Showcase of Undergraduate Research and Creative Endeavors (SOURCE)

The Long-Term Effect of Religious Concordance on Mental Health

This study examines the relationship between past parent-child religious concordance and current mental health in young adults. Stress, anxiety, and depression are the three mental health variables that are used in this study to determine if past parent-child religious concordance has a long-term effect on mental health in young adults. We found that past parent-child religious concordance does not have a long-term effect on stress, anxiety, or depression in young adults. This finding suggests that the mental health of children that experience lower levels of parent-child religious concordance will not be negatively impacted into young adulthood. We also found that personal religious change does have an effect on stress and anxiety. These findings suggest that young adults become more anxious and more stressed as they start to change their beliefs and feelings over time. While parent-child religious concordance does not have a long-term effect on the mental health of the child, children that experience larger changes in their own religiosity experience higher levels of stress and anxiety.