Is it the Sermon or the Choir?: Pastoral Support, Congregant Support, and Worshiper Mental Health
BackgroundAlthough religious involvement tends to be associated with improved mental health, additional work is needed to identify the specific aspects of religious practice that are associated with positive mental health outcomes. Our study advances the literature by investigating how two unique fo...
| Published in: | Review of religious research |
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| Authors: | ; ; ; |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Springer
2022
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| In: |
Review of religious research
Year: 2022, Volume: 64, Issue: 4, Pages: 577-600 |
| Further subjects: | B
Congregations
B Well-being B Mental Health B Religious social support B Clergy |
| Online Access: |
Presumably Free Access Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | BackgroundAlthough religious involvement tends to be associated with improved mental health, additional work is needed to identify the specific aspects of religious practice that are associated with positive mental health outcomes. Our study advances the literature by investigating how two unique forms of religious social support are associated with mental health. PurposeWe explore whether support received in religious settings from fellow congregants or religious leaders is associated with participants’ mental health. We address questions that are not only of interest to religion scholars, but that may also inform religious leaders and others whose work involves understanding connections between religious factors and psychological outcomes within religious communities.MethodsWe test several hypotheses using original data from the "Mental Health in Congregations Study (2017-2019)", a survey of Christian and Jewish congregants from South Texas and the Washington DC area (N = 1882). Surveys were collected using both paper and online surveys and included an extensive battery of religious and mental health measures.ResultsCongregant support has more robust direct associations with mental health outcomes than faith leader support. Increased congregant support is significantly associated (p < 0.001) with fewer symptoms of psychological distress (β = − 0.168), anxiety (β = − 0.159), and anger (β = − 0.190), as well as greater life satisfaction (β = 0.269) and optimism (β = 0.283). However, faith leader support moderates these associations such that congregant support is associated with better mental health only in cases where faith leader support is also high. When leader support is low, congregant support and mental health are not associated.Conclusions and ImplicationsAt the conceptual level, our study adds to an extensive literature on the relationship between religious social support and mental health. Additionally, our work may provide important insights to religious leadership in terms of communications strategies, services, and resources that might enhance overall congregant mental health and well-being. |
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| ISSN: | 2211-4866 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Review of religious research
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1007/s13644-022-00500-6 |