Religious People Have Higher Self-Esteem But Only In Some Countries, Study Shows

Are religious people happier? Studies have shown that God-fearing folks tend to have higher self-esteem than nonbelievers, but new research published in the January issue of Psychological Science adds some nuance. It shows that religious belief is linked to high self-esteem only in countries that emphasize religious belief.

Researchers at three European universities looked at the religious beliefs and self-esteem of users of an online dating service across 11 countries, from the devoutly Catholic Poland to the world's least religious country, Sweden.

The analysis showed that in religious countries, self-esteem was higher among believers than nonbelievers. That was consistent with previous research. But in countries where religion is not central to the culture, the self-esteem of religious people was lower than that of nonbelievers.

The researchers offered a possible explanation for their finding: Religious people feel better about themselves in religious countries not because they're religious, but simply because they fit in with the crowd.

"We think you only pat yourself on the back for being religious if you live in a social system that values religiosity," Jochen Gebauer, Research Associate at Humboldt University of Berlin, said in a written statement. "The same might be true when you compare different states in the U.S. or different cities. Probably you could mimic the same result in Germany, if you compare Bavaria where many people are religious and Berlin where very few people are religious."

It's not the only recent study to question the apparent psychological benefit of religion. A similar study showed that religious students at religious universities had higher self-esteem than religious students at non-religious universities.

What's the bottom line about religion and self-esteem? It's simplistic to believe that religion brings happiness on its own.

Comments

[Jamie Kowalski]

10:22 AM on 01/24/2012

Perhaps it is just depressing to look around and see how pervasive superstition still is.

[Leo Max]

02:18 PM on 01/23/2012

"We think you only pat yourself on the back for being religious if you live in a social system that values religiosity," makes total sense to me.

I would assume that being religious privately does not help as much. It has to be done in community and in a healing community.

But being religious does imply that the person is self aware and interested in how their inner world works. I also think that a person can experience self awareness and discovery like at http://www.clarifylife.com which is not religious.

The key is to learn to accept what is. What exists is either resisted or accepted and the amount of acceptance has more bearing on self esteem.

[Tylerious]

12:41 PM on 01/23/2012

I think there's another issue at play here. If you're in a very religious culture, you have to be a special kind of person to break from the tradition of religion. I would argue that depression can lead people to turn from religion because they do not feel the psychological benefits emotionally healthy people feel. Evidence of this assertion exists within research regarding depressive realism. "Depressive realism is the proposition that people with depression actually have a more accurate perception of reality, specifically that they are less affected by positive illusions of illusory superiority, the Locus of Control and optimism bias."

[The Skeptical One]

08:55 PM on 01/22/2012

Even if in ALL countries everywhere atheists were unhappier than believers, I still wouldn't believe. It's a matter of what's true, not what makes me the happiest.

[Abnormal Wrench]

08:11 AM on 01/22/2012

These kind of correlation studies always seem nonsensical to me. It is like asking if brown skin people have lower self esteem than white skin people. The answer has nothing to do with the biology of skin color, it is just a reflection of localized culture, that not only can change, but will inevitably change.

[HAlexandria]

10:36 AM on 01/21/2012

Can this even be considered a study? Watch!

Are zoophiles happier? Studies have shown that animal lovers, in the carnal sense, tend to have higher self-esteem than non-animal "lovers", but new research published in the January issue of Psychological Science adds some nuance. It shows that zoophilia is linked to high self-esteem only in countries that emphasize the joys of sex with animals.

As absurd as the above paragraph may be, it's still true..

[noahmarder]

04:33 AM on 01/21/2012

Marginalized groups have lower self-esteem, and the mainstream groups improve their members' self-esteem by ostracizing the outliers. That is how Bush won a second term in 2004. The "gain" felt by Christians in demonizing gay marriage outweighed the costs in voting for a party who worked against their financial interests.

It is always nice to see an apparent benefit claimed by religion reduced to a social phenomenon. Too bad most of the religious are blind to the light of reason.

[OldKatt]

01:43 AM on 01/21/2012

So that may explain why so many religious people in the U.S. are so adamant about being able to combine their religion with matters of the state, and why they belittle atheists : they would feel better if the state sanctioned their beliefs, and they consider atheism a threat.

[beninabox1]

01:42 AM on 01/21/2012

It's weird how so many atheists are trolling their little talking points and not actually reading the article. Sad since the major atheist thinkers (who would never pull this kind of cr*p) value reason and looking at what's in front of them.

[dstarke61]

02:19 AM on 01/21/2012

Seems the facts say religion is not all it's cracked up to be. And judging from the vitriol heaped upon the girl who successfully sued to have a prayer banner taken down at her high school, a lot of hard-core Christians aren't very happy...

[SwiftJonathan]

01:26 AM on 01/21/2012

The religious people I know are not happier. They are always pretending that it would make me happier if I would join them... somehow I can't see that.

[OldKatt]

01:44 AM on 01/21/2012

It would make THEM happier if you would join them.

[Canuckview]

01:15 AM on 01/21/2012

there is a difference between self esteem and feeling holier than thou.

[garystartswithg]

01:32 AM on 01/21/2012

and the willingness to kill your neighbors and take their possessions because you are chosen and they aren't. oh wait, they weren't even neighbors until gb and usa took their land in the first place. oopsie.

[OldKatt]

01:45 AM on 01/21/2012

Leave it to a Canadian to hit the nail on the head!

[PhloxJeana]

01:08 AM on 01/21/2012

How ironic is it that this article is in the science category?

[garystartswithg]

01:36 AM on 01/21/2012

Metaphysicists will never grasp they aren't physicists, they are limited like that. There was a reason the Greeks and Romans offed whole bloodlines in one sweep. Let even one nasty little seed hit the ground and up pops the Church of England.

[PhloxJeana]

02:30 AM on 01/21/2012

Kind of like cryptozoologists. If it has a sciencey sounding name, it must garner respect, right? Hey, maybe Big Foot is god in disguise he he can walk amongst us!

[pixeloid]

01:03 AM on 01/21/2012

This seems to show that conformists have higher self-esteem than non-conformists. That makes sense when you consider the more "average" your are, the less your beliefs will be challenged. That's especially true as children. We all know what happens to the kid in class that might seem somehow different from the other kids.

[OldKatt]

01:46 AM on 01/21/2012

Good point!

[darthmaul]

12:52 AM on 01/21/2012

All you need is ignorance and confidence and the success is sure.
-Mark Twain

[pixeloid]

01:04 AM on 01/21/2012

Well, you probably don't need the ignorance, but it's the best way to get the confidence.

[Uncle Jer]

11:56 PM on 01/20/2012

I get a lot of strength from spirituality, but I agree that it's not religion in itself that boosts self-esteem, but rather the feeling of being allied with the deity against all the ignorant godless infidels. But then often comes the crash - when the religious realize that they can never measure up to the ideals they need to set them apart and make them feel superior to the out-group, so they become more defensive and doctrinaire about their particular faith. They also become insufferable at this point, and certainly don't act confident. A person who's confident in their spiritual skin doesn't need to force the rest of the world into their program.