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Religious Differences in Physical and Mental Health among Israeli Jews: Findings from the Global Flourishing Study.
- Source :
-
Journal of Religion & Health . Aug2024, Vol. 63 Issue 4, p2544-2558. 15p. - Publication Year :
- 2024
-
Abstract
- Numerous studies have identified religious correlates of health indicators, but relatively few have been conducted among Jewish populations in Israel or the diaspora. This study investigates the possibility of a religious gradient in physical and mental health and well-being across the familiar categories of Jewish religious identity and observance in Israel: hiloni (secular), masorti lo dati (traditional, non-religious), masorti (traditional), dati (religious or Orthodox), and charedi (ultra-Orthodox). Data are from Jewish respondents aged 18 and over (N = 2916) from the Israeli sample of the new, 22-nation Global Flourishing Study, which used stratified, probability-based sampling and assessed demographic, socioeconomic, political, religious, health-related, and other variables. This analysis investigated religious differences in nine indicators of physical and mental health and well-being among Israeli Jews. Using a strategy of one-way ANOVA and ANCOVA, adjusting for complex sampling design components, a statistically significant "dose-response"-like gradient was found for eight of the outcome measures, validated by additional multiple comparison tests. For four "positively" worded indicators (physical and mental health, happiness, and life satisfaction), scores increased consistently from the hiloni to the charedi categories. For four of five "negatively" worded indicators (bodily pain, depression, anxiety, and suffering), scores decreased across the same categories. Results withstood adjusting for effects of age, sex, education, marital status, urbanicity, income, and nativity (whether born in Israel). Among Israeli Jews, greater religiousness was associated with higher levels of health and well-being and lower levels of somatic and psychological distress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *HEALTH status indicators
*MENTAL health
*GROUP identity
*RESEARCH funding
*JEWS
*SATISFACTION
*JUDAISM
*ULTRA-Orthodox Jews
*STATISTICAL sampling
*SOCIOECONOMIC factors
*PSYCHOLOGY & religion
*DESCRIPTIVE statistics
*ANALYSIS of covariance
*ANXIETY
*ATTITUDE (Psychology)
*SURVEYS
*ORTHODOX Jews
*ONE-way analysis of variance
*HAPPINESS
*SPIRITUALITY
*PRACTICAL politics
*SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC factors
*WELL-being
*MENTAL depression
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 00224197
- Volume :
- 63
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Journal of Religion & Health
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 178970784
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-024-02078-5