Aging in the Church: How Social Relationships Affect Health
by Neal M. Krause
Templeton Press, 2008 Paper: 978-1-59947-144-0 | eISBN: 978-1-59947-241-6 Library of Congress Classification BV4580.K73 2008 Dewey Decimal Classification 261.832
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
ABOUT THIS BOOK
A growing number of studies indicate that social ties that are formed by older people in the church have a significant positive impact on their physical and mental health. Aging in the Church: How Social Relationships Affect Health by Neal Krause constitutes the first attempt to provide a comprehensive assessment of the various types of relationships that stem from church involvement.
Among the many types of relationships Krause explores are closecompanion friendships, social-support structures (such as assistance provided by fellow church members during difficult times), and interactions that arise from Bible study and prayer groups. Through his thorough investigation of the underlying links between these relationships and the ways they relate to attributes like forgiveness, hope, gratitude, and altruism, the author hopes to explain why older adults who are involved in religious activities tend to enjoy better physical and mental health than those who are not involved in religious communities. Going well beyond merely reviewing the existing research on this subject, Aging in the Church provides a blueprint for taking research on church-based social relationships and health to the next level by identifying conceptual and methodological issues that investigators will have to confront as they delve more deeply into these connections.
Though these are complex issues, readers will find plain language throughout, along with literature drawn from a wide array of disciplines, including sociology, psychology, public health, medicine, psychiatry, nursing, social work, gerontology, and theology. Insights from these diverse fields are supplemented with ideas drawn from literature, poetry, philosophy, and ethics. As a result, Aging in the Church takes on a truly interdisciplinary focus that will appeal to a wide variety of scholars, researchers, and students.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Neal Krause is the Marshall H. Becker Collegiate Professor at the School of Public Health and a research professor in the Institute of Gerontology at the University of Michigan. He conducted the first nationwide survey that focuses exclusively on the relationship between religion and health among the aging. He has published extensively in this area and is widely recognized as the leading expert in this field. He lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
REVIEWS "What a tremendous work. Aging and the Church is Neal Krause's magnum opus, the first and last word on how social relationships mediate religion's impact on physical and mental health. Theoretically, conceptually, methodologically, this book exemplifies the very best of what social science has to offer this field." -Jeff Levin, Ph.D., M.P.H., author of God, Faith, and Health; adjunct professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, Duke University Medical Center
NICA Book Review 3/3/2009
This book effectively and clearly summarizes his findings on social relationships in congregations and the way they contribute to the health and well-being of elders. More Information on this book
Choice 1/1/2009
This masterful study provides an agenda for work to be done, rather than a recap of data already in hand. It will be of practical interest to religious professionals, sociologists, psychologists, gerontologists, and others working with the aging; it is not for casual readers or beginning students. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students through professionals/practitioners.—C. H. Lippy, formerly, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga More Information on this book
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. Social Relationships in the Church and Health: Problems and Prospects
Religion and Health: What We Know and What We Need to Do Next
Issues in the Measurement of Religion
Developing Conceptual Models of Religion and Health
Exploring the Interplay between Measurement and Theory
Setting Boundaries on the Study of Church-Based Social Ties and Health
Religion vs. Spirituality
Focusing on Christians
Why Research on Church-Based Social Ties and Health in Late Life Is Important
Why Study Religion?
Why Study Religion and Aging?
Why Study Social Relationships in the Church?
Overview of the Chapters That Follow
Conclusions
Chapter 2. Church-Based Social Support: Getting Help during Difficult Times
Conceptualizing and Measuring Informal Church-Based Social Support
Stress-Induced Psychosocial Deficits
Self-Esteem
Feelings of Personal Control
Meaning in Life
Mobilizing Support from Fellow Church Members
Exploring the Benefits of Church-Based Social Support
Church-Based Support and Feelings of Self-Worth
Church-Based Support and Feelings of Personal Control
Church-Based Support and Meaning in Life
Sharpening the Theoretical Underpinnings of Church-Based Social Support
Religious Coping Responses
Prayer as a Coping Response
Forgiveness and the Process of Coping
The Stress-Buffering Function of Gratitude
Less Familiar Dimensions of Church-Based Social Support
Anticipated Support
Providing Support to Others
Bringing Different Kinds of Stressors to the Foreground
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Conclusions
Chapter 3. Church-Based Companion Friends
Identifying the Basic Nature of Close Companion Friends
Close Companion Friends in Secular Settings
Church-Based Close Companion Friends
Measuring Close Companion Friendships at Church
Linking Close Companion Friendships with Health and Well-Being
Belonging
Health Behaviors
Self-Disclosure
Self-Expression
Trust
Self-Absorption
Close Companion Friends in Late Life
Close Companion Friends and Health: A Preliminary Empirical Examination
Does Having a Close Companion Friend Make a Difference?
Does the Nature of the Relationship Matter?
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Companion Friendships and Social Support
Moving beyond Companionship in Dyads
Studying the Development of Close Companion Friendships
Change in Close Companion Friendships over Time
Limits to the Closeness of Companion Friends
Informal Companion Friendships with the Clergy
Conclusions
Chapter 4. Social Relationships That Arise from Formal Roles in the Church
Formal Relationships with the Clergy
The Use of Pastoral Counseling Services
The Health-Related Benefits of Pastoral Counseling
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Bible Study and Prayer Groups
Bible Study Groups, Prayer Groups, and Health-Related Outcomes
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Formal Relationships in Church Volunteer Programs
Engaging in Volunteer Activities during Late Life
Volunteer Work, Health, and Well-Being in Late Life
Explaining the Link between Volunteering in the Church and Health
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Formal Assistance for the Homebound
Formal Programs for the Homebound and Health in Late Life
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Conclusions
Chapter 5. Negative Interaction in the Church: Exploring the Dark Side of Religion
Measuring Negative Interaction in the Church
Prior Research on Negative Interaction in the Church, Health, and Well-Being
Negative Interaction in the Church and Health: Examining Conceptual Linkages
Rook¿s Theoretical Explanations
Anger and Hostility
Religious Doubt
Negative Interaction and Leaving Communities of Faith
Negative Interaction with the Clergy
Negative Interaction in the Church during Late Life
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
The Genesis of Negative Interaction in the Church
Creating Topologies of Negative Interaction in the Church
Methodological Challenges in Studies on Leaving the Church
Moving beyond Negative Interaction in Dyads
Unjustified Negative Interaction
Studying Perpetrators of Negative Interaction
Exploring the Role of Third Parties
The Beneficial Effects of Negative Interaction in the Church
Taking Relationship Histories into Account
Conclusions
Chapter 6. Exploring the Pervasive Influence of Social Structural Factors
A Strategy for Studying Social Structural Variations in Church-Based Social Ties and Health
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Ties
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health
Variations by Race: Studying Older African Americans
Historical and Cultural Influences
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Relationships
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health
Gender, Church-Based Social Ties, and Health in Late Life
Current Research on Gender, Social Ties, and Health
Age-Related Change in Gender Roles
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Relationships
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health
Summary
Church-Based Social Ties: Variations by Socioeconomic Status
Measuring SES in Late Life
Current Research on SES and Social Relationships
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Relationships
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health Conclusions
Chapter 7. Conclusions: Taking a Broader Perspective and Identifying Next Steps
Core Religious Beliefs and Church-Based Social Relationships
General Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Exploring Different Denominations and Other Faiths
Identifying Other Types of Social Relationships in the Church
Probing the Direction of Causality
Interpreting Findings from Longitudinal Studies
Understanding the Limits of Church-Based Social Ties
Selecting Physical and Mental Health Outcome Measures
The Manifest and Latent Functions of Church-Based Social Ties
The Potential Influence of Response Bias
Effect Sizes in Research on Church-Based Social Ties and Health
Casting a Broader Net: Delving into the Dark Morass of Subjectivity
References
Bibliography
REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
If you are a student who has a disability that prevents you
from using this book in printed form, BiblioVault may be able to supply you
with an electronic file for alternative access.
Please have the disability coordinator at your school fill out this form.
A growing number of studies indicate that social ties that are formed by older people in the church have a significant positive impact on their physical and mental health. Aging in the Church: How Social Relationships Affect Health by Neal Krause constitutes the first attempt to provide a comprehensive assessment of the various types of relationships that stem from church involvement.
Among the many types of relationships Krause explores are closecompanion friendships, social-support structures (such as assistance provided by fellow church members during difficult times), and interactions that arise from Bible study and prayer groups. Through his thorough investigation of the underlying links between these relationships and the ways they relate to attributes like forgiveness, hope, gratitude, and altruism, the author hopes to explain why older adults who are involved in religious activities tend to enjoy better physical and mental health than those who are not involved in religious communities. Going well beyond merely reviewing the existing research on this subject, Aging in the Church provides a blueprint for taking research on church-based social relationships and health to the next level by identifying conceptual and methodological issues that investigators will have to confront as they delve more deeply into these connections.
Though these are complex issues, readers will find plain language throughout, along with literature drawn from a wide array of disciplines, including sociology, psychology, public health, medicine, psychiatry, nursing, social work, gerontology, and theology. Insights from these diverse fields are supplemented with ideas drawn from literature, poetry, philosophy, and ethics. As a result, Aging in the Church takes on a truly interdisciplinary focus that will appeal to a wide variety of scholars, researchers, and students.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Neal Krause is the Marshall H. Becker Collegiate Professor at the School of Public Health and a research professor in the Institute of Gerontology at the University of Michigan. He conducted the first nationwide survey that focuses exclusively on the relationship between religion and health among the aging. He has published extensively in this area and is widely recognized as the leading expert in this field. He lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
REVIEWS "What a tremendous work. Aging and the Church is Neal Krause's magnum opus, the first and last word on how social relationships mediate religion's impact on physical and mental health. Theoretically, conceptually, methodologically, this book exemplifies the very best of what social science has to offer this field." -Jeff Levin, Ph.D., M.P.H., author of God, Faith, and Health; adjunct professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, Duke University Medical Center
NICA Book Review 3/3/2009
This book effectively and clearly summarizes his findings on social relationships in congregations and the way they contribute to the health and well-being of elders. More Information on this book
Choice 1/1/2009
This masterful study provides an agenda for work to be done, rather than a recap of data already in hand. It will be of practical interest to religious professionals, sociologists, psychologists, gerontologists, and others working with the aging; it is not for casual readers or beginning students. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students through professionals/practitioners.—C. H. Lippy, formerly, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga More Information on this book
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
Acknowledgments
Chapter 1. Social Relationships in the Church and Health: Problems and Prospects
Religion and Health: What We Know and What We Need to Do Next
Issues in the Measurement of Religion
Developing Conceptual Models of Religion and Health
Exploring the Interplay between Measurement and Theory
Setting Boundaries on the Study of Church-Based Social Ties and Health
Religion vs. Spirituality
Focusing on Christians
Why Research on Church-Based Social Ties and Health in Late Life Is Important
Why Study Religion?
Why Study Religion and Aging?
Why Study Social Relationships in the Church?
Overview of the Chapters That Follow
Conclusions
Chapter 2. Church-Based Social Support: Getting Help during Difficult Times
Conceptualizing and Measuring Informal Church-Based Social Support
Stress-Induced Psychosocial Deficits
Self-Esteem
Feelings of Personal Control
Meaning in Life
Mobilizing Support from Fellow Church Members
Exploring the Benefits of Church-Based Social Support
Church-Based Support and Feelings of Self-Worth
Church-Based Support and Feelings of Personal Control
Church-Based Support and Meaning in Life
Sharpening the Theoretical Underpinnings of Church-Based Social Support
Religious Coping Responses
Prayer as a Coping Response
Forgiveness and the Process of Coping
The Stress-Buffering Function of Gratitude
Less Familiar Dimensions of Church-Based Social Support
Anticipated Support
Providing Support to Others
Bringing Different Kinds of Stressors to the Foreground
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Conclusions
Chapter 3. Church-Based Companion Friends
Identifying the Basic Nature of Close Companion Friends
Close Companion Friends in Secular Settings
Church-Based Close Companion Friends
Measuring Close Companion Friendships at Church
Linking Close Companion Friendships with Health and Well-Being
Belonging
Health Behaviors
Self-Disclosure
Self-Expression
Trust
Self-Absorption
Close Companion Friends in Late Life
Close Companion Friends and Health: A Preliminary Empirical Examination
Does Having a Close Companion Friend Make a Difference?
Does the Nature of the Relationship Matter?
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Companion Friendships and Social Support
Moving beyond Companionship in Dyads
Studying the Development of Close Companion Friendships
Change in Close Companion Friendships over Time
Limits to the Closeness of Companion Friends
Informal Companion Friendships with the Clergy
Conclusions
Chapter 4. Social Relationships That Arise from Formal Roles in the Church
Formal Relationships with the Clergy
The Use of Pastoral Counseling Services
The Health-Related Benefits of Pastoral Counseling
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Bible Study and Prayer Groups
Bible Study Groups, Prayer Groups, and Health-Related Outcomes
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Formal Relationships in Church Volunteer Programs
Engaging in Volunteer Activities during Late Life
Volunteer Work, Health, and Well-Being in Late Life
Explaining the Link between Volunteering in the Church and Health
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Formal Assistance for the Homebound
Formal Programs for the Homebound and Health in Late Life
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Conclusions
Chapter 5. Negative Interaction in the Church: Exploring the Dark Side of Religion
Measuring Negative Interaction in the Church
Prior Research on Negative Interaction in the Church, Health, and Well-Being
Negative Interaction in the Church and Health: Examining Conceptual Linkages
Rook¿s Theoretical Explanations
Anger and Hostility
Religious Doubt
Negative Interaction and Leaving Communities of Faith
Negative Interaction with the Clergy
Negative Interaction in the Church during Late Life
Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
The Genesis of Negative Interaction in the Church
Creating Topologies of Negative Interaction in the Church
Methodological Challenges in Studies on Leaving the Church
Moving beyond Negative Interaction in Dyads
Unjustified Negative Interaction
Studying Perpetrators of Negative Interaction
Exploring the Role of Third Parties
The Beneficial Effects of Negative Interaction in the Church
Taking Relationship Histories into Account
Conclusions
Chapter 6. Exploring the Pervasive Influence of Social Structural Factors
A Strategy for Studying Social Structural Variations in Church-Based Social Ties and Health
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Ties
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health
Variations by Race: Studying Older African Americans
Historical and Cultural Influences
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Relationships
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health
Gender, Church-Based Social Ties, and Health in Late Life
Current Research on Gender, Social Ties, and Health
Age-Related Change in Gender Roles
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Relationships
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health
Summary
Church-Based Social Ties: Variations by Socioeconomic Status
Measuring SES in Late Life
Current Research on SES and Social Relationships
Differential Involvement in Church-Based Social Relationships
Differential Impact of Church-Based Social Relationships on Health Conclusions
Chapter 7. Conclusions: Taking a Broader Perspective and Identifying Next Steps
Core Religious Beliefs and Church-Based Social Relationships
General Conceptual and Methodological Challenges
Exploring Different Denominations and Other Faiths
Identifying Other Types of Social Relationships in the Church
Probing the Direction of Causality
Interpreting Findings from Longitudinal Studies
Understanding the Limits of Church-Based Social Ties
Selecting Physical and Mental Health Outcome Measures
The Manifest and Latent Functions of Church-Based Social Ties
The Potential Influence of Response Bias
Effect Sizes in Research on Church-Based Social Ties and Health
Casting a Broader Net: Delving into the Dark Morass of Subjectivity
References
Bibliography
REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
If you are a student who has a disability that prevents you
from using this book in printed form, BiblioVault may be able to supply you
with an electronic file for alternative access.
Please have the disability coordinator at your school fill out this form.
It can take 2-3 weeks for requests to be filled.
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC | REQUEST ACCESSIBLE FILE
