Religion and Decisions About Marriage, Residence, Occupation, and Children

Abstract

Using data from the first wave of the Portraits of American Life Study (PALS), we consider the extent to which people report that religious factors influence their decisions about career choice, marriage, residency, and number of children. We find significant positive relationships between the importance of religion or religious faith and the perceived influence of religious factors on one's choice of occupation, decision about whether or whom to marry, decision about where to live, and decision about how many children to have. We also observe significant interactions between the importance of religion or religious faith and religious tradition, but we find no consistent patterns across our decision-making outcomes. Our preliminary conclusions raise significant questions about the broader relationship between religion, perception, and decision making.

The Effects of Religion on Enduring Marriages

“…Despite the greater significance of religion among older Americans [9,10] and the positive association between increased religiosity and improved marital outcomes early in the life span [11,12], little is known about the relationship between religion and marriage among older couples. Previous research has relied on strict standards of what it means to believe, to be religious and to belong to a denomination or congregation, despite inadequacies in capturing how people live [13][14][15]. "We have to put away biases about 'real religion' that have often characterized scientific attempts at explanation" ( [16], p. 5).…”

“…According to Kusner and colleagues [49], increased levels of religious discourse between spouses, coupled with a shared belief in the sanctification of marriage, decreased the likelihood of negative interactions during periods of conflict. Religious discourse appears to have the strongest influence on people's everyday life decisions when they participate in religious communities that stress the salience of religion's role in everyday decisions [15]. Religious discourse concerning the eternal nature of marriage beyond death has been linked to enduring marriages, as well [48].Despite the results of previous research indicating positive links between religion and marriage outcomes, there are four important potential pitfalls in much of the extant literature [50].…”

Religion and union formation in Italy: Catholic precepts, social pressure, and tradition

“…While these quantitative studies demonstrate a relationship between religion and family behaviors, they have limited power in informing us of how people think about the relationship between religion and union formation, specifically the extent to which individuals see religion influencing their choices. A recent study explicitly addressed the role of people"s perceptions of religious influence on their family decisions (Sigalow, Shain, and Bergey 2012). The authors urged future research to investigate the role that religion plays in family life in order to understand "if and how people use religion as a guide in their lives and in what contexts people draw upon religion" (Sigalow, Shain, and Bergey 2012: 321).…”

Muslim Consumers Style Inventory: A Case from Pakistan

“…As noted by Delener (1990), religion is critical cultural driver and important predecessor of consumer behaviour. Literature undoubtedly identifies that religion guides individuals' behaviour from simple daily routine issues like household spending (Renneboog & Spaenjers, 2012) to complex corporate affairs and marriage decisions (Hilary & Hui, 2009;Sigalow, Shain, & Bergey, 2012). Thus, it is evident to argue that religion plays a vibrant role in consumer decision making.…”