The Associations between Religion, Impulsivity, and Externalizing Behaviors in the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study

ABSTRACT

In studies of adolescents and adults, religiosity has been identified as a protective factor for impulsivity-related behaviors and externalizing problems. No known studies to date have examined the relationship between religiosity and such outcomes in children. Thus, the current study examined in children whether (1) religion is associated with decreased impulsivity and externalizing symptoms, and if (2) religiosity is a protective factor in the association between impulsivity and externalizing symptoms. Data were from Wave 1 of the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study (children aged 9–10, N = 11,875). Two self-report measures and the Cash Choice Task assessed impulsivity; the Child Behavior Checklist assessed externalizing symptoms; and child religiosity was assessed in parent interviews. Structural equation models examined religiosity (affiliation, service attendance, importance) as a moderator between impulsivity and externalizing symptoms. Greater religious attendance was significantly associated with decreased impulsivity. Christian affiliation was associated with increased impulsivity as compared to other religions. Contrary to our hypotheses, religiosity did not moderate associations between impulsivity and externalizing symptoms. Findings suggest that impulsivity and externalizing behaviors are related to some domains of religiosity in children; however, the magnitude of the effect sizes was small, suggesting religiosity is not a particularly salient predictor of externalizing problems in children. Given these findings differ from those seen in studies of adolescents and adults, future studies should consider longitudinal designs to better understand how these relationships form across the lifespan.

Acknowledgments

Data used in the preparation of this article were obtained from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (https://abcdstudy.org), held in the NIMH Data Archive (NDA). This is a multisite, longitudinal study designed to recruit more than 10,000 children age 9–10 and follow them over 10 years into early adulthood. The ABCD Study is supported by the National Institutes of Health and additional federal partners under award numbers U01DA041048, U01DA050989, U01DA051016, U01DA041022, U01DA051018, U01DA051037, U01DA050987, U01DA041174, U01DA041106, U01DA041117, U01DA041028, U01DA041134, U01DA050988, U01DA051039, U01DA041156, U01DA041025, U01DA041120, U01DA051038, U01DA041148, U01DA041093, U01DA041089, U24DA041123, U24DA041147. A full list of supporters is available at https://abcdstudy.org/federal-partners.html. A listing of participating sites and a complete listing of the study investigators can be found at https://abcdstudy.org/consortium_members/. ABCD consortium investigators designed and implemented the study and/or provided data but did not necessarily participate in the analysis or writing of this report. This manuscript reflects the views of the authors and may not reflect the opinions or views of the NIH or ABCD consortium investigators. The ABCD data repository grows and changes over time. The ABCD data used in this report came from doi: 10.15154/1520137. DOIs can be found at https://dx.doi.org/10.15154/1520137.

Data sharing

Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analyzed in this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics approval

Original study received IRB approval; current study was deemed exempt.