Aging, health, and the "electronic church".
Journal Article (Journal Article)
We tested whether elders substitute religious media use for church attendance when health declines (using multidimensional disengagement theory) with data from a multiracial, population-based sample in the Bible Belt (N = 2,971). In adjusted models, 3-year declines in functional status were significantly associated with concurrent reduction in frequency of church attendance but not with any change in rates of religious media (TV/radio) use. Age-related declines in church attendance were substantively explained by declining functional ability. Changes in religious media use were independent of age and less sensitive to declining functional status or service attendance than to cultural heritage such as race, socioeconomic status, and rural upbringing. Our data do not support the hypothesis that elders with deteriorating health substitute increased engagement with religious media as their participation in organizational religious activities is reduced. However, applicability of the substitution hypothesis to other dimensions of nonorganizational religiousness (e.g., prayer) awaits similar scrutiny.
Full Text
Duke Authors
Cited Authors
- Hays, JC; Landerman, LR; Blazer, DG; Koenig, HG; Carroll, JW; Musick, MA
Published Date
- November 1998
Published In
Volume / Issue
- 10 / 4
Start / End Page
- 458 - 482
PubMed ID
- 10346695
International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)
- 0898-2643
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
- 10.1177/089826439801000404
Language
- eng
Conference Location
- United States