Abstract
A formidable body of literature suggests that numerous dimensions of religious involvement can facilitate productive coping. One common assumption in this field is that religious worldviews provide overarching frameworks of meaning by which to positively reinterpret stressors. The current study explicitly tests this assumption by examining whether perceived divine control—i.e., the notion that God controls the course and direction of one’s life—buffers the adverse effects of recent traumatic life events on one’s capacity for positive reappraisal coping. We analyze cross-sectional survey data from Vanderbilt University’s Nashville Stress and Health Study (2011–2014), a probability sample of non-Hispanic black and white adults aged 22 to 69 living in Davidson County, Tennessee (n = 1252). Findings from multivariate regression models confirm: (1) there was an inverse association between past-year traumatic life events and positive reappraisals; but (2) perceived divine control significantly attenuated this inverse association. Substantively, our findings suggest that people who believe God controls their life outcomes are better suited for positively reinterpreting traumatic experiences. Implications, limitations, and avenues for future research are discussed.
Highlights
Let us greet with a song of hope each day, Tho’ the moments be cloudy or fair; Let us trust in our savior always, Who keepeth everyone in His care.—Ada Blenkhorn and J
Perceived divine control should serve as a psychosocial resource that either attenuates or amplifies the damaging effects of traumatic life events on one’s capacity for positive reappraisal coping
Past-year traumatic life events were inversely associated with positive reappraisals, net of all control variables (p < 0.01)
Summary
Let us greet with a song of hope each day, Tho’ the moments be cloudy or fair; Let us trust in our savior always, Who keepeth everyone in His care.—Ada Blenkhorn and J. Different people have proven to be more or less resilient in the face of stressful conditions (Ryff and Singer 2003). This variation is largely attributable to the different kinds of coping strategies people use for managing stress (Pearlin and Schooler 1978; Wheaton 1985; Pearlin 1989). Traumatic Life Events, Assumptive Worlds, and Positive Reappraisals. People acquire throughout their lives basic assumptions about the causal nature of the world, and derive from these assumptions cognitive blueprints or schemas by which to decipher the meaning of salient events—i.e., “assumptive worlds” (Parkes 1971). Two fundamental assumptions people hold regard the general benevolence and meaningfulness of the external world (Janoff-Bulman 1989). Human beings presumably could not function in an environment where everything seemed to happen merely by chance (Pearlin and Schooler 1978)
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