Poster #94 - Adolescent and Parent Religiousness, Spirituality, and Well-Being During the COVID-19 Pandemic

• In Event: Poster Session 03

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic led to a worldwide non-normative historical event that likely influenced normative adolescent development. In addition to changes in psychological well-being, the pandemic may have also affected adolescent religious development. Religiousness is an important developmental context (Hardy & Nelson, 2022) and is typically associated with increased positive outcomes in youth such as psychological well-being and decreased negative outcomes such as anxiety and depression (see Hardy et al., 2019). Yet, it remains unclear what potential changes in religiousness and well-being occurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Consequently, the main goal of our research was to investigate the possible effects of this rare global experience on American adolescents’ and parents’ religiousness and psychological well-being.
The sample included 1,034 adolescents (M age =16; 50% male) and parents (466 fathers, 568 mothers) recruited across the United States. Participants completed an online survey in January 2021 to capture self-reported retrospective data based on three distinct periods of time in 2020 (Pre-COVID 2020, Spring/Summer 2020, and Fall 2020). Parent and teen religiousness was assessed using six different indexes of adolescent religiousness adapted from prior research (Smith & Denton, 2005). For each of the three phases of 2020, adolescents and parents responded to eight items regarding psychological well-being, adapted from prior research (Burlingame et al., 2004; Ryff & Keyes, 1995).
First, paired samples t-tests found decreases in some aspects of religiousness (e.g., worship service attendance) but stability in others (e.g., private religious practices, religious importance, religious belief, and connection to God). Additionally, we found small to moderate decreases in positive well-being and increases in negative well-being for both adolescents and parents across the three 2020 time periods. See Table 1 for means on each variable at each wave for teens and parents. Second, teen religiousness and well-being correlated positively with parent religiousness and well-being at each wave. Additionally, self-perceptions of change in religiousness and well-being were also positively correlated between teens and parents. There were also some correlations between self-perceptions of religiousness and well-being in expected directions for both teens and parents. Third, auto-regressive cross-lagged models revealed bidirectional longitudinal relations between religiousness and well-being over time (see Table 2). Cross-lagged from religiousness to later positive well-being were all significant, positive, and small, as were most reciprocal links between these two variables over time. Additionally, a few paths in each direction were also significant, negative, and small linking religiousness and negative well-being over time.
In conclusion, given the short time frame and somewhat non-linear trends, the changes in religiousness and well-being are likely due at least in part to the pandemic rather than typical development. Essentially, public religious involvement declined across 2020, positive well-being declined, and negative well-being increased. Further, we demonstrated links between religiousness and well-being over time across 2020. Religiousness served as a potential buffer against decreasing positive well-being and increasing negative well-being during this stressful time.

Authors

• Emily Marie Taylor, Brigham Young University
  Presenting Author

• Tate A. Henderson, Brigham Young University

• Sam A Hardy, Brigham Young University

• Jenae M Nelson, Baylor University