Religious and Spiritual Struggles and Depressive Symptoms Among Seminary Students: Childhood Religiosity as Boon or Buffer?

This study examined whether early life religiosity moderated the relationship between religious/spiritual (R/S) struggles and mental health among 535 seminary students in the Seminary to Early Ministry (SEM) Study. We proposed two competing hypotheses: the spiritual capital model (early religiosity fosters coping with struggles) and the identity threat model (early religiosity heightens vulnerability to struggles). Our regression results supported the identity threat perspective—R/S struggles were more strongly associated with depressive symptoms among students with higher childhood religiosity (frequent attendance and higher importance). These findings suggest that deeply internalized religious identities formed in childhood may render seminary students more susceptible to distress when experiencing spiritual conflict. While weekly childhood religious attendance was independently associated with lower depressive symptoms, R/S struggles reversed this protective effect for those seminary students who were the most religiously immersed in childhood. Our results underscore the importance of life course perspectives on faith development, particularly for clergy-in-training. Early religious environments may shape not only one’s entry into ministry but also how one navigates doubt and struggle. Institutions and religious mentors should consider childhood religious formation when developing mental health support for seminary students facing faith-based challenges.

Duke Scholars

Author David E Eagle Duke Global Health Institute