Health outcomes associated with attending church, praying, and religiosity are moderated by religious, spriritual, and atheist identities

Abstract

Research investigating Religion/Spirituality and health often notes that Religious/Spiritual constructs (i.e., attending church, praying/meditating, and religiosity) are associated with salutary outcomes. However, there is a consistent failure to investigate whether being non-religious, non-spiritual, or atheist affects the experience of Religious/Spiritual constructs. Using large, representative datasets from Canadian and American sources, it was investigated whether the relationships between Religious/Spiritual constructs and health outcomes, were moderated by Religious/Spiritual identities. This series of four interrelated studies converged on three findings. First, the non-religious, non-spiritual, and atheists tended to experience Religious/Spiritual constructs less positively than the religious, spiritual, or non-atheists. Second, when the non-religious, non-spiritual, and atheists reported higher levels of Religious/Spiritual constructs, these groups reported poorer health than the religious, spiritual, or non-atheists. Third, when considering subsets of the non-religious, non-spiritual, or atheists, Religious/Spiritual constructs were never associated with salutary outcomes. The discussion focused on the role of Religious/Spiritual identities affecting the experience of Religious/Spiritual constructs, and the advantages of not treating atheism as a Religious Identity.