Is Burning Incense Sticks Good for You? The Impacts of Religious Attendance on Subjective Well-Being and Unhealthy Consumption

• Main Authors: Li, Hsin-Hung, 李信宏
• Other Authors: Chang, Wen-Chun
• Format: Others
• Language: zh-TW
• Published: 2006
• Online Access: http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/28926840303142086645

碩士 === 國立臺北大學 === 財政學系 === 94 === Using data from the Taiwan Social Change Survey (TSCS), this study examines the effects of religious attendance on subjective well-being and unhealthy consumption. After estimating a probit model, the findings of this study indicate that religiosity, as those found in the Western countries, generates positive effects on subjective wellbeing in a non-linear form. As the frequency of attendance increases to more than once a week, the benefit of religious attendance reaches its maximum, but it decreases afterward. Further, the findings also show that there is a U-shaped relationship between subjective wellbeing and age. The second part of the results from this study indicates that religiosity does lower the amount of smoking and alcohol consumption but does not reduce the consumption of betel nut. Some possible reasons can help to explain these outcomes. First, unlike criminal behavior, unhealthy consumption does not generate a substantial social cost, thus the impacts of religiosity become less obvious. Second, compared with smoking and drinking, the externality cost cause by the consumption of betel nut is relatively lower. On the other hand, the consumption of betel nut is a local culture in Taiwan, and when it is accepted as a social custom, the influence of religiosity becomes insignificant. Third, the differences between Eastern and Western religion may lead to the differences in the effects of religious attendance on unhealthy consumption for the cases of Taiwan and Western countries. Other findings from this study also suggest that men involve in more unhealthy consumption than women, and there is a U-shaped relationship between unhealthy consumption and age. Finally, employed individuals have more unhealthy consumption than unemployed and it is possibly related to working pressure.