Abstract
Dignity is a human characteristic equated with real worth, a sense of moral and social personhood, and should have clear links to mental well-being. Empirical work on perceived dignity is relatively scant, but it stands to reason that one source of dignity might be gathered through religion/spirituality, especially through one’s relationship with God or a divine power. In this study, we test whether attachment to God may protect against the hypothesized negative mental health consequences of having low perceptions of dignity. Using nationally representative data from the 2017 Baylor Religion Survey (N = 1375), we find that lower perceptions of dignity were associated with higher depression and anxiety. We found that for respondents with low self-perceptions of dignity, stronger feelings of secure attachment to God attenuated (weakened) the otherwise positive association between low dignity and greater depression and anxiety. Taken together, a secure attachment to God could lead believers to confront challenges and problems, including one’s dignity being undermined, with confidence and security. We offer future directions for research on an understudied concept in the religion and health literature.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Notes
-
Some readers may be interested in whether a secure attachment to God predicts higher levels of dignity. Supplemental analyses showed that net of demographic and religious characteristics of respondents, a stronger attachment to God was a marginally significant predictor of higher dignity (b = 0.007, SE = 0.004, p = 0.066).
References
Anderson, L., & Snow, D. A. (2001). Inequality and the self: Exploring connections from an interactionist perspective. Symbolic Interaction, 24(4), 395–406. https://doi.org/10.1525/si.2001.24.4.395
Andersson, M. A., & Hitlin, S. (2021). Seeking dignity: Using morality to expand psychosocial resources and mental health. Working Draft.
Bartkowski, J. P., Acevedo, G. A., & Van Loggerenberg, H. (2017). Prayer, meditation, and anxiety: Durkheim revisited. Religions, 8(9), 191. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel8090191
Baxter, V., & Margavio, A. V. (2011). Honor, self and social reproduction. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 41(2), 121–142. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5914.2010.00452.x
Beck, A. T. (2002). Cognitive models of depression. Clinical Advances in Cognitive Psychotherapy: Theory and Application, 14(1), 29–61.
Bonhag, R., & Upenieks, L. (2021). Mattering to God and to the congregation: Gendered effects in mattering as a mechanism between religiosity and mental health. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 60(4), 890–913. https://doi.org/10.1111/jssr.12753
Bowlby, J. (1982). Attachment and loss: Retrospect and prospect. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 52(4), 664–678. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1939-0025.1982.tb01456.x
Bradshaw, M., Ellison, C. G., & Marcum, J. P. (2010). Attachment to God, images of God, and psychological distress in a nationwide sample of Presbyterians. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 20(2), 130–147. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508611003608049
Cicirelli, V. (2004). God as the ultimate attachment figure for older adults. Attachment and Human Development, 6(4), 371–388. https://doi.org/10.1080/1461673042000303091
Cooley, C. H. (1902/1983). Human nature and the social order. Transaction.
Cooper, L. B., Bruce, A. J., Harman, M. J., & Boccaccini, M. T. (2009). Differentiated styles of attachment to God and varying religious coping efforts. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 37(2), 134–141. https://doi.org/10.1177/009164710903700205
Counted, V., & Moustafa, A. A. (2017). Between God and self: Exploring the attachment to God and authenticity/inauthenticity tendencies of South African Christian youths. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 20(2), 109–127. https://doi.org/10.1080/13674676.2017.1326476
Dales, R. C. (1977). A medieval view of human dignity. Journal of the History of Ideas, 38(4), 557–572. https://doi.org/10.2307/2708687
DeAngelis, R. T., & Ellison, C. G. (2017). Kept in his care: The role of perceived divine control in positive reappraisal coping. Religions, 8(8), 133. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel8080133
Dillon, R. S. (2013). Dignity, character and self-respect. Routledge.
Ellison, C. G., Bradshaw, M., Flannelly, K. J., & Galek, K. C. (2014). Prayer, attachment to God, and symptoms of anxiety-related disorders among US adults. Sociology of Religion, 75(2), 208–233. https://doi.org/10.1093/socrel/srt079
Ellison, C. G., Bradshaw, M., Kuyel, N., & Marcum, J. P. (2012). Attachment to God, stressful life events, and changes in psychological distress. Review of Religious Research, 53(4), 493–511. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13644-011-0023-4
Ellison, C. G., DeAngelis, R. T., & Güven, M. (2017). Does religious involvement mitigate the effects of major discrimination on the mental health of African Americans? Findings from the Nashville Stress and Health Study. Religions, 8(9), 195. https://doi.org/10.3390/rel8090195
Erickson, R. J. (1995). The importance of authenticity for self and society. Symbolic Interaction, 18(2), 121–144. https://doi.org/10.1525/si.1995.18.2.121
Froese, P., & Bader, C. (2010). America’s four Gods: What we say about God–and what that says about us. Oxford University Press.
Gaylin, W. (1984). In defense of the dignity of being human. Hastings Center Report, 14(5), 18–22. https://doi.org/10.2307/3561161
Hitlin, S., & Andersson, M. A. (2013). Social psychology of human dignity. In D. L. Brunsma, K. E. Iyall-Smith, & B. K. Bran (Eds.), Handbook of sociology and human rights (pp. 384–393). London: Paradigm.
Hitlin, S., & Andersson, M. A. (2015). Dignity as moral motivation: The problem of social order writ small. In E. Lawler, S. Thye, & J. Yoon (Eds.), Order on the edge of chaos: Social psychology and the problem of social order (pp. 268–285). Cambridge University Press.
Homan, K. J. (2014). A mediation model linking attachment to God, self-compassion, and mental health. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 17(10), 977–989. https://doi.org/10.1080/13674676.2014.984163
Jacobson, N. (2007). Dignity and health: A review. Social Science and Medicine, 64(2), 292–302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2006.08.039
Jacobson, N. (2012). Dignity and health. Vanderbilt University Press.
John Paul, P. (1995). Evangelium vitae. Origins, 24(42), 689–691.
Kennedy, J. A., Kim, T. W., & Strudler, A. (2016). Hierarchies and dignity: A Confucian communitarian approach. Business Ethics Quarterly, 26(4), 479–502. https://doi.org/10.1017/beq.2016.17
Kent, B. V., Bradshaw, M., & Uecker, J. E. (2018). Forgiveness, attachment to God, and mental health outcomes in older US adults: A longitudinal study. Research on Aging, 40(5), 456–479. https://doi.org/10.1177/0164027517706984
Kirkpatrick, L. A. (2005). Attachment, evolution, and the psychology of religion. Guilford Press.
Kirkpatrick, L. A., & Shaver, P. R. (1992). An attachment-theoretical approach to romantic love and religious belief. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 18(3), 266–275. https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167292183002
Kraynak, R. P. (2003). Made in the image of God: The Christian view of human dignity and political order. In R. P. Kraynak & G. Tinder (Eds.), In defense of human dignity (pp. 81–118). University of Notre Dame Press.
Lamont, M. (2017). Prisms of inequality: Moral boundaries, exclusion and academic evaluation. Prize Essay, Erasmus Prize, Amsterdam.
Lamont, M. (2000). The dignity of working men. Russell Sage Foundation.
Lamont, M., Silva, G. M., Welburn, J. S., Guetzkow, J., & Mizrachi, N. (2016). Getting respect: Responding to stigma and discrimination in the United States, Brazil & Israel. Princeton University Press.
Lukes, S. (2008). Moral relativism. Picador.
Mead, G. H. (1934). Mind, self & society from the standpoint of a social behaviorist. University of Chicago Press.
Miner, M. H. (2007). Back to the basics in attachment to God: Revisiting theory in light of theology. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 35(2), 112–122. https://doi.org/10.1177/009164710703500202
Mirowsky, J., & Ross, C. E. (2003). Social causes of psychological distress. Transaction Publishers.
Misztal, B. A. (2013). The idea of dignity: Its modern significance. European Journal of Social Theory, 16(1), 101–121. https://doi.org/10.1177/1368431012449237
Monti, J. D., & Rudolph, K. D. (2014). Emotional awareness as a pathway linking adult attachment to subsequent depression. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 61(3), 374–382. https://doi.org/10.1037/cou0000016
Njus, D. M., & Scharmer, A. (2020). Evidence that God attachment makes a unique contribution to psychological well-being. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 30(3), 178–201. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508619.2020.1723296
Pargament, K. I. (1997). The psychology of religion and coping: Theory, research, practice. Guilford Press.
Pargament, K. I., Koenig, H. G., & Perez, L. M. (2000). The many methods of religious coping: Development and initial validation of the RCOPE. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56(4), 519–543. https://doi.org/10.1002/(SICI)1097-4679(200004)56:4%3C519::AID-JCLP6%3E3.0.CO;2-1
Pearlin, L. I., & Bierman, A. (2013). Current issues and future directions in research into the stress process. In C. S. Aneshenzel, J. C. Phelan, & A. Bierman (Eds.), Handbook of the sociology of mental health (2nd ed., pp. 325–340). Springer.
Pearlin, L. I., & Radabaugh, C. W. (1976). Economic strains and the coping function of alcohol. American Journal of Sociology, 82(3), 652–663. https://doi.org/10.1086/226357
Pielage, S. B., Luteijn, F., & Arrindell, W. A. (2005). Adult attachment, intimacy and psychological distress in a clinical and community sample. Clinical Psychology and Psychotherapy: An International Journal of Theory & Practice, 12(6), 455–464. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpp.472
Radloff, L. S. (1977). The CES-D scale: A self-report depression scale for research in the general population. Applied Psychological Measurement, 1(3), 385–401. https://doi.org/10.1177/014662167700100306
Rosenberg, M., & McCullough, B. C. (1981). Mattering: Inferred significance and mental health among adolescents. Research in Community and Mental Health, 2, 163–182.
Rowatt, W., & Kirkpatrick, L. A. (2002). Two dimensions of attachment to God and their relation to affect, religiosity, and personality constructs. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 41(4), 637–651. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5906.00143
Sandage, S. J., Jankowski, P. J., & Link, D. C. (2010). Quest and spiritual development moderated by spiritual transformation. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 38(1), 15–31. https://doi.org/10.1177/009164711003800102
Sands, P. (2010). The Imago Dei as vocation. Evangelical Quarterly, 82(1), 28–41.
Sayer, A. (2011). Why things matter to people: Social science, values and ethical life. Cambridge University Press.
Schieman, S. (2019). Ordinary lives and the sociological character of stress: How work, family, and status contribute to emotional inequality. Society and Mental Health, 9(2), 127–142. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156869319844805
Schieman, S., Bierman, A., Upenieks, L., & Ellison, C. G. (2017). Love thy self? How belief in a supportive God shapes self-esteem. Review of Religious Research, 59(3), 293–318. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13644-017-0292-7
Seltser, B. J., & Miller, D. E. (1993). Homeless families: The struggle for dignity. University of Illinois Press.
Sensen, O. (2011). Kant on human dignity (Vol. 166). Walter de Gruyter.
Silva, J. M. (2013). Coming up short: Working-class adulthood in an age of uncertainty. Oxford University Press.
Simon, R. W., & Caputo, J. (2019). The costs and benefits of parenthood for mental and physical health in the United States: The importance of parenting stage. Society and Mental Health, 9(3), 296–315. https://doi.org/10.1177/2156869318786760
Smith, B. W., Dalen, J., Wiggins, K., Tooley, E., Christopher, P., & Bernard, J. (2008). The brief resilience scale: Assessing the ability to bounce back. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 15(3), 194–200. https://doi.org/10.1080/10705500802222972
Smith, C. (2010). What is a person? University of Chicago Press.
Steensland, B., Robinson, L. D., Wilcox, W. B., Park, J. Z., Regnerus, M. D., & Woodberry, R. D. (2000). The measure of American religion: Toward improving the state of the art. Social Forces, 79(1), 291–318. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/79.1.291
Tangney, J. P., Stuewig, J., & Mashek, D. J. (2007). Moral emotions and moral behavior. Annual Review of Psychology, 58, 345–437. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.56.091103.070145
Upenieks, L. (2021). “The assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen”: Racial differences in the effects of changes in religiosity and hope in later life. Journal of Religion, Spirituality and Aging. https://doi.org/10.1080/15528030.2021.1998817
Funding
The authors have not disclosed any funding.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Upenieks, L. Perceptions of Dignity, Attachment to God, and Mental Health in a National US Sample. J Relig Health 61, 3615–3636 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-022-01559-9
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-022-01559-9