Religious Identity and Family Ideologies in the Transition to Adulthood

• Published in: Journal of marriage and family Vol. 69; no. 5; pp. 1227 - 1243
• Main Authors: Pearce, Lisa D., Thornton, Arland
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Malden, USA Blackwell Publishing Inc 01.12.2007; National Council on Family Relations; Blackwell Publishing; Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subjects: Adolescents; Adolescents and Youth in Families; Adult education; Adulthood; Adults; Age; Attitude Measures; attitudes; Beliefs; Children; Cohabitation; Divorce; Faith; Families & family life; Family; Family (Sociological Unit); Family Attitudes; Family Life; Family studies; Fathers; Identity; Ideology; Intergenerational Relations; intergenerational transmission; Life Stage Transitions; Mothers; Panel surveys; Protestantism; Religion; Religiosity; Religious beliefs; Religious identity; Socialization; Spirituality; Transitions; young adulthood; Young Adults
• ISSN: 0022-2445; 1741-3737
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1741-3737.2007.00443.x

This article examines how religion shapes family ideologies in young adulthood. Using the 31-year Intergenerational Panel Study of Parents and Children (N = 909), we find relationships between mother's religious characteristics when her child was born and the child's own family ideologies in young adulthood. Further, multiple dimensions of young adults' religious identities are independently related to their family ideologies, suggesting unique influences of both religious service attendance and the importance of religion. Our results vary across time and family ideologies in interesting patterns, but relationships between religion and attitudes are remarkably consistent. From early in life, mothers' and children's religious characteristics shape family ideologies in ways likely to help explain relationships found between religion and family behaviors.