RT Article
T1 The Association Between Church Attendance and Psychological Health in Northern Ireland: A National Representative Survey Among Adults Allowing for Sex Differences and Denominational Difference
JF Journal of religion and health
VO 50
IS 4
SP 986
OP 995
A1 Lewis, Christopher Alan
A1 Francis, Leslie J. 1947-
A1 Shevlin, Mark
A1 Quigley, Catherine F.
A2 Francis, Leslie J. 1947-
A2 Shevlin, Mark
A2 Quigley, Catherine F.
LA English
YR 2011
UL https://ixtheo.de/Record/1668808366
AB This study extends previous research concerning the association between religion and psychological health in six ways: (1) by focusing clearly on religious attendance (church attendance); (2) by employing a robust measure of psychological distress (GHQ-12); (3) by studying a highly religious culture (Northern Ireland); (4) by taking sex differences into account (male or female); (5) by taking denominational differences into account (Catholic or Protestant); (6) and by obtaining a national representative sample (N = 4,281 adults aged 16 and above). Results from a 2 (sex) by 2 (denomination) ANCOVA demonstrated that Catholics recorded significantly lower levels of psychological health compared to Protestants, and that females showed significantly lower levels of psychological health compared to males. In addition, females reported higher frequency of religious service attendance than males, and Catholics reported higher attendance rates than Protestants. A significant positive association was found between frequency of religious attendance and GHQ-12 scores, and this association was moderated by sex and denomination. In conclusion, the results suggest that there may be sex and denominational differences in further understanding the relationship between frequency of religious attendance and psychological health.
K1 Church Attendance
K1 Northern Ireland
K1 Psychological Health
K1 Religiosity
DO 10.1007/s10943-010-9321-3