomes

Abstract

Comparisons of religious identity are made between two types of religious changers: (1) converts, those individuals who have changed their religious group affiliation due to change of religious belief, and (2) alternators, who have changed their religious group affiliation for some motive other than a change of belief. The religious changers are drawn from a variety of religious affiliations using a convenience sample. Analysis is quantitative, using logistic regression analysis and difference of means testing.

Predictions based in identity theory (Stryker 1980, 1987) argue that converts will show higher levels of salience and commitment to the religious identity as well as behave in ways more appropriate to the religion. Results indicate no postconversion difference between the two types. The project is a first attempt to use identity theory to address the consequences of identity change based on differing motivations. The literature is advanced through the application of quantitative methodology to a traditionally qualitative question (the conversion experience) and by shifting the focus from the process of religious conversion to its identity consequences.     

Religion and Trends in Euthanasia Attitudes among U.S. Adults, 1977–2004

Though many studies address the role of religion in predicting social attitudes over time, none has examined this relationship specifically for euthanasia. Using a large, nationally representative data source, this study seeks to address this void. Our findings indicate that considerable differences exist among religious denominations regarding the legalization of euthanasia. Specifically, we note a liberalizing trend for all included denominations. We also demonstrate substantial differences in the rates of liberalization, particularly in comparison to conservative Protestants. We conclude with an assessment of our findings relative to previous studies on religion and public opinion.

The Ties That Divide: Bonding Social Capital,Religious Friendship Networks,and Political Tolerance among Evangelicals*

Previous research has overwhelmingly found that Evangelical Protestants are generally less tolerant of outsiders than those of other religious traditions such as Catholics or Mainline Protestants. Using data from the 2005 Baylor Religion Survey, I examine the extent to which political tolerance is related to a bonding type of social capital that is typical of Evangelical Protestantism. Findings support most of the previous research into the relationship between religion and political tolerance, and support the hypothesis that social embeddedness within one’s congregation predicts intolerance among Evangelical Protestants, but not among those of other religious traditions. Implications for research into religious friendship networks and their potential dysfunctions are discussed.     

The Relationship Between Spiritual Well-Being and Health-Related Quality of Life in College Students

Abstract

Objective: This study investigated the relationship between spiritual well-being (SWB) and various aspects of health-related quality of life (HRQL) of college students. Participants and Methods: Two hundred twenty-five participants were surveyed during October 2010 to assess SWB and HRQL using the Spiritual Well-Being Scale and questions from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's scale for HRQL, respectively. Hierarchical multiple linear regression analyses tested the relationship between SWB and multiple measures of HRQL while controlling for sex, age, and race. Results: Participants who reported higher SWB scores were more likely to participate in religious-type activities and report better HRQL compared with students who reported a moderate sense of SWB. Jointly, SWB and participation in religious activities explained 18% of the variance in HQRL in this sample. Conclusions: SWB made a significant contribution to HRQL in a sample of college students. Such a relationship should be considered by campus health program planners to improve the quality of life of young adults.     

Status and Sex Variations in Modes of Parental Influence on Students' Decisions to go to College

Abstract

Although research has shown that conflicting expectations exist in the marital role for women, little is known about the impact of this conflict on female psychological well-being. This study empirically investigates the relationship between conflicting husband and wife sex role expectations for the female role and depressive symptoms in married women. Based on a community sample of 273 married women, it was found that women who indicate that a conflict in sex role expectations exists in their marriage report more symptoms of depression than married women who do not indicate such a discrepancy in sex role expectations. The effects of this relationship were found to be stronger for housewives than for women who are employed outside the home.