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Supportive Relationships with Church Members Among African Americans *
Author(s) -
Taylor Robert Joseph,
Lincoln Karen D.,
Chatters Linda M.
Publication year - 2005
Publication title -
family relations
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 1741-3729
pISSN - 0197-6664
DOI - 10.1111/j.1741-3729.2005.00336.x
Subject(s) - closeness , solidarity , social psychology , psychology , black church , gender studies , sociology , african american , political science , anthropology , law , mathematical analysis , mathematics , politics
This study proposed and tested a model of informal church support networks among African Americans. Consistent with research in family relations, age and gender were significantly associated with the frequency of interaction with church members. In addition, the degree of subjective closeness and the frequency of interaction were both significantly associated with the frequency of receiving support from church members, suggesting that conceptualizations of family solidarity may extend to church networks. Practice implications emphasize the importance of recognizing church members as integral members of the informal networks of African Americans.