McCullough M E, Larson D B
National Institute for Healthcare Research, Rockville, MD 20850, USA.
Twin Res. 1999 Jun;2(2):126-36. doi: 10.1375/136905299320565997.
We reviewed data from approximately 80 published and unpublished studies that examined the association of religious affiliation or involvement with depressive symptoms or depressive disorder. In these studies, religion was measured as religious affiliation; general religious involvement; organizational religious involvement; prayer or private religious involvement; religious salience and motivation; or religious beliefs. People from some religious affiliations appear to have an elevated risk for depressive symptoms and depressive disorder, and people with no religious affiliation are at an elevated risk in comparison with people who are religiously affiliated. People with high levels of general religious involvement, organizational religious involvement, religious salience, and intrinsic religious motivation are at reduced risk for depressive symptoms and depressive disorders. Private religious activity and particular religious beliefs appear to bear no reliable relationship with depression. People with high levels of extrinsic religious motivation are at increased risk for depressive symptoms. Although these associations tend to be consistent, they are modest and are substantially reduced in multivariate research. Longitudinal research is sparse, but suggests that some forms of religious involvement might exert a protective effect against the incidence and persistence of depressive symptoms or disorders. The existing research is sufficient to encourage further investigation of the associations of religion with depressive symptoms and disorder. Religion should be measured with higher methodological standards than those that have been accepted in survey research to date.
我们回顾了约80项已发表和未发表研究的数据，这些研究探讨了宗教归属或参与与抑郁症状或抑郁症之间的关联。在这些研究中，宗教被衡量为宗教归属、一般宗教参与、组织性宗教参与、祈祷或个人宗教参与、宗教显著性和动机，或宗教信仰。一些宗教归属的人群似乎患抑郁症状和抑郁症的风险较高，与有宗教归属的人相比，无宗教归属的人风险更高。一般宗教参与、组织性宗教参与、宗教显著性和内在宗教动机水平较高的人患抑郁症状和抑郁症的风险较低。个人宗教活动和特定宗教信仰似乎与抑郁症没有可靠的关系。外在宗教动机水平较高的人患抑郁症状的风险增加。尽管这些关联往往是一致的，但程度适中，在多变量研究中会大幅减弱。纵向研究较少，但表明某些形式的宗教参与可能对抑郁症状或障碍的发生和持续具有保护作用。现有研究足以鼓励进一步探究宗教与抑郁症状及障碍之间的关联。宗教的衡量应采用比迄今为止调查研究中所接受的更高的方法标准。
