Jitters on the Eve of the Great Recession: Is the Belief in Divine Control a Protective Resource?

Abstract One factor that has received surprisingly little attention in understanding the mental health consequences of the 2007–2008 financial crisis is religion. In this study, we ask: what is the relationship between two economic stressors—job insecurity and financial strain—and depression? And ho...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociology of religion 2022-07, Vol.83 (2), p.194-221
Main Authors: Upenieks, Laura, Schieman, Scott, Bierman, Alex
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Economic crisis
Economic stress
Great Recession
Housing
Housing prices
Interest rates
Job insecurity
Job security
Locus of control
Mental depression
Mental health
Occupational stress
Recessions
Religion
Religious beliefs
Sense of control
Socioeconomic factors
Stress
Unemployment
Working conditions
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Summary:Abstract One factor that has received surprisingly little attention in understanding the mental health consequences of the 2007–2008 financial crisis is religion. In this study, we ask: what is the relationship between two economic stressors—job insecurity and financial strain—and depression? And how do changes in religious belief, indexed by the sense of divine control, moderate those relationships? We use two waves of the U.S. Work, Stress, and Health (US-WSH) project (2005–2007), which occurred on the eve of the Great Recession. Results suggest that increases in job insecurity and financial strain are associated with increased levels of depression. However, those associations are (1) buffered among individuals who simultaneously increased in the sense of divine control and (2) exacerbated among individuals who decreased in the sense of divine control. Moreover, the buffering and exacerbating effects of divine control are significantly stronger among workers with lower levels of education.
ISSN:1069-4404
1759-8818
DOI:10.1093/socrel/srab018