“…Still other researchers have found no such effect in both cross-sectional studies (Courtenay, Poon, Martin, Clayton, & Johnson, 1992;Spendlove, West, & Stanish, 1984) and longitudinal studies (Bosworth, Park, McQuoid, Hays, & Steffens, 2003;Braam, Beekman, Deeg, Smit, & van Tilburg, 1997). Church attendance, one aspect of religious practice, helps connect individuals with their social network, conferring a sense of belonging that has been associated with reduction in depression risk in cross-sectional studies (Idler & Kasl, 1997;Parker et al, 2003) and longitudinal studies (Strawbridge, Shema, Cohen, & Kaplan, 2001). Such participation, particularly at the end of life, can help bring about a sense of closure for events that were unexplainable and bring some meaning to the experience of physical and emotional pain (Koenig, Pargament, & Nielson, 1998;Van Ness & Larson, 2002).…”