Religious doubt and psychological well-being: A longitudinal investigation

The purpose of this study, is to see if religious doubt is associated with change in three measures of psychological well-being over time: Life satisfaction, self-esteem, and optimism. Two main hypotheses are evaluated. The first specifies that greater doubt about religion is associated with a decline in well-being over time. The second hypothesis states that high levels of educational attainment tend to buffer or offset the deleterious effects of doubt on well-being. Data from a longitudinal nationwide survey of older adults provides support for both hypotheses. The theoretical implications of these findings are discussed and recommendations for further work in the field are provided.