"Spiritual, but Not Religious": The Impact of Parental Divorce on the Religious and Spiritual Identities of Young Adults in the United States

In recent years, researchers have exhibited considerable interest in the distinctions between "religion" and "spirituality," and in the apparently growing numbers of people in western societies who self-identify as "spiritual but not religious." However, few studies hav...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Review of religious research 2008-06, Vol.49 (4), p.379-394
Main Authors: Zhai, Jiexia Elisa, Ellison, Christopher G., Stokes, Charles E., Glenn, Norval D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adulthood
Childhood
Christianity
Contemporary period
Divorce
General subjects
History and sciences of religions
Identity
On Religion and Youth
Parents
Protestantism
Religion
Religiosity
Religious identity
Sociological studies
Spiritual belief systems
Young Adults
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Summary:In recent years, researchers have exhibited considerable interest in the distinctions between "religion" and "spirituality," and in the apparently growing numbers of people in western societies who self-identify as "spiritual but not religious." However, few studies have systematically examined the antecedents or correlates of these important constructs. Using data on a nationwide (US) sample of 1,500 young adults (ages 18-35), half of whom are children of divorce and the other half of whom were raised in intact, two-parent families, our results underscore the potential importance of parental divorce in giving rise to a "spiritual but not religious" identity. Specifically, offspring of divorce constitute the majority (62%) of this category in our sample. Even with controls for sociodemographic factors, offspring of divorce are significantly less likely to identify themselves as "religious" but no less inclined to self-identify as "spiritual," as compared with young adults from intact families. Implications of these patterns for the intergenerational transmission of religious faith and other aspects of contemporary American culture are discussed.
ISSN:0034-673X
2211-4866