The Cumulative Advantage of Religiosity in Preventing Drug Use

Abstract

Although previous studies tend to find that religiosity is negatively associated with drug use, their findings are mostly nondevelopmental, whether based on cross-sectional or longitudinal data. Taking a life course perspective, we examine the effects of childhood religious socialization as well as involvement on drug use during later years. Based on the concept of cumulative advantage, it is hypothesized that religious upbringing decreases the probability of using drugs during adolescent years and into the early 20s indirectly not only via childhood religiosity but also through the protective and risk factors of drug use. To test this hypothesis, we conducted OLS regression analyses of three-wave panel data from the National Survey of Children. Results show that survey respondents raised by parents who believe religious training as well as service attendance to be important for children are less likely to use drugs during adolescence and early adulthood than those who were not raised by such parents.