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Religion and Infant Mortality in the U.S

A Preliminary Study of Denominational Variations

Bibliographic Data

ID18094792
AuthorsJohn Bartkowski (0000-0002-1975-0421, The University of Texas at San Antonio, corresponding author), Xiaohe Xu (0000-0002-3711-6619), Ginny E Garcia, Ginny Garcia (The University of Texas at San Antonio)
Year2011
Volume2
Issue3
Pages264-276
Publication date2011-07-12
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReligions (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444
PublisherMDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT)
DOI10.3390/rel2030264
OpenAlexW2020070617
LanguageEN
Citations received15
References cited41

Prior research has identified a number of antecedents to infant mortality, but has been focused on either structural (demographic) forces or medical (public health) factors, both of which ignore potential cultural influences. Our study introduces a cultural model for explaining variations in infant mortality, one focused on the role of community-level religious factors. A key impetus for our study is well-established religious variations in adult mortality at the community level. Seeking to extend the growing body of research on contextual-level effects of religion, this study examines the impact of religious ecology (i.e., the institutional market share of particular denominational traditions) on county-level infant mortality in the U.S. Analyses of congregational census and Kids Count data reveal that a high prevalence of Catholic and most types of conservative Protestant churches are associated with lower rates of infant mortality when compared with counties that feature fewer Catholic and conservative Protestant congregations. However, communities with a large proportion of Pentecostal churches exhibit significantly higher infant mortality rates. After discussing the implications of these findings, we specify various directions for future research

Census · Demographic economics · Economics · Geography · Infant mortality · Mortality rate · Political science · Population · Protestantism · Public health · Religiosity · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Demography · Grief, Bereavement, and Mental Health · Law · Medicine · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology · Social Psychology

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Unique citing works15
Citations per year1,36
Citation span2015 - 2026 (12)
Citation velocitycurrent
Highly citedNo
Citation typesNeutral: 15

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