The Impact of Church Activities and Socialization on African‐American Religious Commitment*

Objective. This article examines religious commitment (church involvement, private devotionalism, and religious salience) among African Americans as a function of being served by a religious congregation, perception of the historical role of the church in relation to the group, and religious and racial socialization. Methods. Drawing on traditional Christian expectations of the church, hypotheses are tested using the 1979–1980 National Survey of Black Americans. Three alternative models are tested that explicitly compare the effects of church activities with conventional socialization and demographic models of religious commitment. Results. The results show that the church's fulfillment of its normative roles of discipleship and ministry is profoundly important for understanding religiosity, even controlling for other conventional predictors. Conclusions. The analysis illustrates a central, and previously unaddressed, link between religious institutions and individual religiosity. The results have consequences for churches that might consider reprioritizing their activities in response to faith‐based initiatives because social‐service types of church activities influence religious commitment to a lesser degree than activities that emphasize spiritual growth.     

Substance use among older youth transitioning from foster care: Examining the protective effects of religious and spiritual capital

Among older youth transitioning from the foster care system, this longitudinal study examined the association of religious and spiritual capital to substance use in the past year at age 19. Participants consisted of African American (N = 179) and White non‐Hispanic (N = 133) older youth in foster care. Drawing from social capital theory, it was posited that religious service attendance (a proxy for religious capital) and belief in a spiritual force (a proxy for spiritual capital) would be inversely associated with substance use. Multiple logistic regression results indicated support for the first and second hypothesis for White foster youth only. Among White foster youth, more frequent religious service attendance and greater belief in a spiritual force were associated with a lower likelihood of illegal substance and polysubstance use. No association between religious or spiritual capital and substance use was found among African American foster youth. The findings underscore the importance of conducting spiritual assessments to help ensure older foster youth who have strong religious or spiritual orientations are in environments where they are accommodated and supported.     

Religious pluralism and the North Carolina religious adherence rate, 1926

Data from the 1926 Census of Religious Bodies are utilized to explore the 1926 North Carolina religious economy. State, regional and county variations in religious adherence are estimated and analyzed, and religious primacy groups are identified. In 1926 Baptists were the denominational primacy group, and Southern Baptists were the primacy religious group for the state, but neither group dominated the North Carolina religious marketplace. Regional-level religious pluralism and denominational primacy data provide support for the Stark, Finke and Iannaccone religious pluralism hypothesis, but county-level data fail to provide support. Further evaluation of the association among religious primacy, religious pluralism and local market penetration is warranted since support for the religious pluralism proposition appears to vary by the unit of analysis employed.     

Ambiguity,pessimism, and rational religious choice

Using a subclass of the α-maximin expected-utility preference model, in which the decision maker’s degree of ambiguity and degree of pessimism are each parameterized, we present a theory of religious choice in the Pascalian decision theory tradition, one that can resolve dilemmas, address the “many Gods objection,” and address the ambiguity inherent in religious choice. Parameterizing both the degree of ambiguity and the degree of pessimism allows one to examine how the two interact to impact choice, which is useful regardless of the application. Applying this model to religious choice is a move beyond subjective expected-utility theory, allowing us to show that a change in either the degree of ambiguity or the degree of pessimism can lead a decision maker to “convert” from one religion to another.     

The Revival of Muslim Communities in Russia's Regions

In the Federation of Russia's regions, revival of Islam has been accompanied by formation of the primary cells of Muslim communities—mahallah. However, many Islamic researchers and Muslims recognize that these communities do not play a substantial role in the life of believers. The article is based on results of a sociological study involving the mosque personnel, sponsored by the Islamic Studies Center of the Academy of Sciences of Tatarstan. Expert interviews and other documents are also reviewed. Research revealed basic problems impeding the proper functioning of reviving Muslim communities in the region. These include financial problems hindering economic independence, personnel problems despite numerous religious educational institutions, lack of library resources including high quality religious literature, lack of unity among Russia's Muslims, and the need to overcome ideological discrepancies within the larger community of Muslim believers, the ummah.     

It Takes Two for a Culture War

This article examines the tense relations between religious and secular in Israel and the prospects for what has been described by different observers as a “culture war.” Specifically, the consequences and implication of the challenges to church‐state arrangements by social, economic, and demographic changes, and growing religious‐secular tensions are studied. The empirical investigation of these issues relies on a survey (n = 508) of a representative, random sample of the adult Jewish population in Israel. Research findings indicate that the culture war scenario exaggerates the actual state of affairs because secularism in Israel is lacking coherence and commitment and alternatives that circumvent conflict are available. Rather than a culture war between the religious and secular camps in Israel, different battles are taking place, waged in different realms with different constituencies, tactics, strategies, and levels of commitment whose combined outcome is yet to be determined.     

Comparative study of attitudes to religious groups in New Zealand reveals Muslim-specific prejudice

ABSTRACT

The March 15th terrorist attack started a national dialogue about prejudice in New Zealand. Previous research has investigated attitudes towards Muslims in comparison to ethnic minorities. However, presently, there are no nationally representative studies in New Zealand systematically comparing attitudes to Muslims with attitudes to other religious groups. Here, we present evidence from the New Zealand edition of the International Social Survey Programme module on religion, a national postal survey (N?=?1335) collected between September 2018 and February 2019. We assess perceived threat and negativity towards Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, and Atheists. We find substantially greater perceived threat and negativity towards Muslims compared with other groups. In particular, older people, New Zealand Europeans, men, and those with more right-wing attitudes report greater threat and negativity towards Muslims. In line with previous studies, higher religious identification and higher education predict greater acceptance. Taken collectively, these results reveal that the Muslim Acceptance Gap in this country is substantial, and greater challenges for acceptance are evident among lower-educated, right-wing, older, secular, and male populations. The magnitude of this gap reveals a substantial challenge to the future of New Zealand where religious and secular people can live without evoking prejudice.     

Atheism and Religion in the USSR

The authors of this article attempt to define the religious person in the USSR, including such aspects as degree of faith, age, sex and nationality. They examine various social forces tending to produce religious belief and describe the efforts of churches on the one hand, and of atheist organizations on the other, to win adherents to their respective viewpoints. "Concreteness in the Study and Overcoming of Religion," Voprosy Filosofii, 1961, No. 3 — slightly abridged.     

Is religious and existential well-being important in quality of life in Hong Kong Chinese?

The present study aims to determine the extent to which general QoL is predicted by religious and existential well-being, taking into consideration the intensity of participants’ religious and personal beliefs. Additionally, we examine the differences between Christians, believers in the Chinese religions, and those who are not religious. The study is based on the secondary analysis of a cross-sectional survey on the Spiritual Well-being scale (SWBS), which encompasses religious (RWB) and existential well-being (EWB). Participants (N = 445) were comprised of three religious subsamples for known group comparisons: a Chinese religions group (CRG) (n = 133), comprising Buddhism (23.1%), Taoism (5.2%), folk religions and ancestral worship (1.5%); a Christian group (n = 144) consisting of Roman Catholics (8.3%) and Protestants (24%); and non-believers (NRel) (n = 167). Regardless of their religious affiliations, QoL scores were the same in the overall sample. However, when taking the extent of religious commitment and sense of belonging into consideration, religious believers had higher scores in QoL and SWBS than non-believers (highest in Christians, followed by CRG and NRel). Hierarchical regressions showed that EWB was the only significant predictor of QoL after controlling for gender, age, and the extent of religious belief and commitment. The data indicated positive influences of religious beliefs on QoL and SWBS, although distinct affiliations might have affected these scores to a different extent. Fostering RWB and EWB are vital to promoting QoL.     

Community Service Use by Older Adults: The Roles of Sociocultural Factors in Rural–Urban Differences

ABSTRACT

This study examined the influence of sociocultural factors in explaining the rural–urban differences in home and community-based service (HCBS) use among older adults. Survey data of 228 older adults living in Alabama were analyzed. Sociocultural factors included participants’ perceptions of service availability, attitudes toward seeking formal help, informal support, and religious behaviors. Rural older adults were less likely to use HCBS than their urban counterparts (p < .05). An interaction effect between perceived service availability and church attendance was found. These findings suggest a need for collaborations between community aging services with religious organizations to ensure existing programs are accessible to older adults living in rural areas. Future research based upon large probability samples is needed to shed more light on the relation between church attendance and service use.     

Attendance of Religious Organizations as a Predictor of Neighborhood Satisfaction

Abstract

The current article explores the correlation between neighborhood satisfaction, resident demographics, and participation in religious organizations. The data used in this article came from the first wave of the Strong Communities household survey, collected from 229 households in the Strong Communities service area in Greenville, South Carolina. The comparison sample consisted of 238 households and the sample was limited to a parent or a caregiver of a child under the age of 10. The results showed that there were no significant relationships found between neighborhood satisfaction and attendance in neighborhood organizations. Studies, which linked residential and neighborhood satisfaction with religious associations showed that religious practice promotes the well-being of individuals, families, and the community. The aim of this article is to further investigate if religious organizations effect neighborhood satisfaction. More research is needed in the field of neighborhood satisfaction based on demographic variables as well as affiliations with religious organizations.     

The History and Specifics of Contemporary Islamic Revival in the Chechen Republic

Islamic revival is reviewed for the war-scarred Chechen Republic, including its historical and post-Soviet contexts. Chechnya's Muslim community is shown to be various, with followers of a customary Islam based on Sunni practice (Shafi'i doctrine) and Sufism vying with followers of more recent, fundamentals-oriented “Wahhabism” or Salafi Islam imported from abroad. Some consider themselves to be believers but do not strictly observe religious rituals, and some ignore them. Data is based on survey research from 2003, augmented by the author's discussion of Chechen wirds, brotherhoods sometimes associated with Muridism, and teips, loosely defined kin-groups broader than a clan, as well as Chechen pilgrimage practices.     

Social networks and immigration stress among first‐generation Mandarin‐speaking Chinese immigrants in Los Angeles

This study examined relationships between social networks and immigration stress among first‐generation Chinese immigrants. Using data from a larger study of health behavior among first‐generation Mandarin/English‐speaking immigrants residing in the Los Angeles metropolitan area (N = 1,183), this study found that Chinese immigrants living closer to immediate family and maintaining larger social networks experienced lower immigration stress. Unexpectedly, immigrants with larger family sizes and who participated in voluntary associations (e.g., religious, alumni, and nationality associations) reported increased immigration stress. The findings suggest that practitioners need to be cautious of a possible downside in designing interventions to expand social networks among immigrant clients. The study is especially important in the context of a rapidly increasing immigrant population from Mainland China to the USA. Key Practitioner Message: ● Working with immigration families should incorporate assessment of their social network; ● Interventions designed to facilitate supportive social networks should differentiate different social network ties; ● Different social network ties may affect the stress level of immigrants differently.     

Chronic Illnesses and Depression Among Chinese Immigrant Elders

Abstract

Objectives: The purpose of the study is to explore the unique effects of various chronic illnesses on depression in a sample of Chinese immigrant elders. Methods: The data were collected in the Greater Boston area at various social service agencies, social, and religious institutions. A self-administered sample of 177 Chinese-speaking immigrant elders was included in the study. The Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) was used to measure depressive symptoms in the study. Regression analysis was performed for three measures of depression: 7-selected CES-D scale, its subscale somatic symptoms, and depressive symptoms. Results: Chronic illnesses have various effects on the selected CES-D score, and its subscales under the total sample and the samples of male and female respondents. Conclusions: The findings suggest that medical, psychological, and social work treatments or interventions for depression should take the impact of chronic illnesses into consideration.     

Caregiver's Spirituality and Its Influence on Maintaining the Elderly and Disabled in a Home Environment

ABSTRACT

This study examined the role that faith-based organizations play for caregivers in maintaining the elderly and disabled in their homes. The study explored if persons who use religious beliefs and practices cope with caregiver stress better than those who do not use religious beliefs and practices. The study also explored the role of religious coping as a factor affecting decisions to institutionalize, and the role that faith-based practices and organizations play in helping caregivers maintain the elderly and disabled in their homes.     

Religious involvement and group identification: The case of Hispanics in the United States

This study examines the link between religious involvement and racial group identification among Hispanics in the United States. Relying on the multifaceted nature of religious involvement, this study focuses on five dimensions of religious involvement—church attendance, prayer, the importance one places on religion, one's belief in God's love, and religious affiliation. Using the data from the Panel Study of American Religion and Ethnicity (1st wave, 2006), this study employs regression analysis. The results show that, among the five dimensions of religious involvement, only church attendance has a significant effect on racial group identification; Hispanics who frequently attend church are more likely to identify with Hispanics. This study suggests that church attendance increases Hispanics’ group identification for two reasons: first, because of the formation of Hispanic-oriented churches; and second, because of the intense interaction among Hispanics within their church communities.     

Spirituality Among Alzheimer's Caregivers: Psychometric Reevaluation of the Intrinsic Spirituality Scale

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to reevaluate psychometric properties of the Intrinsic Spirituality Scale (ISS) and to compare its results to the original psychometric report. Attendees of Alzheimer's caregiver support groups constituted the sample, relevant to this measure given their traditional, frequent use of spirituality as a coping resource. Data were randomly split for factor and reliability analyses (N ₁= 152) and validity analysis (N ₂= 152). Factor analysis on the ISS loaded all items on a single dimension of spirituality. Reliability was strong. Convergent validity was suggested via significant correlations with prayer measures. Enhanced with the original findings, these results lend credibility to the ISS as a viable spiritual assessment tool. The ISS offers social service professionals a valuable tool for assessing spirituality that is inclusive of individuals whose spirituality is nontheistic or for whom spirituality exists independently from, or outside of, organized religious structures. Future analyses with additional populations may broaden the ISS applicability among persons with diverse demographic and spiritual backgrounds.