to expect that as African Americans’ socioeconomic status improves, the need for external
support would decrease and therefore both religious and spiritual activity might diminish as well
(Ellison and Taylor, 1996). However, an initial review indicates this is not the case. Banks-
Wallace and Parks, for example, observe that subjects identify “spiritual and physical isolation
from other African Americans as the most negative unintended consequence of ‘upward
mobility’” (2004:41). Ellison and Taylor find, contrary to their initial hypothesis, that a higher
educational level inclines African Americans to pray more, not less. In fact, “feelings of personal
mastery are still inversely associated with coping through prayer” (1996:123). In other words,
one can be quite educated and still feel a loss of control or mastery, requiring one to have even
stronger internal coping mechanisms. Although higher income tends to relate to less intense
denominational identity, higher educational levels correlate positively with higher religious
service attendance perhaps due to greater “social integration” as the researchers conclude
(Chatters, Taylor, and Lincoln 1999:140), or possibly due to a need for greater social support. In
some ways, at least, isolation, racism, and other negative consequences of increased social status
actually heighten women’s spiritual and religious activities and involvement.
Researchers have proposed several explanations for the significantly greater spiritual and
religious activity of African American women, including: gender-based role differences in both
family and outside labor (de Vaus & McAllister, 1987), with women occupying nurturing and
caregiving roles more compatible with religious participation and coping strategies; the stress of
multiple roles, which inspires women to respond with increased religious coping activity (Ellison
and Taylor, 1996); and women’s psychological traits or more prominent social roles in religious
settings (Taylor, Chatters, and Levin, 2004:38). Thomas (2001) suggests that African American
women have developed spiritual coping mechanisms and strength as a result of the multiple
oppressions they have endured for centuries. The myth of the “strong Black woman,” as well as
the structural challenges facing African Americans today, place further stresses on African
American women which lead to health problems and reduced life expectancy, among other
effects. A fuller understanding of spirituality and religious behavior will create a greater
2
Convention