Skip to main content
  • Current Students
  • Parents & Families
  • Alumni
  • Faculty & Staff

Footer quick links

  • Request Info
  • Plan a Visit
  • Apply Now
  • About
    • Campus Map
    • College Profile
    • Community Commitments
    • Our Commitment to Diversity
    • History of Westmont
    • Institutes & Centers
    • Leadership
    • News
    • Gaede Institute for the Liberal Arts
    • Ridley-Tree Museum of Art
    • Westmont Magazine
    • Consumer Information
      • Request Info
      • Plan a Visit
      • Apply Now
  • Academics
    • Academic Services
    • Augustinian Scholars Program
    • Academic Opportunities
    • Global Education
    • Majors and Programs
    • Office of the Provost
    • Outcomes
    • Voskuyl Library
    • Consumer Information
      • Request Info
      • Plan a Visit
  • Admissions & Aid
    • Prospective Students
    • Visit Westmont
    • Financial Aid
    • Admitted Students
    • Confirmed Students
    • Prospective Parents
    • Meet your Counselor
    • Confirm your Place
    • Consumer Information
      • Request Info
      • Plan a Visit
      • Apply Now
  • Student Life
    • Words of Warriors
    • CATlab
    • Living on Campus
    • On Campus Activities
    • Off Campus Activities
    • Our Commitment to Diversity
    • COVE Career Center
    • Ministries
    • Chapel
    • Consumer Information
      • Request Info
      • Plan a Visit
      • Apply Now
  • Giving
    • Why Give?
    • Where to Give
    • How to Give
    • Giving Societies
    • Contact Us
      • Give Today
  • Athletics
  • Research
  • Apply

Research Menu

  • Research
    • Latest Research
    • Faculty Library
    • Press Room

Study Examines Attachment to God, Psychological Distress

By
Scott Craig

January 5, 2022

A national study examines the link between perceived relationship with God and mental health from a sample of more than 1,600 Americans. The research suggests that religious believers who relate to God in an uncertain or anxious manner are more likely to experience symptoms of psychological distress, including anxiety, paranoia, obsession and compulsion.

The Study, “Attachment to God and Psychological Distress: Evidence of a Curvilinear Relationship” appears in the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion. It relies on data from the 2010 Baylor Religion Survey, a national survey of American religious beliefs, values, and behaviors. The research sheds light on how different styles of connecting to God — or attaching to God — may be related to poorer mental health.

“Most research on attachment to God has suggested a simple linear relationship, where a less avoidant — or secure — relationship is associated with better mental health and a more avoidant relationship with worse,” said Blake Victor Kent, assistant professor of sociology at Westmont College. “But there have been hints in the research that the relationship may actually look more like an upside down U-shaped curve. So that’s what we looked for, and that’s what we found.”

The inverse curve was found in a scale composed of six items measuring avoidance and non-avoidance in relationship with God. Sample items read:

  • “I have a warm relationship with God.”

  • “God knows when I need support.” 

  • “God seems to have little or no interest in my personal affairs.”

“Essentially what we found is that those who are less avoidant and those who are more avoidant in their relationship with God both have lower levels of psychological distress,” said study co-author W. Matthew Henderson, assistant professor of sociology at Union University. “That challenges the existing research. These data suggest it’s only those in the middle, those who experience uncertainty in the relationship with God, and not the avoidant, that have worse mental health.”

This doesn’t mean avoidant attachment to God is unproblematic, however, according to Kent. “Avoidance is what happens when you just stop relying on God — you don’t trust that God will be there for you, so you learn to rely on yourself,” he said. “And that extends to other people as well.”

While the study suggests avoidance may not be a red flag for some aspects of mental health, the authors contend avoidance can still cause problems in relationships, including relationships in the church. “The more we understand how we relate to God and others, the healthier we can be,” Henderson said.

The study garnered international news attention, including Newsweek, Christian Today and the Christian Post.

Footer links menu

  • Request Info
  • Plan a Visit
  • Apply Now

Footer Utility menu

  • Employment
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Emergency Info
  • Consumer Information

955 La Paz Road
Santa Barbara, CA 93108 

805-565-6000

Contact Us

 

Social media menu

©2022
Westmont College - All rights reserved