The parasite-stress theory may be a general theory of culture and sociality

In the target article, we presented the hypothesis that parasite-stress variation was a causal factor in the variation of in-group assortative sociality, cross-nationally and across the United States, which we indexed with variables that measured different aspects of the strength of family ties and religiosity. We presented evidence supportive of our hypothesis in the form of analyses that controlled for variation in freedom, wealth resources, and wealth inequality across nations and the states of the USA. Here, we respond to criticisms from commentators and attempt to clarify and expand the parasite-stress theory of sociality used to fuel our research presented in the target article.     

The evolution and development of human social systems requires more than parasite-stress avoidance explanation

Fincher & Thornhill (F&T) present a model of in-group assortative sociality resulting from differing levels of parasite-stress in differing geographical locations in the United States and the world. Their model, while compelling, overlooks some important issues, such as mutualistic associations with parasites that are beneficial to humans and how some religious practices increase parasite risk.     

Intra-regional assortative sociality may be better explained by social network dynamics rather than pathogen risk avoidance

Fincher & Thornhill's (F&T's) model is not entirely supported by common patterns of affect behaviors among people who live under varying climatic conditions and among people who endorse varying levels of (Western) religiosity and conservative political ideals. The authors' model is also unable to account for intra-regional heterogeneity in assortative sociality, which, we argue, can be better explained by a framework that emphasizes the differential expression of fundamental social cues for maintaining distinct social network structures.     

Time allocation, religious observance, and illness in Mayan horticulturalists

Analysis of individual differences in religious observance in a Belizean community showed that the most religious (pastors and church workers) reported more illnesses, and that there was no tendency for the religiously observant to restrict their interactions to family or extended family. Instead, the most religiously observant tended to have community roles that widened their social contact: religion did not aid isolation - thus violating a key assumption of the parasite-stress theory of sociality.     

Immigration, parasitic infection, and United States religiosity

Fincher & Thornhill (F&T) present a powerful case for the relationship between parasite-stress and religiosity. We argue, however, that the United States may be more religious than can be accounted for by parasite-stress. This greater religiosity might be attributable to greater sensitivity to immigration, which may hyperactivate evolved mechanisms that motivate avoidance of potential carriers of novel parasites.     

Zoonotic and non-zoonotic diseases in relation to human personality and societal values: Support for the parasite-stress model

The parasite-stress model of human sociality proposes that humans' ontogenetic experiences with infectious diseases as well as their evolutionary historical interactions with these diseases exert causal influences on human psychology and social behavior. This model has been supported by cross-national relationships between parasite prevalence and human personality traits, and between parasite prevalence and societal values. Importantly, the parasite-stress model emphasizes the causal role of non-zoonotic parasites (which have the capacity for human-to-human transmission), rather than zoonotic parasites (which do not), but previous studies failed to distinguish between these conceptually distinct cate- gories. The present investigation directly tested the differential predictive effects of zoonotic and non-zoonotic (both human-specific and multihost) parasite prevalence on personality traits and societal values. Supporting the parasite-stress model, cross-national differences in personality traits (unrestricted sexuality, extraversion, openness to experi- ences) and in societal values (individualism, collectivism, gender equality, democratiza- tion) are predicted specifically by non-zoonotic parasite prevalence.     

The Influence of Close Ties on Depression: Does Network Religiosity Matter?

Despite a growing body of the literature on how features of social networks influence well-being, we know little of how the religiosity of social networks matter. This study addresses three types of religious social network ties and their association with mental health: same (non)-religious ties, religious discussion ties, and ties offering prayers on an individual's behalf. Using ego-centric network data from the 2006 Portraits of American Life Study (N = 2,223), multivariate regression results suggest that a greater number of ties that discuss religion and pray for the respondent are detrimental to the mental health of those of a low religious salience. Taken together, this study demonstrates that religious dimensions of social networks exact an important influence on mental health and highlights the importance of identifying specific features of religion among core network ties.     

Decomposing identity: differential relationships between several aspects of ethnic identity and the negative effects of perceived discrimination among First Nations adults in Canada

The present investigation examined the relationship between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms among First Nations adults in Canada (N = 220). It was considered that specific aspects of ethnic identity (in-group affect, centrality, in-group ties) could serve as resilience and/or vulnerability factors. Whereas in-group affect (positive feelings regarding one's group) was directly associated with decreased depressive symptoms and buffered against perceived discrimination, high levels of centrality (salience of group membership) was associated with increased symptomatology and intensified the relation between perceived discrimination and depressive symptoms. In-group ties (connection to other group members) buffered against perceived discrimination, although this protective effect only applied for males. The data underscore the importance of examining different aspects of identity and gender differences in determining the role of ethnic identity in the well-being of minority populations.     

Religiosity,Prosocial Values,and Adjustment among Students in Catholic High Schools in Canada

The present study explored the facilitating function of religious commitment in the lives of adolescents. A total of 369 boys and 372 girls attending Catholic high schools in Canada completed measures of family religion, religiosity, prosocial values, social adjustment (school attitudes and family satisfaction), and personal adjustment (life satisfaction and self-esteem). There were no significant gender differences in family religion, religiosity, social adjustment or personal adjustment. However, girls endorsed prosocial values much more than did boys. Religiosity had strong positive correlations with prosocial values and lesser significant correlations with social adjustment. Religiosity had much higher correlations with prosocial values and social adjustment among boys than among girls. Structural-equation analyses of the total sample, of boys, and of girls supported a path model where family religion fosters adolescents's religiosity, religiosity fosters prosocial values, prosocial values promote social adjustment and social adjustment promotes personal adjustment.     

Subjective Religiosity and Depression in the Transition to Adulthood

Does being more religious make one less susceptible to depression? We consider the association between subjective religiosity (religious self‐perception and coping) and depression in the context of social support (from family and friends) and stress exposure (recent negative life events, chronic stress, lifetime trauma, and discrimination). Data come from a sample of 1,803 Miami‐Dade County young adults interviewed between 1997 and 2000. We find higher levels of depression among the moderately religious than among either very religious or nonreligious respondents. Interestingly, when observations are made within gender, this relationship applies only to females. Controlling for socioeconomic status and social support largely accounts for the link between religiosity and depression. However, controlling for stress exposure reveals a suppressor effect wherein religiosity once again emerges as significant. Our interpretation is that, while established patterns of religious coping can routinely mitigate distress, heightened stress exposure may elicit increased prayer among the less religious.     

Religiosity and Church-Based Assistance Among Chronically Ill African-American and White Elderly

ABSTRACT

This study examines religion and church-based assistance among 127 chronically ill African-American and white elderly persons hospitalized for congestive heart failure and discharged to home. Elders reported high levels of religiosity and prayer behavior; they reported low levels of church help received. Controlling for living arrangement, gender, social class and health in probit regression analyses, race was not a significant predictor of subjective religiosity, frequency of prayer, or level of church help received. Findings indicated a significant race-by-health interaction. Subjective religiosity was positively associated with health for whites but no relationship was found between religiosity and health for African-Americans. Further research is called for that replicates study findings on other elders with chronic illness.     

Are Muslims a Distinctive Minority? An Empirical Analysis of Religiosity,Social Attitudes,and Islam

Scholarly and public discourses on Muslim immigrants in Europe have questioned if Islam is an impediment to sociocultural adaptation and whether Muslims are a distinctive group in their religiosity and social values. We use a new survey of 480 British Muslims in conjunction with the British Social Attitudes Survey to examine differences between Muslim and non‐Muslim Britons on religiosity (practice, belief, salience) and moral and social issues regarding gender, abortion, and homosexuality. Muslims are more religious than other Britons, including both British Christians and religious “nones.” Muslims also are more conservative than other Britons across the range of social and moral attitudes. Multivariate analysis shows, however, that much of the difference on moral issues is due to socioeconomic disadvantage and high religiosity among Muslims. Although being a highly religious group in an otherwise secular country renders Muslims distinctive, factors that predict social conservatism among all Britons—high religiosity and low SES—apply similarly to Muslims.     

Parenting and Community Engagement Factors as Predictors of Religiosity Among Muslim Adolescents From Malaysia

Despite the plethora of research on correlates of adolescent religiosity, few studies have examined the contribution of social context to religiosity among non-Western Muslim samples using multidimensional religiosity measures. To address this gap, the current study investigated the influence of community engagement and parenting factors on religiosity among 596 Malaysian Muslim secondary school students (M age = 16.10, SD = .29). After controlling for gender, family structure, family income, and social desirability, the results showed that parental monitoring, mosque involvement, and school engagement significantly predicted religious worldview, whereas parental religious socialization, parental monitoring, mosque involvement, school engagement, and youth organization involvement accounted for a significant amount of the variance in religious personality. Implications for further research on socialization influences on religious development among adolescents are discussed.     

Close Ties,Intercessory Prayer,and Optimism Among American Adults: Locating God in the Social Support Network

Prayer is often an interpersonal phenomenon. It represents not only a form of social support shared between or among people, but also a means of embedding an unobservable actor (God) within a conventionally observable social network. This study considers whether the receipt of intercessory prayer from close network ties is associated with future‐oriented well‐being. Analyses use social network module data from the Portraits of American Life Study (PALS), a nationally representative study of American adults containing a breadth of information not available in prior studies of networks, prayer, and well‐being. Despite experiencing more instances of recent adversity (mental or physical health problem, financial trouble, and unemployment), prayed‐for PALS respondents report the highest levels of optimism. Furthermore, the association between network prayer and optimism is robust to inclusion of individual‐level indicators of religiosity. Finally, other forms of social support that an individual receives from his or her close ties do not explain the benefits of intercessory prayer.     

Bullying Victimization and Use of Substances in High School: Does Religiosity Moderate the Association?

Alcohol, tobacco and other drug use continue to pose serious public health concerns among youth. Bullying victimization has been identified as a risk factor and religiosity a protective factor for adolescent substance use. No previous research has examined the potential moderating role of religiosity. We explore the association between bullying victimization and substance use in adolescents with low and high levels of religiosity. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with a representative sample of high school students in greater Beirut. Binary and multinomial logistic models were used, adjusting for demographics, and stratified by level of religiosity. Of the 986 students responding to the survey, 65% were females; 48% had experienced some form of bullying; and 52% self-rated as low in religiosity. Between 10 and 30% were current users of alcohol or tobacco. Students of lower religiosity levels who had been bullied were more likely to use substances than those who self-rated as high religiosity. Religiosity may be a potential moderator of the association between being bullied and substance use, but the exact mechanisms and underlying reasons need further investigation.

     

Working harder with the out-group: The impact of social category diversity on motivation gains

This paper examines the influence that social category diversity (i.e., working with an in-group or out-group member) has on individual levels of motivation. The results of two experiments provide evidence that individuals increase their effort more when being outperformed by an out-group instead of an in-group member (Experiment 1), but only when the potential for social comparison is present (Experiment 2). We discuss the implications of this research for understanding how and why social category diversity may impact individual levels of motivation.     

Who May Enter? The Impact of In-Group Identification on In-Group/Out-Group Categorization

An experiment was conducted to examine the impact of identification with the in-group on the categorization of pictures depicting in-group and out-group faces. Findings showed that high identifiers classified fewer pictures as in-group members than did low identifiers. High and low identifiers also differed in their categorization latencies. Whereas high identifiers seemed more concerned with erroneously including an out-group member in the in-group, low identifiers seemed concerned with accuracy. The results are discussed with regard to the motivations underlying social categorization as well as to other phenomena that have been discovered through research on social identity theory.     

Inheritance of Religiosity Among Muslim Immigrants in a Secular Society

This study examined the intergenerational transmission of religiosity within Muslim immigrant families who live in the Netherlands, a rather secular society. We studied whether transmission of religiosity within immigrant families is influenced by warm family relations on the one hand, and integration into the host country on the other hand. Two analyses were carried out on a nationally representative sample of Turkish and Moroccan first- and second-generation immigrants aged 15–45, in the Netherlands. The findings support the hypotheses to some extent: warm family ties are found to facilitate religious transmission but transmission is stronger when parents have different national backgrounds. A stronger transmission is found within families that are stronger embedded in religious communities; however there are large differences between men and women. Our research shows that the influence of parental religiosity cannot be ignored in the study of immigrants’ religiosity.     

Cross-dimension-ambivalent in-group stereotypes: the moderating roles of social context of stereotype endorsement and in-group identification

In this study, the authors examined in-group stereotypes that are cross-dimensionally ambivalent-simultaneously (a) positive in cognition-related content dimensions and negative in affect-related content dimensions or (b) negative in cognition-related content dimensions and positive in affect-related content dimensions-to establish whether endorsement of such in-group stereotypes depends on whether this process occurs in an intragroup versus intergroup context. Drawing on social identity theory, the authors predicted that (a) endorsement of cross-dimension-ambivalent in-group stereotypes would be greater in an intragroup, relative to an intergroup, context and (b) this would hold for high but not low in-group identifiers. Confirming these hypotheses, results showed that endorsement of cross-dimension-ambivalent in-group stereotypes may vary as a function of their contribution to securing a positive social identity.     

Parents’ and Children’s Religiosity and Child Behavioral Adjustment Among Maltreated and Nonmaltreated Children

We investigated the role of parents’ and children’s religiosity in behavioral adjustment among maltreated and nonmaltreated children. Data were collected on 170 maltreated and 159 nonmaltreated children from low-income families (mean age = 10 years). We performed dyadic data analyses to examine unique contributions of parents’ and children’s religiosity and their interaction to predicting child internalizing and externalizing symptomatology. A four group structural equation modeling was used to test whether the structural relations among religiosity predictors and child outcomes differed by child maltreatment status and child gender. We found evidence of parent-child religiosity interaction suggesting that (1) parents’ frequent church attendance was related to lower levels of internalizing symptomatology among nonmaltreated children with low church attendance and (2) parents’ importance of faith was associated with lower levels of internalizing and externalizing symptomatology among nonmaltreated children with low faith. The results suggest that independent effects of parents’ religiosity varied depending on children’s religiosity and parent-child relationship.