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Is going to church good or bad for you? Denomination, attendance and mental health of children in West Scotland

Author

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  • Abbotts, Joanne E.
  • Williams, Rory G. A.
  • Sweeting, Helen N.
  • West, Patrick B.

Abstract

Religiosity is often associated with mental health in adult populations, but not in a consistent direction. Conflicting results reflect the multidimensional nature of both concepts. Few studies have addressed the relationship between religiosity and mental health among children. In this paper, we examine the relation of weekly church attendance to measures of mental health for 11 year olds from the two main Christian denominations in West Scotland. Levels of church-attendance were low among those affiliated with the Church of Scotland and relatively high among Catholics. The only mental health measure to show a similar relationship with church attendance in both denominations was aggression, which was less prevalent among weekly attenders. Self-esteem, anxiety and depression all demonstrated an interaction, such that weekly church attendance was associated either with advantage for Catholics, disadvantage for children with a Church of Scotland affiliation, or both. Teasing/bullying acted in a small way as a mediating factor in these relationships. In an education system with separate Catholic and 'non-denominational' schools, we hypothesise that the relationship between church attendance and mental health may be contingent on whether church attendance is normative within the peer group.

Suggested Citation

  • Abbotts, Joanne E. & Williams, Rory G. A. & Sweeting, Helen N. & West, Patrick B., 2004. "Is going to church good or bad for you? Denomination, attendance and mental health of children in West Scotland," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 58(3), pages 645-656, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:58:y:2004:i:3:p:645-656
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Esa Mangeloja, 2004. "Interrelationship of economic growth and regional religious properties," ERSA conference papers ersa04p94, European Regional Science Association.
    2. Esa Mangeloja, 2004. "Economic Growth and Religious Production Efficiency," DEGIT Conference Papers c009_040, DEGIT, Dynamics, Economic Growth, and International Trade.
    3. Randy A Sansone & Amy R Kelley & Jeremy S Forbis, 2013. "Bullying in childhood and religious/spiritual status in adulthood among internal medicine outpatients," International Journal of Social Psychiatry, , vol. 59(8), pages 739-744, December.
    4. Barry Chiswick & Donka Mirtcheva, 2013. "Religion and Child Health: Religious Affiliation, Importance, and Attendance and Health Status among American Youth," Journal of Family and Economic Issues, Springer, vol. 34(1), pages 120-140, March.
    5. Olga Popova, 2016. "Suffer for the Faith? Parental Religiosity and Children’s Health," Working Papers 356, Leibniz Institut für Ost- und Südosteuropaforschung (Institute for East and Southeast European Studies).
    6. Esa Mangeloja, 2005. "Economic growth and religious production efficiency," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(20), pages 2349-2359.

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