Dimensions of Religiosity and Access to Religious Social Capital: Correlates with Substance Use Among Urban Adolescents

Abstract

Although some evidence indicates that religiosity may be protective against substance use in the urban youth population, limited research has investigated the effects of multiple dimensions of religiosity on substance use in this population. In this study, a sample of 301 urban adolescents was used (a) to test the effects of three dimensions of religiosity (social religiosity, perceived religious support, and private religiosity) as well as proximity to religious institutions and (b) to determine their correlates with tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana use. It was hypothesized that all three dimensions of religiosity would act as protective factors against all types of substance use and that proximity to religious institutions from adolescents’ routine locations would also serve as a protective factor against any type of substance use. Results of logistic regression analysis showed that social religiosity and perceived religious support were protective against marijuana and tobacco use, respectively. Private religiosity was not protective against any type of substance use. Proximity to religious institutions was protective against alcohol use. These findings suggest the importance of examining multiple dimensions of religiosity when investigating substance use in urban youth and offer initial evidence of the importance of proximity to religious institutions as a protective factor against substance use.

The relationship between religiosity and cardiovascular risk factors in Japan: a large–scale cohort study

“…The limited number of longitudinal studies has shown mixed results. While studies consistently suggest that those with strong religiosity are more likely to stop smoking, reduce alcohol consumption, and increase exercise, 1,2,24–26 other studies conflict regarding the impact of religiosity on obesity and metabolic risk factors such as diabetes and hypertension. 1,27 With the exception of diabetes, our study did not show an association between religiosity and other favorable metabolic profiles over time.…”

Do Importance of Religious Faith and Healthy Lifestyle Modify the Relationships Between Depressive Symptoms and Four Indicators of Alcohol Consumption? A Survey of Students Across Seven Universities in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland

“…As for notions related to religiosity, the current study employed one measure of religiosity (personal important of faith), and certainly other dimensions of religiosity (e.g., social religiosity, perceived religious support, and private religiosity) as well as proximity to religious institutions could be important, particularly that proximity to religious institutions was reported protective against alcohol use in urban adolescents (Mason, Schmidt, & Mennis, 2012). Likewise, there seems a need to differentiate between religiosity and spirituality, as across sample of 2,312 college students, self-identified religious and spiritual students differed significantly on key variables related to religious practices, alcohol consumption, and postmodern social values (Burke, Van Olphen, Eliason, Howell, & Gonzalez, 2012).…”

Substance use among older youth transitioning from foster care: Examining the protective effects of religious and spiritual capital

“…Religion is a complex construct (Mason, Schmidt, & Mennis, ). Numerous conceptual frameworks have been proposed, which in turn, have sparked considerable debate (Henery, ; Koenig, ; Senreich, ).…”

“…Similar results have been documented with disadvantaged populations. For example, higher levels of religious capital has been linked to lower levels of substance use among samples of inner-city adolescents who are primarily African American (Mason et al, 2012) and Latino (Hodge, Marsiglia, & Nieri, 2011).…”