Intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity, belief in the afterlife, death anxiety, and life satisfaction in young Catholics and Protestants

Adam B. Cohen*, John D. Pierce, Jacqueline Chambers, Rachel Meade, Benjamin J. Gorvine, Harold G. Koenig

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

146 Scopus citations

Abstract

One way in which religiosity could promote well-being is by reducing fear of death. The objective of this study was to explore relationships between intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity, afterlife belief, death anxiety and life satisfaction in young Catholics and Protestants. Questionnaires were administered to 375 adolescents and young adults. Data analysis was limited to 134 Protestants and 149 Catholics. Measures included Allport and Ross' (1967) Intrinsic and Extrinsic Religiosity scales, Templer's (1970) Death Anxiety scale, Osarchuk and Tatz' (1973) belief in the afterlife scale, and the satisfaction with life scale (Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1986). As hypothesized, religion moderated relationships between intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity scales with death anxiety and afterlife belief. These results support a recent argument that scales to measure intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity reflect Protestant notions of religiosity and are most suited for use in Protestant subjects.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)307-324
Number of pages18
JournalJournal of Research in Personality
Volume39
Issue number3
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2005

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Social Psychology
  • Psychology(all)

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity, belief in the afterlife, death anxiety, and life satisfaction in young Catholics and Protestants'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this