Exploring the treatment effect of religious belief toward mental health with propensity score matching

Abstract

PurposeAmong the research studies related to the relevance between religious belief and mental health, most of them highlight people with religious belief who tend to obtain mental comforting more easily. However, the research studies mentioned above were cross-sectional studies, and they only verified that religious beliefs and mental health are relevant, but they did not prove their cause-and-effect relationship. That is, they do not identify “due to people s religious beliefs, they have healthier mind” or “due to people s healthier minds, they have religious beliefs.” Therefore, the study aims to explore the benefit evaluation of religious belief affecting mental health.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses propensity score matching (PSM) and treatment effect (ATT) to carry out the causal inference between religious beliefs and mental health. First, the propensity score (PS) is calculated from the impact factors that affect people s religious belief before establishing counterfactual analysis based on the PS to analyze the effect of religious beliefs to further understand the difference of mental health index between people with religious belief and without it, and confirm the cause-and-effect relationship between them.FindingsReligious beliefs and participation are ubiquitous within and across populations. The associates between religious participation and health are considerably in great magnitude. Most of the research in the past related to religious beliefs and mental health only verified that religious beliefs and mental health are relevant but not proved its cause-and-effect relationship. This paper aimed to explore the causal relationship between religious belief and mental health. The experimental results showed religious belief has treatment effect toward “daily functioning,” “feeling affect,” “spirituality” and “mental health.” On a whole, religious belief can promote mental health.Originality/valueIn academic and practical circles, there are a lot of research studies exploring the relationship between religious belief and mental health. However, there is no research investigating the cause-and-effect relationship between religious belief and mental health. It also causes some questioning toward the relevant research studies. Therefore, the outcome of this study not only can clarify the legitimacy, importance, and practicality on the researches in the past but also provide the practical support for psychology and counseling.