Believing in religion as a source of value strains among Chinese college
students
Abstract
In contrast to the Western world, China is a less religious country.
whether in a country without real religions believing in religion would
contribute to the variation in value strain is a worth noting issue.
Based on previous studies, this study further examined the relationship
between religion and suicidality with value strain as a mediating factor
among Chinese college students. Employing cluster sampling, there were
13,250 college students recruited across seven provinces in China. Three
psychometric scales were used to examine religiousness (Religious
Orientation-Revised Scale), value strain levels (Psychological Strain
Scale), and suicidal behaviors (Suicidal Behaviors
Questionnaire-Revised). Both univariate and multivariate analyses were
used to identify the influencing power of religion on value strain and
suicidality. In addition, a series of linear regression analyses were
conducted to examine the mediating effect of value strain on the
association between religion and suicidality. the findings showed that
first, positive relationships between religion and value strain, and
suicidality were both detected; second, adherents to religion were
marginalized which may have caused more value conflict further leading
to a higher suicidal risk among believers.