Title

Religious involvement and happiness: Assessing the mediating role of compassion and helping others

School/Department

Rosemead School of Psychology

Publication Date

5-5-2017

Abstract

Research reveals that a number of different aspects of religious involvement are associated with happiness. However, researchers have yet to provide an overarching theoretical explanation for how multiple dimensions of religion might be associated with happiness. The purpose of this study is to develop and test a conceptual model that includes the following core hypotheses: (1) people who attend worship services more often tend to be more committed to their faith; (2) people who are more committed to their faith are more likely to be compassionate; (3) compassionate individuals are more likely to provide emotional support to significant others; and (4) people who provide support to others tend to be happier. Data from a recent nationwide survey in the United States (N = 3,010) provides support for each hypothesis. The theoretical implications of these finding are discussed.

Keywords

Compassion; Happiness;

Publication Title

The Journal of Social Psychology

Volume

158

Issue

2

First Page

256

Last Page

270

DOI of Published Version

10.1080/00224545.2017.1331992

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