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The Couple That Prays Together: Race and Ethnicity, Religion, and Relationship Quality Among Working‐Age Adults
Author(s) -
Ellison Christopher G.,
Burdette Amy M.,
Bradford Wilcox W.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of marriage and family
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.578
H-Index - 159
eISSN - 1741-3737
pISSN - 0022-2445
DOI - 10.1111/j.1741-3737.2010.00742.x
Subject(s) - ethnic group , race (biology) , telephone survey , psychology , quality (philosophy) , social psychology , demography , gender studies , sociology , philosophy , epistemology , marketing , anthropology , business
A substantial body of research has shown that relationship quality tends to be (a) lower among racial and ethnic minorities and (b) higher among more religious persons and among couples in which partners share common religious affiliations, practices, and beliefs. However, few studies have examined the interplay of race or ethnicity and religion in shaping relationship quality. Our study addresses this gap in the literature using data from the National Survey of Religion and Family Life (NSRFL), a 2006 telephone survey of 2,400 working‐age adults (ages 18–59), which contains oversamples of African Americans and Latinos. Results underscore the complex nature of the effects of race and ethnicity, as well as religious variables. In particular, we found that couples' in‐home family devotional activities and shared religious beliefs are positively linked with reports of relationship quality.