Latest Research

Gandara, Eduardo, Idethia Shevon Harvey, Lisako McKyer, Wen Luo, and Jim Burdine. 2023. “Qualitative Inquiry of African American Female Church Leaders on Facilitators and Barriers of Conducting Adult Health Programs Within African American Churches: A Pilot Study Using a Socioecological Perspective Within the United States.” Journal of Religion and Health.

Bolger, Daniel, Cleve Tinsley and Elaine Howard Ecklund. 2018. “Heaven and Health: How Black, Latino, and Korean Christians View the Relationship between Faith and Health.” Review of Religious Research 60(3):389-402.

Baruth, Meghan, Melissa Bopp, Benjamin L. Webb, and Jane A. Peterson. 2015. “The Role and Influence of Faith Leaders on Health-Related Issues and Programs in their Congregation.” Journal of Religion and Health 54 (5): 1747-1759.

Ford, CeRon, Katie Rydberg, and Carrie Henning-Smith. 2025. “Factors Associated with Mental and Behavioral Health Programming in US Rural, Urban and Suburban Congregations.” Journal of Religion and Health: 1-17.

Bolger, Daniel, Cleve Tinsley, and Elaine Howard Ecklund. 2018. “Heaven and Health: How Black, Latino, and Korean Christians View the Relationship Between Faith and Health.” Review of Religious Research 60 (3): 389-402.

Holleman, Anna. 2023. “The Resilience of Clergywomen?: Gender and the Relationship between Occupational Distress and Mental Health among Congregational Leaders.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 62 (1): 89-107.

Jung, Jong Hyun. 2022. “Religious Attendance and Health Behavior in Cross-National Perspective: The Role of Religious Context.” Review of Religious Research 64 (4): 601-626.

Schwadel, Philip, and Katelynn Shadoan. 2024. “The Demographic Makeup of Congregations and Clergy Mental Health: A Research Note.” Review of Religious Research 66 (2): 142-156.

Holleman, Anna and David Eagle. 2023. “Is There a Crisis in Clergy Health?: Reorienting Research Using a National Sample.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 62(3):580-604.

Holleman, Anna. 2024. “Programming Provided by Religious Congregations in the United States to Address Mental Illness and Substance Use Disorder.” Journal of Religion and Health 63(1):551-66.

Thiessen, Joel, Emanuel Cusanelli, Arch Chee Keen Wong, and Joseph Roso. 2025. “Mental Health and Illness Perceptions and Experiences in Canadian Christian Congregations.” Review of Religious Research

VanderWeele, Tyler J., Jeffrey Yu, Yvette C. Cozier, Lauren Wise, M. Austin Argentieri, Lynn Rosenberg, Julie R. Palmer, and Alexandra E. Shields. 2017. “Attendance at Religious Services, Prayer, Religious Coping, and Religious/Spiritual Identity as Predictors of All-Cause Mortality in the Black Women’s Health Study.” American Journal of Epidemiology 185 (7): 515-522.

Upenieks, Laura, Terrence D Hill, Gabriel Acevedo, and Harold G Koenig. 2023. ““Electronic Church” 2.0: Are Virtual and In-Person Attendance Associated with Mental and Physical Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic?” Sociology of Religion.

Schwadel, Philip and Katelynn Shadoan. 2024. “The Demographic Makeup of Congregations and Clergy Mental Health: A Research Note.” Review of Religious Research 66(2):142-56.

Bonhag, Rebecca and Laura Upenieks. 2021. “Mattering to God and to the Congregation: Gendered Effects in Mattering as a Mechanism between Religiosity and Mental Health.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 60(4):890-913. doi: https://doi.org/10.1111/jssr.12753.

VanderWeele, Tyler J., Jeffrey Yu, Yvette C. Cozier, Lauren Wise, M. Austin Argentieri, Lynn Rosenberg, Julie R. Palmer, and Alexandra E. Shields. “Attendance at Religious Services, Prayer, Religious Coping, and Religious/Spiritual Identity as Predictors of All-Cause Mortality in the Black Women’s Health Study.” American Journal of Epidemiology 185, no. 7 (2017): 515-22.

Krause, Neal. 2016. “Feelings of Belonging in a Congregation: A Social–Psychological Assessment.” Mental Health, Religion & Culture 19(2):164-77. doi: 10.1080/13674676.2016.1138283.

Anugwom, Edlyne E, Kenechukwu Anugwom, and Chinyere Nwaoga. 2025. “God in all Things: Small Congregations and Surviving the COVID-19 Pandemic in Nigeria.” Journal of Religion and Health: 1-22.

Acevedo, Gabriel A., Reed T. DeAngelis, Jordan Farrell, and Brandon Vaidyanathan. 2022. “Is it the Sermon or the Choir? Pastoral Support, Congregant Support, and Worshiper Mental Health.” Review of Religious Research 64 (4): 577-600.

Denis, Philippe. 2024. “A founding moment: how members of religious congregations became AIDS activists.” In Handbook on Religion and Health, 295-308. Edward Elgar Publishing.

Bonhag, Rebecca, and Laura Upenieks. 2021. “Mattering to God and to the Congregation: Gendered Effects in Mattering as a Mechanism Between Religiosity and Mental Health.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 60 (4): 890-913.

Kent, Blake Victor, Laura Upenieks, Daniel Y. Jang, Christopher G. Ellison, and Bradley R.E. Wright. 2024. ““See You Sunday?” Effects of Attending a Specific Weekend Religious Service on Emotional Well-Being: A State/Trait Analysis of the SoulPulse Study.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 63 (4): 938-957.

Kim, Eric S, and Tyler J VanderWeele. 2018. “Mediators of the Association Between Religious Service Attendance and Mortality.” American Journal of Epidemiology 188 (1): 96-101.

Andre, Nick, Laura Upenieks and Rebecca Bonhag. 2023. “Does Religious Service Attendance Condition the Link between Relationship Status and Mattering to Others? Evidence from the United States during the Covid-19 Pandemic.” Review of Religious Research 65(3):344-73.

Franz, Berkeley, and R. Khari Brown. 2020. “Race, Religion and Support for the Affordable Care Act.” Review of Religious Research 62 (1).

Brown, Jennifer E., Valerie van Mulukom, Sarah J. Charles and Miguel Farias. 2023. “Do You Need Religion to Enjoy the Benefits of Church Services? Social Bonding, Morality and Quality of Life among Religious and Secular Congregations.” Psychology of Religion and Spirituality 15(2):308-18.

Jones, Pauline, and Anil Menon. 2022. “Trust in Religious Leaders and Voluntary Compliance: Lessons from Social Distancing during COVID-19 in Central Asia.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 61 (3-4): 583-602.

Kraus, Rachel. 2022. “Examining religious/spiritual change among women with metastatic breast cancer.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 61 (2): 314-330.

Scott, Marquisha Lawrence. 2023. “Functions of the Black Church in a Global Society: A Du Boisian Approach.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion.

Shaw, Bryan, Natacha Stevanovic-Fenn, Lacey Gibson, Caitlin Davin, Nokafu Sandra K. Chipanta, Anabelle B. Lubin, Luke Martin, Andrew Saman, David Vandu, and Francesca Quirke. 2023. “Shifting Norms in Faith Communities to Reduce Intimate Partner Violence: Results from a Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial in Nigeria.” Journal of Interpersonal Violence.

Skidmore, Samuel J., G. Tyler Lefevor, Adlyn M. Perez-Figueroa, and Kirsten A. Gonzalez. 2022. ““I Just Wanted Support”: Examining How LDS Clergy May Effectively Minister to Sexual and Gender Minority Congregants.” Review of Religious Research 64 (4): 665-685.

Upenieks, Laura, and David E Eagle. 2023. “Divine Struggles Among Those Doing God’s Work: A Longitudinal Assessment Predicting Depression and Burnout and the Role of Social Support in United Methodist Clergy.” Sociology of Religion.

Gunderson, Gary. 1997. Deeply Woven Roots: Improving the Quality of Life in Your Community. Philadelphia: Fortress. (Amazon)

Upenieks, Laura and David E Eagle. 2023. “Divine Struggles among Those Doing God’s Work: A Longitudinal Assessment Predicting Depression and Burnout and the Role of Social Support in United Methodist Clergy.” Sociology of Religion 85(1):83-111.

Kim, Eric S, and Tyler J VanderWeele. “Mediators of the Association between Religious Service Attendance and Mortality.” American Journal of Epidemiology 188, no. 1 (2018): 96-101.

Johnson-Lawrence, Vicki, Sarah Bailey, Patrick E. Sanders, Rodlescia Sneed, Ariel Angel-Vincent, Allysoon Brewer, E. Yvonne Lewis and Jennifer Johnson. 2019. “The Church Challenge: A Community-Based Multilevel Cluster Randomized Controlled Trial to Improve Blood Pressure and Wellness in African American Churches in Flint, Michigan.” Contemporary Clinical Trials Communications. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.conctc.2019.100329.

Leong, P. 2006. “Religion, Flesh, and Blood: Re-creating Religious Culture in the Context of HIV/AIDS.” Sociology of Religion 67(3): 295-311. (Article)

Nguyen, Ann W., Fei Wang, Weidi Qin and Tyrone C. Hamler. 2021. “The Role of Church Support Networks in the Relationship between Discrimination and Psychiatric Disorders among Older African Americans.” Review of Religious Research. doi: 10.1007/s13644-021-00464-z.

Ellison, C. G., & George, L. K. 1994. “Religious Involvement, Social Ties and Social Support in a Southeastern Community.” Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 33(1): 46-61. (Article)

Nguyen, Ann W., Robert Joseph Taylor and Linda M. Chatters. 2016. “Church-Based Social Support among Caribbean Blacks in the United States.” Review of Religious Research 58(3):385-406. doi: 10.1007/s13644-016-0253-6.

Nguyen, Ann W., Robert Joseph Taylor, Linda M. Chatters, Aaron Ahuvia, Elif Izberk-Bilgin and Fiona Lee. 2013. “Mosque-Based Emotional Support among Young Muslim Americans.” Review of Religious Research 55(4):535-55. doi: 10.1007/s13644-013-0119-0.

Mooney, M. 2009. Faith Makes Us Live: Surviving and Thriving in the Haitian Diaspora. Berkeley: University of California Press. (Amazon)

Sanchez, Esmeralda, Nicholas Vargas, Rebecca Burwell, Jessica Hamar Martinez, Milagros Peña and Edwin I. Hernandez. 2016. “Latino Congregations and Youth Educational Expectations.” Sociology of Religion 77(2):171-92. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/socrel/srw017.

Putnam, R. D., & Campbell, D. E. 2010. American Grace: How Religion Divides and Unites Us. New York: Simon & Schuster. (Amazon)

Chiuswa, Shandukurai. 2024. “Beyond Congregations: Impacts of Apostolic Concentration on Non-Apostolic Child Marriage Rates in Zimbabwe.” UCL Journal of Economics 3 (1).

Glazier, Rebecca A. 2024. Faith and Community: How Engagement Strengthens Members, Places of Worship, and Society. Philadelphia, PA: Temple University Press.