I Am Young, Religious and/or Spiritual—Is It Beneficial to Me? Association of Religiosity, Spirituality and Images of God with Meaning in Life and Self-Esteem in Adolescents

Abstract

Religiosity and spirituality (R/S) have been suggested to be positive factors in adolescents’ well-being and development. The aim of this study is to explore the relationship of R/S and images of God with meaning in life and self-esteem in adolescents in a secular environment. A sample of Czech adolescents (n = 984, mean age 16.61, SD 1.21; 28% male) participated in an online survey. We measured religiosity, religious affiliation (Raf), religious attendance (Ratt), spirituality, images of God (IMG), meaning in life (ML), subdivided into components of presence (ML-P) and search (ML-S), and adolescents’ self-esteem (ASE). Religiosity, Raf, Ratt, and a higher level of spirituality were associated with ML-P, with odds ratios (OR) ranging from 1.56 (95% confidence interval (CI) 1.34–1.80) for spirituality to 1.88 (1.27–2.80) for church affiliation. ML-S was associated with religiosity, OR 1.41 (1.10–1.82), and spirituality, OR 1.73 (1.51–2.00). No associations were found for self-esteem. The combination of spirituality with Raf and Ratt led to associations with ML-P, ML-S, and ASE for those who were spiritual and affiliated/non-affiliated, with ORsof 2.14–6.00, as well as for those who were spiritual and attending/non-attending, with ORs of 1.84–4.84. Respondents who reported positive images of God were more likely to report an increase in ML-P, ML-S, and ASE, whereas those reporting negative images were more likely to report a decrease. Our findings suggest that R/S, in particular their mutual interactions with higher levels of spirituality and images of God, are associated with adolescent development and encourage the internalisation of R/S values among youth.