Religious participation predicts diurnal cortisol profiles 10 years later via lower levels of religious struggle.

Abstract

Multiple aspects of religion have been linked with a variety of physical health outcomes; however, rarely have investigators attempted to empirically test the mechanisms through which religiosity impacts health. The links between religious participation, religious coping, and diurnal cortisol patterns over a 10-year period in a national sample of adults in the United States were investigated. Participants included 1,470 respondents from the Midlife in the United States (MIDUS) study who provided reports on religious participation, religious coping, and diurnal cortisol. Religious participation predicted steeper ("healthier") cortisol slopes at the 10-year follow-up, controlling for potential confounds. Further, religious struggle (religious coping marked by tension and strain about religious and spiritual issues) mediated the prospective association between religious participation and cortisol slope, such that greater religious attendance predicted lower levels of religious struggle 10 years later, which in turn was linked with a steeper cortisol slope; this effect remained strong when controlling for general emotional coping and social support. Positive religious coping was unrelated to diurnal cortisol patterns. These findings identify religious struggle as a mechanism through which religious participation impacts diurnal cortisol levels and suggest that diurnal cortisol is a plausible pathway through which aspects of religion influence long-term physical health. (PsycINFO Database Record