Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, Vol 51, Issue 6 P301-P308, Copyright © 1996 by The Gerontological Society of America
The relation of religious preference and practice to depressive symptoms among 1,855 older adults
GJ Kennedy, HR Kelman, C Thomas and J Chen
Division of Geriatric Psychiatry, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York, USA. [email protected]
Religious devotion is a complex phenomenon but a potentially important
source of support and meaning in the lives of older adults. Nonetheless,
attendance at religious services and religious preference (affiliation)
have received relatively little prominence in epidemiological studies of
late life mental illness despite their relative case of measurement. We
examined differences in the prevalence and course of depressive symptoms
and associated characteristics among 1,855 older community residents who
expressed a Jewish, Catholic, or other religious preference. At baseline,
Jewish religious preference was associated with a twofold elevation in the
prevalence of depressive symptoms compared to Catholics. Lack of attendance
at religious services was associated with greater prevalence of depression
among all groups, significantly so among Catholics. The relationship of
depression with Jewish religious preference and with failure to attend
services could not be accounted for by measures of age, gender, health,
disability, or social support. Twenty-four months following baseline,
Jewish religious preference was associated with the emergence of depressive
symptoms and remained significant when the effects of age, gender, health,
disability, and social support were controlled. Failure to attend services
was associated with both the emergence and persistence of depression but
did not remain significant once the effects of other characteristics were
controlled. For both religious and health care institutions, these findings
have implications for the prevention, recognition, and treatment of late
life mental illness.
