BLACK Caribbeans constitute a significant percentage of

Journal of Gerontology: SOCIAL SCIENCES 2007, Vol. 62B, No. 4, S251 S256 Copyright 2007 by The Gerontological Society of America Religious Participation Among Older Black Caribbeans in the United States Robert Joseph Taylor, 1,2 Linda M. Chatters, 1,2,3 and James S. Jackson 2,4 1 School of Social Work, 2 Program for Research on Black Americans, 3 Department of Health Behavior and Health Education, School of Public Health and 4 Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Objectives. The purpose of this study was to examine the correlates of religious participation among older Black Caribbeans. Methods. Data from the older Black Caribbean subsample of the National Survey of American Life were used to examine selected measures of organizational, nonorganizational, and subjective religious participation. Results. The findings indicated important demographic differences in the correlates of religious participation among older Black Caribbeans. In particular, gender, marital status, income, immigration status, and denomination were associated with religious participation. Discussion. We discuss study findings in relation to available ethnographic data on Black Caribbeans and prior survey research on religious participation among older African Americans. Although there were several similarities to the research on older African Americans and religious involvement (e.g., marital status, gender, denomination), noted departures from prior research findings (e.g., income effects) may indicate the influence of ethnic group membership and the importance of the immigration experience in shaping distinctive life experiences for older Black Caribbeans. BLACK Caribbeans constitute a significant percentage of the African American population and represent a major ethnic subgroup. According to the 2000 census, there were 1.5 million Black Caribbeans in the United States, which roughly represents 4.5% of the Black population overall. This number reflects an increase of 67% in the growth of the Black Caribbean population from 1990 to 2000 (Logan & Deane, 2003). The Black Caribbean presence is especially evident in several cities on the East Coast, such as New York, Boston, Miami, and Fort Lauderdale, where at least 1 out of 5 African Americans is of Caribbean descent (Logan & Deane, 2003). Overall, Black Caribbeans currently outnumber Koreans and Cubans and are growing at a faster rate than both of these groups (Logan & Deane, 2003). Black Caribbean immigration and settlement in the United States has occurred continuously over a period of time dating back to colonial era. Black Caribbeans represent a variety of groups who, while having a shared heritage of African descent and enslavement, differ with respect to national origin, language, culture, and immigration history. The Black Caribbean population in the United States, although undergoing significant growth, is geographically concentrated in urban centers on the East Coast and within so-called ethnic or immigrant enclaves (neighborhoods with high percentages of Black Caribbeans). Furthermore, as their immigration history suggests, Black Caribbeans reflect a full range of experience in the United States, from very recent arrivals to individuals who have several generations of family (naturalized and native born) who trace their ancestry to the Caribbean region. These factors, coupled with their shared racial heritage and physical similarities with native African Americans, have contributed to their relative invisibility within American society. Research on Black Caribbeans has been primarily restricted to a limited number of qualitative and humanities-based studies. As a consequence, researchers lack information concerning the status of important subgroups (e.g., based on age, gender, socioeconomic position) within this population, and the perceptions and unique life experiences of diverse members of this group. For the purposes of this study, we were particularly interested in the nature and pattern of religious involvement among a specific subgroup of Black Caribbeans, that of older adults. Investigating religious participation among older adults is particularly important because religious involvement provides regular opportunities for interaction and informal support from fellow church members, provides access to clergy and the use of religiously based coping strategies (e.g., prayer) for assistance with stressful life situations (e.g., health problems, bereavement), and, overall, exerts a salutary influence on physical and mental health status and general well-being (see review by Taylor, Chatters, & Levin, 2004). Qualitative studies of Black Caribbeans have indicated that the church has been an important institution and resource for new immigrants and subsequent generations. Waters s (1999) extensive qualitative study of racial and group identity among Black Caribbeans in Brooklyn, New York, indicated that the church plays a prominent role in Black Caribbean life. She noted that many Black Caribbeans belong to an ethnically rooted church in which the congregation is composed exclusively of Black Caribbeans or, in some cases, individuals from a specific Caribbean country. Black Caribbean churches fulfill a dual function of providing spiritual and other forms of support to members, as well as reinforcing social relationships and connections with other immigrants. McEachern and Kenny (2002) found that Black Caribbean women place great S251

S252 TAYLOR ET AL. emphasis on religion, arguing that these women share strong religious ties and a sense of loyalty, moral obligation, and respect for the church and its teachings (p. 55). Systematic research on religious involvement among this group is virtually nonexistent. Researchers currently have little information regarding even the most fundamental aspects of religious participation for the Black Caribbean population such as denominational affiliation, rates of religious service attendance and church membership, and types of prayer activities. The situation is even more problematic with respect to information about religious participation for the subgroup that is of interest to this study, that of older Black Caribbeans. Accordingly, the goal of the present study was to provide a preliminary examination of the demographic correlates of religious participation among older Black Caribbeans. This article builds upon recent work on race and ethnic differences in religious participation (Taylor, Chatters, & Jackson, 2007). METHODS Sample The Program for Research on Black Americans at the University of Michigan s Institute for Social Research collected the National Survey of American Life: Coping With Stress in the 21st Century (NSAL). NSAL staff conducted a total of 6,082 face-to-face interviews with persons aged 18 or older, including 3,570 African Americans, 891 non-hispanic Whites, and 1,621 Blacks of Caribbean descent (survey field period was from 2001 to 2003). The NSAL includes the first major probability sample of Black Caribbeans ever conducted. For the purposes of this study, we defined Black Caribbeans as persons who (a) trace their ethnic heritage to a Caribbean country but who now reside in the United States, (b) are racially classified as Black, and (c) are English speaking (but may also speak another language). There are 303 Black Caribbeans aged 55 and older who comprise the sample used in this study. The overall response rate was 72.3%. The African American sample is the core sample of the NSAL. The core sample consists of 64 primary sampling units. The Black Caribbean sample came from two area probability sample frames: the core NSAL sample and an area probability sample of housing units from geographic areas with a relatively high density of persons of Caribbean descent. In both the African American and Black Caribbean samples, it was necessary for respondents to self-identify their race as Black. Those self-identifying as Black were included in the Black Caribbean sample if they answered affirmatively when asked if they were of West Indian or Caribbean descent, if they said they were from a country included on a list of Caribbean area countries presented by the interviewers, or if they indicated that their parents or grandparents had been born in a Caribbean area country (see Jackson et al., 2004). The interviews were face to face and conducted within respondents homes. Respondents were compensated for their time. Measures The present analysis investigated measures of organizational, nonorganizational, and subjective religious participation. The measures of organizational religious participation included frequency of service attendance, church membership, and frequency of participation in congregational activities. We assessed frequency of religious service attendance by combining two questions: Other than for weddings or funerals, have you attended services at a church or other place of worship since you were 18 years old? (yes/no) and How often do you usually attend religious services? The categories for this combined variable were as follows: attend nearly every day, attend at least once a week, a few times a month, a few times a year, less than once a year, and never. We measured church membership by the question Are you an official member of a church or other place of worship? (yes/no). We measured frequency of participation in congregational activities by the question Besides regular service, how often do you take part in other activities at your church? Would you say nearly every day, at least once a week, a few times a month, a few times a year, or never?. Nonorganizational religious participation comprised five items: reading religious books or other religious materials, watching religious programs on TV, listening to religious programs on the radio, praying, and asking someone to pray for you (Cronbach s a ¼.74). Respondents indicated how often they engaged in each of these activities: nearly every day, at least once a week, a few times a month, at least once a month, a few times a year, or never. Subjective religiosity comprised four items: importance of religion while growing up, importance of parents taking or sending their children to religious services, importance of religion in the respondent s life, and how religious the respondent feels (Cronbach s a ¼.88). We included several demographic variables in this analysis as independent variables, including age, gender, marital status, education, family income, immigration status, and country of origin. We imputed missing data for family income. Income was coded in dollars and divided by 5,000 in order to increase effect sizes and provide a better understanding of the net impact of income. Immigration status had four categories: (a) respondent was born in the United States, (b) respondent immigrated to the United States less than 25 years ago, (c) respondent immigrated to the United States between 26 and 35 years ago, and (4) respondent immigrated to the United States 36 or more years ago. Country of origin had four categories: Jamaica, other English-speaking country (e.g., Barbados), Spanish-speaking country (e.g., Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic), and Haiti. We included denomination as an independent variable, measured by the question What is your current religion?. This sample of older Black Caribbeans mentioned more than 35 different denominations that were recoded into eight categories: Baptist, Methodist, Pentecostal, Episcopal, Catholic, other Protestant (e.g., Lutheran, Presbyterian), other religion (e.g., Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim), and none. Analysis Strategy We conducted this analysis using the svy:regress and the svy: logit commands in Stata 9.2. All analyses were design based, in that they (a) utilized sampling weights and (b) accounted for the complex multistage design of the NSAL sample (i.e., clustering and stratification) when computing standard errors. RESULTS Table 1 provides the distribution for the demographic and denomination factors used in this analysis. Table 2 presents the

OLDER BLACK CARIBBEANS S253 regressions of the religious involvement factors on the demographic variables, controlling for denomination. Equation 1 is the regression for service attendance, Equation 2 presents the logistic regression for whether the respondent was an official member of a place of worship, Equation 3 is the regression for frequency of participation in congregational activities, Equation 4 presents the regression for frequency of nonorganizational religious activities, and Equation 5 is the regression for subjective religiosity. As indicated in Equation 1, gender, marital status, education, immigration status, and denomination were all significantly associated with frequency of attending religious services. Women attended religious services more frequently than men, and education was positively associated with attendance. Among the marital status groups, married respondents attended religious services more frequently than separated, divorced, and never-married persons. Immigration status differences indicated that respondents who immigrated to the United States less than 25 years ago and between 26 and 35 years ago attended religious services more frequently than respondents who were born in the United States. Baptists indicated attending religious services more frequently than Catholics and persons who were not affiliated with a denomination. Equation 2 presents the results of the logistic regression of demographic variables on whether the respondent was an official member of a place of worship. Denomination was the only variable that demonstrated a significant relationship. Respondents who were Catholic and those who did not report a denomination were less likely than Baptists to be official members of a place of worship. Income, country of origin, and denomination were significantly associated with frequency of participation in congregational activities (Equation 3). Respondents with lower incomes participated in congregational activities more frequently than those with higher incomes. Respondents from Jamaica participated in congregational activities more frequently than respondents from other Englishspeaking countries. Denomination differences indicated that Baptists participated in other activities at their place of worship more frequently than Episcopalians, Catholics, respondents who identified other non-christian religions, and those who indicated that they did not have a religious denomination. Gender, income, marital status, immigration status, and denomination were all significantly associated with the frequency of nonorganizational religious activities (Equation 4). Women and respondents with lower incomes reported engaging in nonorganizational religious activities more frequently than men and their higher income counterparts. Married respondents engaged in nonorganizational religious activities more frequently than their never-married counterparts. Respondents who immigrated to the United States less than 25 years ago and those who immigrated between 26 and 35 years ago reported engaging in nonorganizational religious activities more frequently than older Black Caribbeans who were born in the United States. Lastly, Baptists reported less frequent nonorganizational activity than respondents from Pentecostal churches but more frequent nonorganizational activity than Catholics, other Protestants, and those who did not have a religious denomination. Income and denomination were significantly associated with degree of subjective religiosity (Equation 5). Respondents with lower incomes indicated significantly higher levels of subjective religiosity than Table 1. Demographic Distribution of the Older Black Caribbean Sample Demographic Variable n (%) M (SD) Age 304 65.89 (2.78) Education 301 12.01 (1.33) Income 303 41,826.90 (13,524.24) Gender Male 133 (52.95) Female 171 (47.05) Marital status Married/partner 133 (54.94) Separated 26 (6.98) Divorced 52 (13.00) Widowed 62 (19.86) Never married 29 (5.22) Country of origin Spanish-speaking 32 (8.14) Haiti 32 (8.07) Jamaica 118 (46.14) Other English-speaking 118 (37.64) Years in the United States Born in the United States 45 (27.82) Less than 25 years 83 (29.78) 25 35 years 85 (19.16) 36 years or more 78 (23.24) Denomination Baptist 48 (22.87) Methodist 27 (5.32) Pentecostal 33 (11.15) Catholic 64 (17.94) Episcopal 26 (4.40) Other Protestant 75 (27.95) Other religion 11 (2.76) No religion 18 (7.61) Notes: Data are means (weighted standard deviations) for continuous variables and frequencies (weighted percentages) for categorical variables. SD ¼ standard deviation. their higher income counterparts. Lastly, Baptists reported significantly higher levels of subjective religiosity than respondents who were not affiliated with a religious denomination. DISCUSSION Overall, these findings are generally consistent with the limited amount of previous research indicating that churches and religion are an important aspect of the lives of Black Caribbeans (McEachern & Kenny, 2002; Waters, 1999). This article builds upon recent work of Taylor and colleagues (2007), who found that overall, older Black Caribbeans reported fairly high levels of religious participation similar to those of older African Americans and higher than those of older White adults. There were two significant gender findings in the current analysis. Older Black Caribbean women attended religious services and engaged in nonorganizational religious activities more frequently than their male counterparts. This finding is consistent with previous research on both older African Americans (Chatters, Levin, & Taylor, 1992) and African American adults (Levin, Chatters, & Taylor, 1995). The finding that women demonstrated significantly higher levels of religiosity is also consistent with research on

S254 TAYLOR ET AL. Predictor Table 2. Selected Religious Involvement Measures Regressed on Demographic Factors, Immigration Status, and Country of Origin Equation 1: Church Attendance Equation 2: Equation 3: Church Membership a Congregation Activities Equation 4: Nonorganizational Participation Equation 5: Subjective Religiosity Age.02 (.009) 1.05 (.033).01 (.009).04 (.040).03 (.024) Female b 1.03 (.192)*** 2.52 (1.69).32 (.190) 1.70 (.669)*.68 (.418) Immigration status c Respondent in U.S.,25 years.75 (.284)* 2.63 (2.62).24 (.469) 3.39 (.900)***.77 (.564) Respondent in U.S. 26 35 years.68 (.263)** 6.38 (6.71).00 (.312) 3.88 (.895)*** 1.09 (.604) Respondent in U.S. 36þ years.42 (.279) 2.41 (1.55).11 (.256) 1.59 (.920).74 (.608) Country of origin d Spanish-speaking.11 (.267) 2.19 (1.88).29 (.281) 1.57 (1.22).30 (.409) Haiti.42 (.281).58 (.475).05 (.235).09 (1.56).31 (1.17) Other English-speaking.03 (.146).88 (.335).41 (.154)**.14 (.512).24 (.279) Imputed family income e.01 (.012) 1.03 (.066).03 (.012)*.16 (.057)**.09 (.036)* Education (yrs).04 (.019)* 1.02 (.056).02 (.027).04 (.096).00 (.022) Marital status f Separated.64 (.271)* 1.38 (1.50).34 (.233) 3.23 (1.62) 2.29 (1.32) Divorced.56 (.213)*.43 (.483).55 (.276) 1.28 (1.01).53 (.590) Widowed.38 (.239).19 (.168).60 (.422) 1.55 (.88).07 (.369) Never married.58 (.259)*.40 (.435).67 (.420) 3.31(1.20)** 1.09 (.679) Denomination g Methodist.26 (.391) 1.13 (1.13).16 (.344).31 (.904).38 (.494) Episcopalian.43 (.449).13 (.150).86 (.313)** 1.23 (.870).25 (.487) Pentecostal.29 (.324) 3.66 (3.48).27 (.345) 2.56 (.632)***.51 (3.98) Catholic 1.04 (.333)***.06 (.030)*** 1.15 (.191)*** 3.60 (.995)**.36 (.375) Other Protestant.06 (.325) 1.31 (.854).10 (.245) 1.30 (.609)*.15 (.352) Other religion.27 (.453) 1.23 (1.51) 1.13 (.349)** 2.37 (1.62) 1.04 (1.04) No religion 1.86 (.399)***.02 (.022)** 1.33 (.439)** 9.64 (1.78)*** 5.76 (1.58)*** Constant 2.10 (.611)*** ** 2.49 (.959)* 24.69 (2.49)*** 16.65 (1.58)*** F 60.98 11.89 17.81 42.28 8.04 R 2.488***.334***.336***.526***.616** N 284 243 243 283 284 Notes: Data are unstandardized coefficients (standard errors). a The analysis for church membership was a logistic regression; odds ratios and a pseudo R 2 are presented. b 0 ¼ male, 1 ¼ female. c Born in the United States is the excluded category. d Jamaica is the excluded category. e Income was coded in dollars and divided by 5,000 in order to increase effect sizes and provide a better understanding of the net impact of income. f Married is the excluded category. g Baptist is the excluded category. *p,.05; **p,.01; ***p,.001. older Whites (Blazer & Palmore, 1976) and the American population in general. A pattern of significant marital status differences indicated that married respondents reported higher levels of religious participation than their nonmarried counterparts for selected religious measures. Although previous research on marital status differences in religious participation is somewhat equivocal (Taylor et al., 2004), the present findings are consistent with research indicating that marriage is associated with higher levels of service attendance and other forms of religious participation among African American adults and African American elders (Chatters et al., 1992; Chatters & Taylor, 1994; Chatters, Taylor, & Lincoln, 1999; Ellison & Sherkat, 1995; Levin et al., 1995). Again, what is noteworthy here is that marriage was associated with higher levels of religious service attendance and, in limited instances, nonorganizational religious participation. Previous research has speculated that the presence of a spouse encourages overall social integration in religious settings. Religious settings, in turn, often embody specific value orientations and programmatic foci (e.g., family-life ministries) that reinforce marriage and family life and have positive influences on involvement in religious pursuits (Chatters & Taylor, 2005; Taylor et al., 2004). We found several significant income effects: Income was negatively associated with degree of subjective religiosity, as well as participation in other activities at the place of worship and participation in nonorganizational religious activities. The negative direction of these relationships indicates that older Black Caribbeans with lower incomes reported significantly higher levels of religious participation than their higher income counterparts. Interestingly, prior research among older African Americans has generally failed to find any significant associations involving income and religious involvement of any type (Taylor, 1993; Taylor et al., 2004). The one exception

OLDER BLACK CARIBBEANS S255 concerns a negative income effect for strength and intensity of denominational affiliation and spiritual comfort (Chatters et al., 1999). We can attribute the emergence of several negative income relationships in this sample to several possible factors. First, this set of findings is consistent with a deprivation compensation model (Glock, Ringer, & Babbie, 1967), which suggests that among persons of lower socioeconomic status, religion serves to compensate for blocked opportunities, limited access to social institutions, and general social disadvantage. It may be that religion does serve this specific purpose among lower status older Black Caribbeans. Second, qualitative portrayals of immigrant churches emphasize their important roles in integrating individuals and families within the fabric of the community (Waters, 1999). Particular characteristics of immigrant communities (i.e., relative insularity, cultural differences) may heighten the role of religious institutions and involvement as a means to procure needed material and social resources (e.g., social capital). Persons of lower income status may be particularly inclined to invest in the church and religion to gain necessary resources. Finally, it is important to recall the observed income effects for subjective religiosity, participation in congregational activities, and nonorganizational religious activities. For lower income older Black Caribbeans, these religious manifestations are an important means of defining a sense of self within a religious context and of establishing organizational involvement as a conduit for social capital. The single education finding for church attendance (i.e., people with higher education attend church more often) reflects greater participation in this more perfunctory component of public religious behavior. Taken together, the findings indicate that income and education do not operate similarly in patterning religious involvement. Investigating income and education effects within the entire adult sample of Black Caribbeans may shed light on the nature and extent of these status group differences. Denominational differences in religious participation among older Black Caribbeans are consistent with research on the general population. In particular, recent research from the Gallup Poll on the general American population reported that Baptists indicated higher levels of service attendance than Catholics (Newport, 2006), and that Catholics generally had lower levels of nonorganizational and subjective religious involvement (Gallup & Lindsay, 1999). Lower levels of participation in congregational activities among Catholics is consistent with research on congregational climate (Pargament, Silverman, Johnson, Echemendia, & Snyder, 1983), characterizing Catholic churches as having lower levels of emotional closeness and sense of community. The less hierarchical nature of Baptist churches may afford greater member involvement in congregational activities (e.g., committees, church boards) and overall member participation. Alternatively, the findings of lower levels of attendance, membership, and congregational activities could also indicate that many older Black Caribbean Catholics may not have found a church in which they feel comfortable. There was only one instance in which Baptists had lower rates of religious involvement as compared to other denominations. The higher rates of nonorganizational religious participation among Pentecostals as compared to Baptists are consistent with general observations. For instance, members of Pentecostal denominations have high rates of membership in prayer groups and lay healing groups. In the present circumstance, a main portion of the denominational difference was due to the fact that Pentecostals reported that they were more likely than Baptists to ask someone to pray for them (analysis not shown). Country of origin was significantly associated with only one religious participation variable. Older Black Caribbeans who had emigrated from or traced their heritage to Jamaica participated in congregational activities more frequently than did respondents from other English-speaking countries. Older Black Caribbeans who had emigrated from or traced their heritage to Spanish-speaking countries and Haiti were no different from those of Jamaican heritage with respect to participation in congregational activities. Immigration status was significantly associated with two of the religious participation variables: religious service attendance and nonorganizational religious participation. Older Black Caribbeans who immigrated to the United States less than 25 years ago and those who immigrated between 26 and 35 years ago both demonstrated higher levels of service attendance and nonorganizational religious activities as compared to respondents who were had been born in the United States (persons who immigrated more than 35 years ago were not significantly different than native-born older Black Caribbeans in relation to these religious variables). The finding that these relatively more recent immigrants (0 35 years) demonstrated higher levels of religious participation than persons who were born in the United States is consistent with Waters s (1999) observations concerning the importance of churches and religious institutions in assisting the transition of Black Caribbean immigrants into American life. That is to say, the higher levels of religious service attendance and nonorganizational religious activities among older Black Caribbeans may be indicative of an overall pattern of strong connections to religious institutions and involvement in religious pursuits as a means to structure social and community life. This type of involvement is particularly important in aiding the transition of immigrant groups as they adjust to living in large metropolitan cities. It is important to recognize that one of the limitations of this sample is that it excluded individuals who did not speak English. Non-English-speaking Black Caribbeans (i.e., persons who speak Spanish, Haitian-French, or Creole dialects) were not included in the sample and, as a consequence, the study findings are not generalizeable to these groups. Nonetheless, the significant advantages of the sample provide an unparalleled opportunity to begin important explorations into the nature of religious involvement within this group. In conclusion, the significant and growing presence of Black Caribbeans in the United States suggests that this group deserves more focused attention in the social and behavioral sciences. Although prior research findings among older African Americans served as the foundation for this preliminary investigation, this is not meant to equate the experiences of these two groups. A tradition of ethnographic research on their experiences and life histories attests to the unique factors that continue to shape the development of Black Caribbean individuals, families, and communities. This study, along with other recent work (Taylor et al., 2007), is an initial attempt to develop a more nuanced understanding of religious involvement among older Black Caribbeans and the role of key status characteristics (e.g., age, gender, socioeconomic position) among members of this group.

S256 TAYLOR ET AL. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The data on which this study is based were supported by the National Institute of Mental Health Grant U01-MH57716, with supplemental support from the Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research at the National Institutes of Health and from the University of Michigan. The preparation of this article was supported by Grants R01-AG18782 from the National Institute on Aging to Drs. Chatters and Taylor and P30-AG15281 to Drs. Jackson and Taylor. Thanks to Dr. Jeff Levin for comments on an earlier draft of this article and Kai Bullard for assistance with analyses. CORRESPONDENCE Address correspondence to Robert Joseph Taylor, School of Social Work, University of Michigan, 1080 South University, Ann Arbor, MI 48109. E-mail: rjtaylor@umich.edu REFERENCES Blazer, D., & Palmore, E. (1976). Religion and aging in a longitudinal panel. The Gerontologist, 16, 82 85. Chatters, L. M., Levin, J. S., & Taylor, R. J. (1992). Antecedents and dimensions of religious involvement among older black adults. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 47, S269 S278. Chatters, L. M., & Taylor, R. J. (1994). Religious involvement among older African Americans. In J. S. Levin (Ed.), Religion in aging and health: Theoretical foundations and methodological frontiers (pp. 196 230). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Chatters, L. M., & Taylor, R. J. (2005). Religion and families. In V. L. Bengtson, A. C. Acock, K. R. Allen, P. Dilworth-Anderson, & D. M. Klein (Eds.), Sourcebook of family theory and research (pp. 517 541). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Chatters, L. M., Taylor, R. J., & Lincoln, K. D. (1999). African American religious participation: A multi-sample comparison. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 38, 132 145. Ellison, C. G., & Sherkat, D. E. (1995). The semi-involuntary institution revisited: Regional variations in church participation among Black Americans. Social Forces, 73, 1415 1437. Gallup, G., Jr., & Lindsay, D. M. (1999). Surveying the religious landscape: Trends in U.S. beliefs. Harrisburg, PA: Morehouse. Glock, C. Y., Ringer, B. R., & Babbie, E. E. (1967). To comfort and to challenge. Berkeley: University of California Press. Jackson, J. S., Torres, M., Caldwell, C. H., Neighbors, H. W., Nesse, R. N., Taylor, R. J., et al. (2004). The National Survey of American Life: A study of racial, ethnic and cultural influences on mental disorders and mental health. International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 13(4), 196 207. Levin, J. S., Chatters, L. M., & Taylor, R. J. (1995). Religious effects on health status and life satisfaction among black Americans. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 50B, S154 S163. Logan, J. R., & Deane, G. (2003). Black diversity in metropolitan America. Albany: State University of New York. McEachern, A., & Kenny, M. (2002). A comparison of family environment characteristics among white (non-hispanic), Hispanic, and African Caribbean groups. Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, 30, 40 58. Newport, F. (2006, April 14). Mormons, Evangelical Protestants, Baptists top church attendance list. Retrieved April 24, 2006, from http:// poll.gallup.com/content/default.aspx?ci¼22414&pg¼1 Pargament, K. I., Silverman, W. H., Johnson, S., Echemendia, R., & Snyder, S. (1983). The psychosocial climate of religious congregations. American Journal of Community Psychology, 11, 351 381. Taylor, R. J. (1993). Religion and religious observances. In J. S. Jackson, L. M. Chatters, & R. J. Taylor (Eds.), Aging in black America (pp. 101 123). Newbury Park, CA: Sage. Taylor, R. J., Chatters, L. M., & Jackson, J. S. (2007). Religious and spiritual involvement among older African Americans, Caribbean blacks, and non-hispanic whites: Findings from the National Survey of American Life. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences, 62B, S238 S250. Taylor, R. J., Chatters, L. M., & Levin, J. (2004). Religion in the lives of African Americans. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Waters, M. C. (1999). Black identities: West Indian immigrant dreams and American realities. New York: Russell Sage Foundation. Received February 6, 2006 Accepted February 16, 2007 Decision Editor: Kenneth F. Ferraro, PhD