Top

Published in:

01-12-2019 | Original Paper

Religion and Health in Rural Malawi

Author: Jacob Kendall

Published in: Journal of Religion and Health | Issue 6/2019

Abstract

While research has found important links between religion and health, there is a gap in knowledge in sub-Saharan Africa. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between religion and health in rural Malawi. After controlling for baseline health, results show that: (1) the relationship differs between younger (15–44 years) and older (45 + years) adults; (2) among younger adults, Muslims are relatively less healthy, whereas Muslims are healthier in older age; (3) religious activities have a stronger relationship with health than do other measures, especially for women; and (4) religious activities have a relationship with health only for two or more activities. These findings suggest that religion is tied to health in Malawi, especially for older women. This paper was originally presented at the European Conference on African Studies in June 2017.

Adams, J., & Trinitapoli, J. (2009). The Malawi Religion Project: Data collection and selected analyses. Demographic Research,21(4), 255–288.CrossRef

Afolabi, F. J., & Aina, O. O. (2014). Gender differentials in subjective well-being among religious elderly Yoruba people in southwest Nigeria. Ageing International,39, 180–193. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12126-014-9197-8.CrossRef

Bazant, E. S., & Boulay, M. (2007). Factors associated with religious congregation members’ support to people living with HIV/AIDS in Kumasi, Ghana. AIDS Behavior,11, 936–945. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-006-9191-6.CrossRefPubMed

Benjamins, M. R., & Brown, C. (2004). Religion and preventative health care utilization among the elderly. Social Science and Medicine,58, 109–118. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0277-9536(03)00152-7.CrossRef

Chen, H., Cheal, K., McDonel Herr, E. C., & Zubrinsky, C. (2007). Religious participation as a predictor of mental health status and treatment outcomes in older persons. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry,22(144–153), 144–153. https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.1704.CrossRefPubMed

Chin, B. (2010). Income, health, and well-being in rural Malawi. Demographic Research,23(35), 997–1030.CrossRef

Cliggett, L. (2005). Grains from grass: Aging, gender, and famine in rural Africa. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.

Corsentino, E. A., Collins, N., Sachs-Ericsson, N., & Blazer, D. G. (2009). Religious attendance reduces cognitive decline among older women with high levels of depressive symptoms. Journals of Gerontology. Series A, Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences,64(12), 1283–1289. https://doi.org/10.1093/gerona/glp116.CrossRef

Crimmins, E. M., Hayward, M. D., Hagedorn, A., Saito, Y., & Brouard, N. (2009). Change in disability-free life expectancy for Americans 70 years old and older. Demography,46(3), 627–646.CrossRef

Deaton, A. S. (2009). Aging, religion, and health. National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. NBER Working papers: 15271. Retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w15271.pdf.

Ellison, C. G. (1991). Religious involvement and subjective well-being*. Journal of Health and Social Behavior,32, 80–99.CrossRef

Englund, H. (2002). The village in the city, the city in the village: Migrants in Lilongwe. Journal of Southern African Studies,28(1), 137–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057070120117015.CrossRef

Filmer, D., & Pritchett, L. H. (2001). Estimating wealth effects without expenditure data-or tears: An application to educational enrollments in states of India*. Demography,38(1), 115–132.PubMed

Freeman, E., & Anglewicz, P. (2012). HIV prevalence and sexual behaviour at older ages in rural Malawi. International Journal of STD and AIDS,23(7), 490–496.CrossRef

Gandek, B., Ware, J. E., Aaronson, N. K., Apolone, G., Bjorner, J. B., Brazier, J. E., et al. (1998). Cross-validation of item selection and scoring for the SF-12 health survey in nine countries: Results from the IQOLA project. Journal of Clinical Epidemiology,51(11), 1171–1178.CrossRef

Gilliland, D. S. (1986). How “Christian” are African independent churches. Missiology: An International Review,14(3), 259–272.CrossRef

Hoddinott, J. (1992). Rotten kids or manipulative parents: Are children old age security in Western Kenya? Economic Development and Cultural Change, 40(3), 545–565. http://www.journals.uchicago.edu/EDCC/home.html.CrossRef

Hoddinott, J. (1993). Family size and support to the elderly in western Kenya. In C. B. Lloyd (Ed.), Fertility, family size, and structure: Consequences for families and children (pp. 41–73). New York, NY: Population Council.

Hybels, C. F., Blazer, D. G., George, L. K., & Koenig, H. G. (2012). The complex association between religious activities and functional limitations in older adults. The Gerontologist,52(5), 676–685.CrossRef

Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation. (2013). GBD Profile: Malawi. In G. B. O. Disease (Ed.), Global burden of diseases, injuries, and risk factors study 2010 (pp. 1–4). Seattle, WA: Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation.

Jenkins, P. (2006). The new face of christianity: Believing the bible in the global south. New York, NY: Oxford University Press Inc.

Kaseke, E. (2005). Social security and older people: An African perspective. International Social Work,48(1), 89–98. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020872805048711.CrossRef

Kendall, J., & Anglewicz, P. (2016). Living arrangements and health at older ages in rural Malawi. Ageing and Society. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0144686X16001422.CrossRefPubMedPubMedCentral

Kendall, J., & Anglewicz, P. (2017). Characterizations associated with migration among older women and men in rural Malawi. Illness, Crisis and Loss,25(21), 283. https://doi.org/10.1177/1054137317723102.CrossRef

Kodzi, I. A., Gyimah, S. O., Emina, J. B., & Ezeh, A. C. (2011a). Religious involvement, social engagement, and subjective health status of older residents of informal neighborhoods of Nairobi. Journal of Urban Health,88, 370–380. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-010-9482-0.CrossRef

Kodzi, I. A., Gyimah, S. O., Emina, J. B., & Ezeh, A. C. (2011b). Understanding ageing in sub-Saharan Africa: Exploring the contributions of religious and secular social involvement to life satisfaction. Ageing and Society,31(3), 455–474.CrossRef

Koenig, H. G., & Larson, D. B. (1998). Use of hospital services, religious attendance, and religious affiliation. Southern Medical Journal,91(10), 925–932.CrossRef

Kohler, H.-P., Watkins, S. C., Behrman, J. R., Anglewicz, P., Kohler, I. V., Thornton, R. L., et al. (2015). Cohort profile: The Malawi Longitudinal Study of Families and Health (MLSFH). International Journal of Epidemiology,44(2), 394–404. https://doi.org/10.1093/ije/dyu049.CrossRefPubMed

Lutgendorf, S. K., Russell, D., Ullrich, P., Harris, T. B., & Wallace, R. (2004). Religious Participation, Interleukin-6, and mortality in older adults. Health Psychology,23(5), 465–475. https://doi.org/10.1037/0278-6133.23.5.465.CrossRefPubMed

Martin, K. R., & Levy, B. R. (2006). Opposing trends of religious attendance and religiosity in predicting elders’ functional recovery after an acute myocardial infarction. Journal of Religion and Health,45(3), 440–451. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-006-9037-6.CrossRef

Mberu, B. U., Ezeh, A. C., Chepngeno-Langat, G., Kimani, J., Oti, S., & Beguy, D. (2013). Family ties and urban–rural linkages among older migrants in Nairobi informal settlements. Population, Space and Place,19, 275–293. https://doi.org/10.1002/psp.1711.CrossRef

Musick, M. A., Blazer, D. G., & Hays, J. C. (2000). Religious activity, alcohol use, and depression in a sample of elderly Baptists. Research on Aging,22(2), 91–116.CrossRef

Myroniuk, T., & Anglewicz, P. (2015). Social participation and health in rural Malawi. Journal of Health and Social Behavior,56(4), 552–573.CrossRef

National Statistical Office (NSO), & ICF. (2017). Malawi Demographic and Health Survey 2015–2016. Retrieved from Zomba, Malawi and Rockville, Maryland, USA.

Obtel, M., Rhazi, K. E., Elhold, S., Benjelloune, M., Gnatiuc, L., & Nejjari, C. (2013). Cross-cultural adaptation of the 12-Item Short-Form survey instrument in a Moroccan representative survey. South African Journal of Epidemiology and Infection,28(3), 166–171.CrossRef

Park, H. K., Chun, S. Y., Choi, Y., Lee, S. Y., Kim, S. J., & Park, E.-C. (2015). Effects of social activity on health-related quality of life according to age and gender: An observational study. Health and Quality of Life Outcomes,13(140), 1–9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12955-015-0331-4.CrossRef

Payne, C. F., Mkandawire, J., & Kohler, H.-P. (2013). Disability transitions and health expectancies among adults 45 years and older in Malawi: A cohort-based model. PLoS Medicine,10(5), 1–15. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1001435.CrossRef

Peltzer, K., & Pengpid, S. (2012). Alcohol use and health-related quality of life among hospital outpatients in South Africa. Alcohol and Alcoholism,47(3), 291–295. https://doi.org/10.1093/alcalc/ags001.CrossRefPubMed

Pfeiffer, J. (2004). Civil society, NGOs, and the holy spirit in Mozambique. Human Organizations,63(3), 359–372. https://doi.org/10.17730/humo.63.3.wr0rc09qeyafn84l.CrossRef

Pfeiffer, J. (2005). Commodity Feticismo, the Holy spirit, and the turn to pentecostal and African independent churches in central Mozambique. Culture, Medicine and Psychiatry,29, 255–283. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11013-005-9168-3.CrossRefPubMed

Reniers, G. (2003). Divorce and remarriage in rural Malawi. Demographic Research,1(6), 175–206. https://doi.org/10.4054/DemRes.2003.S1.6.CrossRef

Stark, R. (1996). Religion as context: Hellfire and delinquency one more time. Sociology of Religion,57(2), 163–173.CrossRef

Strawbridge, W. J., Cohen, R. D., Shame, S. J., & Kaplan, G. A. (1997). Frequent attendance at religious services and mortality over 28 Years. American Journal of Public Health,87(6), 957–961.CrossRef

Trinitapoli, J. (2006). Religious responses to aids in sub-saharan Africa: An examination of religious congregations in rural Malawi. Review of religious research,47(3), 253–270.

Trinitapoli, J. (2011). The AIDS-related activities of religious leaders in Malawi. Global Public Health,6(1), 41–55. https://doi.org/10.1080/17441692.2010.486764.CrossRefPubMed

Trinitapoli, J., & Regnerus, M. D. (2006). Religion and HIV risk behaviors among married men: Initial results from a study in rural sub-Saharan Africa. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion,45(4), 505–528. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-5906.2006.00325.x.CrossRef

Trinitapoli, J., & Regnerus, M. (2007). AIDS Related stigma in sub-Saharan Africa: Reconsidering Its Prevalence and Sources. In Conference papers—American Sociological Association (Vol. 1).

Trinitapoli, J., & Weinreb, A. (2012). Religion and AIDS in Africa. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.CrossRef

UNDP. (2010). The real wealth of nations: Pathways to human development. In Human development report (Vol. 20th Anniversary edn, pp. 1–229). New York, NY: United Nations Development Programme.

United Nations. (2015). World population prospects: The 2015 Revision, Key findings and advance tables. In Working paper no. ESA/P/WP.241: United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division.

Ware, J. E., Jr., Kosinski, M., & Keller, S. D. (1996). A 12-item Short-Form health survey: Construction of scales and preliminary tests of reliability and validity. Medical Care,34(3), 220–233.CrossRef

Yeatman, S. E., & Trinitapoli, J. (2008). Beyond denomination: The relationship between religion and family planning in rural Malawi. Demographic Research,19, 1851–1881.CrossRef

Zhang, W. (2008). Religious participation and mortality risk among the oldest old in China. Journal of Gerontology: Social Sciences,63B(5), S293–S297.CrossRef

Title: Religion and Health in Rural Malawi
Author: Jacob Kendall
Publication date: 01-12-2019
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of Religion and Health / Issue 6/2019
Print ISSN: 0022-4197
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6571
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-019-00804-y

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Religion and Health in Rural Malawi

Abstract

Keynote webinar | Spotlight on medication adherence

Springer Medicine

Abstract

Please log in to get access to this content

Other articles of this Issue 6/2019

The Spirituality in End-of-Life Cancer Patients, in Relation to Anxiety, Depression, Coping Strategies and the Daily Spiritual Experiences: A Cross-Sectional Study

Religiousness and Diseases in Europe: Findings from SHARE

The Effect of Religious Belief on the Attitudes of Pregnant’s Toward the Fetal Health

Ritualization as Alternative Approach to the Spiritual Dimension of Palliative Care: A Concept Analysis

Does Location of Practice or Religiosity Predict Negative Physician Attitudes or Beliefs Toward LGB+ Individuals?

Religious Commitment and Well-Being in College Students: Examining Conditional Indirect Effects of Meaning in Life