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The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences Advance Access originally published online on May 12, 2009
The Journals of Gerontology Series B: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences 2009 64B(4):528-537; doi:10.1093/geronb/gbp028
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© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org.

Religion and the Quality of Life in the Last Year of Life

Ellen L. Idler1, Julie McLaughlin2 and Stanislav Kasl3

1 Department of Sociology and Institute for Health, Health Care Policy and Aging Research, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey
2 Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina
3 Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale Medical School, New Haven, Connecticut

Address correspondence to Ellen L. Idler, PhD, Department of Sociology and Institute for Health, Health Care Policy, and Aging Research, Rutgers University, 30 College Avenue, New Brunswick, NJ 08903. Email: idler{at}rci.rutgers.edu


  Abstract

Objectives: Religious involvement in old age appears to remain quite stable until the very end of life, reflecting patterns established earlier in life. Are there differences in quality of life (QOL) for those who are religiously involved in that last year compared with those who are not?

Methods: We studied 499 elderly persons participating in ongoing annual interviews who died in the 12 months following an interview. We examined public and subjective religious involvement and indicators of health-related and psychosocial QOL, including health status and functional ability, family and friendship networks, depression, and well-being.

Results: More deeply religious respondents were more likely to see friends, and they had better self-rated health, fewer depressive feelings, and were observed by the interviewer to find life more exciting compared with the less religious. Respondents receiving strength and comfort from religion reported poorer self-rated health. Those who attended religious services often were most likely to have attended holiday parties, even after adjusting for health status. Significant interactions indicated that the disabled benefited more from both public and subjective religious involvement than the nondisabled.

Discussion: Overall, QOL in the last year of life is positively related to religious involvement, particularly its more subjective dimensions.

Key Words: End of life • EPESE • Quality of life • Religion

Received August 22, 2008; Accepted March 3, 2009

Decision Editor: Kenneth F. Ferraro, PhD


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