Searching for meaning: religious transitions as correlates of life meaning and purpose in emerging adulthood

Upenieks, Laura

doi:10.1080/13674676.2022.2045264

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 73 publications

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“…Previous research, while not specific to experiences of childhood maltreatment, has documented some potential adverse health consequences of declines in religious attendance (Fenelon & Danielsen, 2016; Upenieks & Thomas, 2021). Such religious transitions are likely to be experienced as inherently stressful, and disaffiliation could bring about a loss of resources linked to religious participation and collective experiences of religiosity, including social support (Fenelon & Danielsen, 2016; Krause & Pargament, 2017), sense of meaning in life (Upenieks, 2022), and can undermine one’s sense of identity (at least temporarily) as they seek secular alternatives (Ysseldyk et al, 2013).…”

Section: Theoretical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Matters of the Heart: Childhood Maltreatment, Religious Transitions, and Cardiovascular-Related Problems over the Life Course

Upenieks

Thomas

2022

J Aging Health

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Objectives: Childhood maltreatment is associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular-related problems, the leading cause of death in the United States. Drawing from cumulative inequality theory, this study considers whether transitions in religious attendance moderate the deleterious impact of childhood maltreatment on long-term cardiovascular risk. Methods: We utilize over 35 years of prospective panel data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth from the United States (1979–2015). Results: Our findings suggest that decreases in religious attendance between adolescence and adulthood (from high to low, and high to moderate attendance) were associated with elevated cardiovascular-related risk for those abused as children. Neither stable high attendance nor increases in attendance buffered against the impact of childhood abuse on cardiovascular-related problems. Discussion: We illustrate the importance of incorporating the role of stability and change in religious attendance across the life course and suggest directions for future research.

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Section: Theoretical Backgroundmentioning

confidence: 99%

Matters of the Heart: Childhood Maltreatment, Religious Transitions, and Cardiovascular-Related Problems over the Life Course

Upenieks

Thomas

2022

J Aging Health

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“…Stroope, Draper, and Whitehead (2013) found that a belief in a loving and engaged God was associated with a greater sense of purpose in life. Other work by Upenieks (2022) found that greater closeness to God was also predictive of a greater subjective sense of meaning and purpose.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Masculine God Imagery and Sense of Life Purpose: Examining Contingencies with America's “Four Gods”

Upenieks,

Bonhag

2023

Scientific Study of Religion

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Though God imagery has been extensively studied within sociological and psychological traditions, much less attention has been paid to gendered God concepts and their connections to well‐being. Previous work has suggested that God images may reflect ontological assumptions that inform interpretations of the world as well as one's place within it. We argue that the relationship between masculine God imagery and a sense of life purpose may vary by gender and depend on further contingencies of other God images held by individuals’ images of God as engaged, angry, critical, and distant. Drawing on nationally representative data from the 2007 Baylor Religion Survey (n = 415 men and n = 577 women), our results suggest that stronger masculine God imagery was associated with greater life purpose for men, and lower life purpose for women. We also observed that stronger beliefs in an engaged God appeared to weaken the association between masculine God imagery and lower life purpose for women, while men who did not support masculine gender ideology reported lower life purpose if they endorsed stronger beliefs in an angry or critical God. We interpret our results by drawing on research at the intersection of gender, religion, and theology, and suggest several directions for future work.

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Religion, future orientation, and subjective well-being among emerging adults

Desmond,

Kraus

2023

Mental Health, Religion & Culture

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Searching for meaning: religious transitions as correlates of life meaning and purpose in emerging adulthood

Cited by 6 publications

References 73 publications

Matters of the Heart: Childhood Maltreatment, Religious Transitions, and Cardiovascular-Related Problems over the Life Course

Matters of the Heart: Childhood Maltreatment, Religious Transitions, and Cardiovascular-Related Problems over the Life Course

Masculine God Imagery and Sense of Life Purpose: Examining Contingencies with America's “Four Gods”

Religion, future orientation, and subjective well-being among emerging adults

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