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Religious Participation Among Older Black Caribbeans in the United States

¹ School of Social Work, ² Program for Research on Black Americans, ³ Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, School of Public Health, ⁴ Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor.

Address correspondence to Robert Joseph Taylor, School of Social Work, University of Michigan, 1080 South University, Ann Arbor, MI 48109. E-mail: rjtaylor{at}umich.edu

Objectives. The purpose of this study was to examine the correlates of religious participation among older Black Caribbeans.

Methods. Data from the older Black Caribbean subsample of the National Survey of American Life were used to examine selected measures of organizational, nonorganizational, and subjective religious participation.

Results. The findings indicated important demographic differences in the correlates of religious participation among older Black Caribbeans. In particular, gender, marital status, income, immigration status, and denomination were associated with religious participation.

Discussion. We discuss study findings in relation to available ethnographic data on Black Caribbeans and prior survey research on religious participation among older African Americans. Although there were several similarities to the research on older African Americans and religious involvement (e.g., marital status, gender, denomination), noted departures from prior research findings (e.g., income effects) may indicate the influence of ethnic group membership and the importance of the immigration experience in shaping distinctive life experiences for older Black Caribbeans.

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