Table 1.
Descriptive Statistics of Indicator Variables
| Latent Variables and Indicators | Range | Wave 1 (N=3,370) |
Wave 2 (N=2,596) |
|||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| ||||||
| Percent | N | Percent | N | |||
| Religious Beliefs | Belief in afterlife | 0–1 | 48% | 3,365 | 47% | 2,585 |
| Belief in angels | 0–1 | 62% | 3,368 | 56% | 2,587 | |
| Belief in demons | 0–1 | 41% | 3,365 | 44% | 2,588 | |
| Belief in miracles | 0–1 | 60% | 3,368 | 61% | 2,588 | |
| Belief in God | 0–1 | 84% | 3,369 | 77% | 2,588 | |
| Belief in judgement day | 0–1 | 71% | 3,363 | 67% | 2,585 | |
| Religious Exclusivity | Convert others | 0–1 | 53% | 3,359 | 51% | 2,581 |
| Practice one religion | 0–1 | 45% | 3,354 | 44% | 2,580 | |
| View of truth | 0–1 | 28% | 3,361 | 29% | 2,579 | |
| Pick and choose | 0–1 | 51% | 3,357 | 50% | 2,579 | |
| External Practice | Attendance | 1–7 | – | 3,365 | – | 2,595 |
| Never | – | 18% | – | 28% | – | |
| Few times a year | – | 16% | – | 18% | – | |
| Many times a year | – | 8% | – | 5% | – | |
| Once a month | – | 7% | – | 7% | – | |
| 2–3 times a month | – | 12% | – | 13% | – | |
| Once a week | – | 23% | – | 17% | – | |
| More than once a week | – | 16% | – | 11% | – | |
| Prayed with parents | 0–1 | 41% | 3,363 | 36% | 2,581 | |
| Religious group | 0–1 | 54% | 3,357 | 46% | 2,580 | |
| Share faith | 0–1 | 43% | 3,355 | 43% | 2,578 | |
| Personal Practice | Prayer frequency | 1–7 | – | 3,360 | – | 2,579 |
| Never | – | 14% | – | 17% | – | |
| Less than once a month | – | 8% | – | 10% | – | |
| 1–2 times a month | – | 13% | – | 16% | – | |
| About once a week | – | 12% | – | 12% | – | |
| A few times a week | – | 15% | – | 15% | – | |
| About once a day | – | 22% | – | 18% | – | |
| Many times a day | – | 16% | – | 12% | – | |
| Read scripture | 1–7 | – | 3,358 | – | 2,577 | |
| Never | – | 42% | – | 49% | – | |
| Less than once a month | – | 14% | – | 16% | – | |
| 1–2 times a month | – | 19% | – | 15% | – | |
| About once a week | – | 9% | – | 7% | – | |
| A few times a week | – | 8% | – | 7% | – | |
| About once a day | – | 6% | – | 5% | – | |
| Many times a day | – | 3% | – | 1% | – | |
| Fasted | 0–1 | 24% | 3,366 | 25% | 2,577 | |
| Day of rest | 0–1 | 30% | 3,363 | 24% | 2,578 | |
| Religious Salience | Importance of faith | 1–5 | – | 3,363 | – | 2,595 |
| Not important at all | – | 7% | – | 11% | – | |
| Not very important | – | 11% | – | 14% | – | |
| Somewhat important | – | 32% | – | 30% | – | |
| Very important | – | 30% | – | 26% | – | |
| Extremely important | – | 19% | – | 19% | – | |
| How decide | 0–1 | 19% | 3,367 | 20% | 2,591 | |
| Commitment to God | 0–1 | 55% | 3,363 | 39% | 2,593 | |
Source: National Study of Youth and Religion, Waves 1 and 2
Note: In Wave 1, sample sizes for descriptive statistics vary between 3,354 and 3,369. In Wave 2, sample sizes vary between 2,577 and 2,595. Our modeling approach of direct maximum likelihood includes all respondents without full missing data, and thus the model sample sizes are 3,370 and 2,596, respectively.