Where Spirituality, Religion, and Mental Health Intersect for Young People
While some young people note the ways religion can take a toll on one’s mental health, many others say their engagement with religion and spirituality bolsters their mental wellness. Faith communities and organizations have a distinct role in creating mental-health friendly environments for young people.
While some young people note the ways religion can take a toll on one’s mental health, many others say their engagement with religion and spirituality bolsters their mental wellness. Faith communities and organizations have a distinct role in creating mental-health friendly environments for young people.
In 2021, Springtide Research Institute surveyed nearly 10,000 young people about their beliefs, practices, behaviors, relationships, and their mental health. Additionally, we interviewed more than 100 young people about the same themes. Our goal is to understand young people’s religious and spiritual lives, their mental health, and where the two might intersect. This research shows that religion and spirituality do matter for young people’s mental health, and there are steps that faith communities and other organizations can take to ensure they’re providing the best environments for young people’s mental health.
Key Findings
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Young people with active religious and spiritual lives report greater mental and emotional flourishing.
Teens and young adults who identify as religious or spiritual, feel connected to a higher power, or let core beliefs guide their lives report greater mental health than those who do not. Those who engage in religious or spiritual practices and/or belong to faith communities also show signs of mental flourishing.
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Environments that prioritize connection foster greater mental health.
Young people initially enter relationships, groups, and organizations because of certain commonalities—shared interests, values, beliefs, practices, vocations, or professions. But they maintain those relationships when they feel like they belong. Focusing on the elements of building belonging can help faith communities and organizations create spaces where young people’s mental health can flourish.
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Young people feel supported when an organization aligns expectations with the tools to achieve them.
Interview data show that the key to encouraging—rather than discouraging—young people is aligning expectations with the tools for successfully accomplishing them. Young people want to understand what’s expected of them and want to be able to talk to trusted adults when questions about those expectations arise. They want to feel supported and guided, not forced.
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Purpose matters for mental health, and young people want to be part of organizations that can help them find it.
Survey data show which beliefs or experiences contribute to young people finding their purpose, giving faith leaders ways to integrate young people’s backgrounds or interests into religious beliefs and activities.
What experiences have helped you discover your purpose?
Young people could select more than one response.
You can purchase and access the full report, The State of Religion & Young People 2022: Mental Health–What Faith Leaders Need to Know here.
