Religiosity Buffers Effects of Some Stressors on Depression but Exacerbates Others

Although religiosity is protective for mortality and morbidity, its relationship with depression is unclear. We used the 1994 Alameda County Study survey of 2,537 subjects aged 50–102 to analyze associations between two forms of religiosity and depression as well as the extent to which religiosity b...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences Psychological sciences and social sciences, 1998-05, Vol.53B (3), p.S118-S126
Main Authors: Strawbridge, William J., Shema, Sarah J., Cohen, Richard D., Roberts, Robert E., Kaplan, George A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aging - psychology
Depression - etiology
Depression - prevention & control
Depression - psychology
Families & family life
Female
Financing, Personal
Health Status
Health Surveys
Humans
Male
Mental depression
Middle Aged
Religion
Religion and Psychology
Stress
Stress, Psychological
Citations: Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Although religiosity is protective for mortality and morbidity, its relationship with depression is unclear. We used the 1994 Alameda County Study survey of 2,537 subjects aged 50–102 to analyze associations between two forms of religiosity and depression as well as the extent to which religiosity buffers relationships between stressors and depression. Non-organizational religiosity included prayer and importance of religious and spiritual beliefs; organizational religiosity included attendance at services and other activities. Non-organizational religiosity had no association with depression; organizational religiosity had a negative relationship that weakened slightly with the addition of health controls. Both forms of religiosity buffered associations with depression for non-family stressors, such as financial and health problems. However, non-organizational religiosity exacerbated associations with depression for child problems, and organizational religiosity exacerbated associations with depression for marital problems, abuse, and caregiving. Religiosity may help those experiencing non-family stressors, but may worsen matters for those facing family crises.
ISSN:1079-5014
1758-5368
DOI:10.1093/geronb/53B.3.S118