Religious Attendance and Subjective Well-Being among Older Americans: Evidence from the General Social Survey

A growing body of research addresses religion and well-being among older adults. In investigating these significant aspects of older adults' lives, many studies find that religious attendance is positively associated with psychological well-being. However, this conclusion bears further scrutiny...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Review of religious research 2003-12, Vol.45 (2), p.116-129
Main Authors: Barkan, Steven E., Greenwood, Susan F.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Christianity
Church Attendance
Cognitive psychology
Contemporary period
Elderly
General subjects
Happiness
History and sciences of religions
Mental health
Older adults
Older people
Psychological research
Psychology
Psychology of religion
Religion and Mental Health
Religiosity
Religious attendance
Social interaction
Subjective wellbeing
United States of America
USA
Well Being
Wellbeing
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Summary:A growing body of research addresses religion and well-being among older adults. In investigating these significant aspects of older adults' lives, many studies find that religious attendance is positively associated with psychological well-being. However, this conclusion bears further scrutiny for several reasons, including a shortage of national data, the possibility that the effect found in some studies is due to the relationship of religious attendance with physical health, and lack of clarity on the reasons for this effect. This study addresses these gaps in prior research with data from pooled samples of the General Social Survey. Net of controls, we find among other results that religious attendance is positively associated with two measures of subjective well-being among adults age 65 and older. Final remarks address the theoretical implications of the findings and discuss directions for future research.
ISSN:0034-673X
2211-4866
DOI:10.2307/3512578