TWW-Religious Teens=Less Risky Behavior

Why Religious Teens Are Less Likely to Engage in Risky Behavior The Wired Word for the Week of  June 2, 2024

In the News

In an article last week on the Religious News Service site, James A. Shepperd, a professor of psychology at the University of Florida, explained why multiple studies over several years have shown that religious teens are less likely to engage in risky behavior.

Shepperd defined risky behaviors as those being socially unacceptable, potentially harmful and often illegal for teens -- such as using alcohol, drugs and tobacco.

Minimizing risky behavior in the teen years is important not simply on a moral level, but also on a developmental level. Psychologists point to the developmental cascades theory, which suggests "risky behaviors may have a cascading effect on health and development, contributing to even more severe and cumulative consequences, such as the impairment of neural structures and their function," as stated in a study published by the National Library of Medicine.

Studies Shepperd's team had done with 1,400 Florida teens between 2010 and 2012, found four conditions that can reduce risky behavior. They include low opportunity, low appeal, low acceptability and a high level of self-control.

For example, teens are less likely to drink alcohol if they lack opportunities to do so or if they view drinking as unappealing -- a view they may have gained from people they value who also see drinking that way. They are also less likely to drink if they consider it morally unacceptable or if they are able to control their impulses and resist peer pressure and temptation, Shepperd said.

Shepperd said religions have three features that can affect the conditions that deter risky behavior among teens.

First, all religions offer a worldview, "that addresses questions such as why people exist, how they should behave and what happens after they die," Shepperd said. "My research team found that religious teens -- that is, teens who express stronger religious beliefs and display more frequent religious behavior -- possess a stronger sense of meaning and a clear understanding of what is right versus wrong. These benefits of a worldview were also linked to lower rates of smoking, drinking and marijuana use."

Second, religions often include belief in a deity or all-knowing entity who watches behavior and may punish or reward it. This belief, in turn, can lead teens to self-monitor and control their behavior, Shepperd said.

The study published in the National Library of Medicine also makes note of how religion may promote self-regulation among adolescents: "... religiousness may be associated with a variety of health, well-being, and social behaviors due to its influences on self-regulation. That is, religion functions to provide a critical avenue for self-regulatory development, including opportunities to engage in religious practices demanding self-regulation such as prayer, attendance and participation at religious events, meditation and fasting. As such, adolescent religiousness may influence risk-taking behaviors via self-regulation by providing an avenue for adolescents to develop self-regulatory abilities, which they may in turn employ to inhibit risky behaviors."

And third, in addition to promoting a set of beliefs, religions include communities of people who can communicate values and influence thought and conduct among teens, as well as limit opportunities to engage in risky behavior. These communities can also "offer support and feelings of belongingness that can help youth with impulse control," Shepperd said.

The research also found that the link between greater religiousness and less risky behavior seems to be about the same for boys and girls, no matter what religious group they belong to and no matter their race.

The research also suggests that having a sense of meaning and a clear understanding of right and wrong helps even nonreligious teens to avoid risky behavior.

Shepperd concluded, "Secular communities may be able to reduce risky behavior in teens through greater monitoring and rewards and by adapting the other features of religion that appear to deter risky behavior in religious adolescents."

More on this story can be found at these links:

Why Do Religious Teens Engage in Less Risky Behavior? A Psychologist Explains. Religious News Service Evaluating the Religious Commitment Inventory for Adolescents. APA PsycNet How Is Religiousness Associated With Adolescent Risk Taking? The Roles of Emotion Regulation and Executive Function. National Library of Medicine

Confronting the News With Scripture and Hope Here are some Bible verses to guide your discussion:

Psalm 78:1-8 (NLT) O my people, listen to my instructions. Open your ears to what I am saying, 2 for I will speak to you in a parable. I will teach you hidden lessons from our past— 3 stories [NOT FICTION!] we have heard and known, stories our ancestors handed down to us. 4 We will not hide these truths from our children; we will tell the next generation about the glorious deeds of the LORD, about His power and His mighty wonders. 5 For He issued His laws to Jacob; He gave His instructions to Israel. He commanded our ancestors to teach them to their children, 6 so the next generation might know them— even the children not yet born— and they in turn will teach their own children. 7 So each generation should set its hope anew on God, not forgetting His glorious miracles and obeying His commands. 8 Then they will not be like their ancestors— stubborn, rebellious, and unfaithful, refusing to give their hearts to God.

Deuteronomy 6:4–9 (NLT) “Listen, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. 5 And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. 6 And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. 7 Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. 8 Tie them to your hands and wear them on your forehead as reminders. 9 Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

Do we as parents and grandparents do this (Deu 6:4-9)?

I have not seen evidence that we do this as we should.

Agree/Disagree. Examples.

This passage refers to a faith community's commitment to pass on to the generations coming along behind them "wonders that [God] has done." When they are doing this properly, they will be

while passing along stories [ACCOUNTS!] and knowledge,

they are also offering support and encouragement,

and are modeling what a life lived in trust in God can look like.

Question: What "glorious deeds of the LORD" might you want to narrate to teens today?

Psalm 119:9 Psalm 119:9–16 (LSB) How can a young man [or woman] keep his [or her] way pure? By keeping it according to Your word. 10 With all my heart I have sought You; Do not let me stray from Your commandments. 11 Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You. 12 Blessed are You, O Yahweh; Teach me Your statutes. 13 With my lips I have recounted All the judgments of Your mouth. 14 I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, As much as in all riches. 15 I will muse upon Your precepts And look upon Your ways. 16 I shall delight in Your statutes; I shall not forget Your word.

Psalm 119, the longest of the psalms (176 verses!), has only one subject: the value of the scripture in guiding our lives. This particular passage commends God's word to the younger generations, but the whole psalm commends it to everybody.

Questions: What is the primary way you were introduced to scripture as a teenager?

What was the primary way you interacted with it?

When has scripture helped you decide how to conduct yourself?

Ecclesiastes 11:9 (The Message)

Ecclesiastes 11:7–12:2 (MSG) Oh, how sweet the light of day, And how wonderful to live in the sunshine! 8 Even if you live a long time, don’t take a single day for granted. Take delight in each light-filled hour, Remembering that there will also be many dark days And that most of what comes your way is smoke [vanity, meaningless]. 9 You who are young, make the most of your youth. Relish your youthful vigor. Follow the impulses of your heart. If something looks good to you, pursue it. But know also that not just anything goes; You have to answer to God for every last bit of it. 10 Live footloose and fancy-free— You won’t be young forever. Youth lasts about as long as smoke. 1 Honor and enjoy your Creator while you’re still young, Before the years take their toll and your vigor wanes, 2 Before your vision dims and the world blurs And the winter years keep you close to the fire.

Questions: How old were you when you learned "that not just anything goes; You have to answer to God for every last bit of it"? Who or what taught you that lesson?

When did we learn, if ever, that decisions have consequences?

And consequences are fairly consistent.

Galatians 6:7 (LSB) Do not be deceived, God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap.

2 Corinthians 9:6 (LSB) Now this I say, he who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows with blessing will also reap with blessing.

1 Timothy 4:6–16 (LSB) In pointing out these things to the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being nourished on the words of the faith and of the sound doctrine which you have been following. 7 But refuse godless myths fit only for old women. On the other hand, train yourself for the purpose of godliness, 8 for bodily training is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. 9 It is a trustworthy saying and deserving full acceptance. 10 For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. 11 Command and teach these things. 12 Let no one look down on your youthfulness, but show yourself as a model to those who believe in word, conduct, love, faith, and purity. 13 Until I come, give attention to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation and teaching. 14 Do not neglect the gift within you, which was given to you through prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the council of elders. 15 Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them, so that your progress will be evident to all. 16 Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.

Questions: Paul wrote this to his coworker Timothy. In terms of age, Timothy was certainly younger than Paul, but probably more a young adult than a teenager. Nonetheless, would the advice to "set the believers an example in speech and conduct, in love, in faith, in purity" be a good goal for Christian teens? Why or why not?

The Big Questions

1. If you were a church attender in your teen years, to what degree do you think your connection to religion minimized your involvement in risky behaviors?

When I gave my life to Jesus, as imperfect as I was, it stopped a LOT of risky behaviors in which I was already involved.

Is there any risky behavior you engaged in because of your involvement with religion?

Remember: Shepperd defined risky behaviors as those being socially unacceptable, potentially harmful and often illegal for teens -- such as using alcohol, drugs and tobacco.

So, I engaged in witnessing to those outside of relationship with Jesus.

Socially unacceptable then, more so today and illegal in many places.

2. Besides your immediate family members, who contributed the most to your religious development in your teen years? How did that person or group do that?

Initially (for just over a year), other teens slightly older than me, my pastor and his wife (she taught the High school class). After that, a couple of adults in the church.

3. What things does your congregation intentionally do to create a good moral climate for young people? What does it do to communicate the importance of avoiding risky or self-destructive behaviors?

What SHOULD we do?

4. If a teen does successfully avoid all risky behaviors, might he or she have missed an opportunity to learn an important life lesson that might not be as quickly learned any other way? Even if that is the case, however, is the risk worth it? How can he or she avoid pride or arrogance at being "better" than others who engage in risky behavior?

5. How do you think teens today are influenced -- positively or negatively -- by the adult behavior they see, especially by adults they see in church? Or do they even notice? What support and/or tools can families and churches provide to teens to assure them of God's grace as they grow from childhood into adulthood?

For Further Discussion

Almost 50 years ago, a study of teenagers concluded that before a 14-year-old graduated from high school, there is a:

40% chance that he/she will be a partner in a pregnancy;

70-80% chance that he/she will have a car accident;

86% chance that the first 6-9 months of intercourse will be unprotected by any form of contraception, including a condom;

90% chance that he/she will experiment with alcohol;

65% chance that he/she will use alcohol on a regular basis;

50% chance that he/she will experiment with marijuana;

17% chance that he/she will experiment with cocaine;

23% chance that he/she will experiment with stimulants;

.045% chance that he/she will get AIDS.

Bearing in mind that this was a general study that didn't ask about the religious commitment of the teens, what percentages or specific risks do you think would be new or different today? Why?

What could parents do to help insulate their teen against these risks? Why?

What could your church do to help insulate teens against these risks? Why?

2. According to a study a few years later,

15% of Christian parents of teenagers worry about their teen's academic success;

24% of Christian parents of teenagers worry about who their teen will eventually marry;

32% of Christian parents of teenagers worry about the quality of their teen's friends;

41%  of Christian parents of teenagers worry about their teen's abuse of drugs, alcohol and tobacco;

56%  of Christian parents of teenagers worry whether their teen will stay true to the Christian faith.

Bearing in mind that this was a general study that focused on parents who are Christians but did not differentiate them any further, what conclusions do you draw from this? 

How do you think the percentages would change were the words "are concerned" substituted for "worry"?

Responding to the News

This is a good time to examine the amount of energy and planning that your church puts into youth ministries, and to consider how they might be made more effective.

Prayer

O Lord, be with all those who are on the road to maturity that they may get there without too many scars. In Jesus' name. Amen.

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