The Impact of Trajectories of Religiosity and Moral Community on Marijuana Use and Binge Drinking

• In Event: Life Circumstances and Desistance from Offending

Abstract

Using data from waves 1 through 3 of the National Study of Youth and Religion (NSYR), a nationally representative study of adolescents and emerging adults, we examine the effect of patterns of religiosity on marijuana use and binge drinking, as well as the importance of social context for these effects. Using group based trajectory modeling to identify patterns of religiosity and patterns of integration into a moral community over time, we provide a longitudinal test of the moral community hypothesis, originally stated by Stark and colleagues. Specifically, we examine the extent to which, if at all, trajectories of religiosity and trajectories of integration into a moral community interact in their association with marijuana use and binge drinking. The NSYR provides a rich set of measures of religious faith, allowing for the construction of a multi-item, multi-dimensional religiosity scale as well as a multi-item measure of moral community focusing on personal networks.

Authors

• Craig Rivera, Niagara University

• Timothy Lauger, Niagara University

• Michael Cretacci, Buffalo State College