Attachment to God, Tenure, Race, and Participation in Congregational Life

Abstract

The vitality of religious congregations is dependent on how effectively they attract congregants and mobilize participation, and people are more likely to participate when they share similar characteristics with other congregants. This study suggests attachment to God is a fundamental “behavioral and intrapersonal characteristic” which distinguishes participants from one another, contributing to varying levels of participation in congregational and religious life beyond service attendance. Using a national sample, we test several hypotheses related to this theoretical claim. Findings suggest that: (1) secure attachment to God is positively associated with congregational participation, (2) anxious and avoidant attachment are negatively associated with participation, (3) these relationships are moderated by length of time attending a particular congregation, and (4) secure attachment is associated with higher levels of participation in congregational life for blacks than it is for whites. By demonstrating a link between attachment to God and participation in congregational and religious life, this study affirms that intrapersonal characteristics structure the dynamics of religious congregations.

Attachment to God and Psychological Distress: Evidence of a Curvilinear Relationship

“…One worthy line of inquiry is whether anxious attachment to God inhibits access to the psychosocial resources that religious commitment often provides (Ellison and George 1994;Krause et al 2001;Levin, Chatters, and Taylor1995). Recent studies indicate both avoidant and anxious attachment to God styles erode commitment to religious congregations where one would find networks of social support and positive appraisals (Freeze and DiTommaso 2014;Kent and Henderson 2017). However, our analyses suggest this may not be especially problematic for the avoidant, as the results may fit a larger pattern of proximal ambivalence that may not correlate with distress.…”

“…In fact, some scholars suggest that compared to the variability of human relationships, God represents the ultimate attachment figure (Cicirelli 2004;Kirkpatrick 2004). The subfield of attachment to God analyzes how emotional connections to God are related to childhood attachments (Birgegard and Granqvist 2004;Granqvist andHagekull, 1999, 2003;McDonald et al 2005), which then condition a variety of social, psychological, and organizational outcomes (Bradshaw, Ellison, and Marcum 2010;Ellison et al, 2012Ellison et al, , 2014Kent, Bradshaw, and Dougherty 2016;Kent and Henderson 2017;Krause and Hayward 2016).…”

Attachment to God and Social Trust

“…Thus, any anxieties or insecurities people carry toward the divine are likely mirrored in interpersonal relationships and can impact engagement with both immediate and distal social groups. This assertion is buttressed by recent work demonstrating independent associations between secure attachment to God and congregational participation (Kent and Henderson 2017) and vocational commitment (Kent, Bradshaw, and Dougherty 2016).…”

Perceived Neighborhood Disorder, Self-Esteem, and the Moderating Role of Religion

“…Second, as noted above, at least one recent study highlights the role of individuals' attachment to God in shaping their congregational engagement. According to that investigation, persons with a secure attachment to God tend to maintain congregational involvement and church-based social ties over time, whereas those with anxious or avoidant attachments to God reduce their social and religious engagement with their congregation and fellow church members (Kent and Henderson 2017). Such contingent patterns could well complicate the link between organizational religiosity and outcomes such as self-esteem.…”