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Both Intrinsic and Extrinsic Religious Orientation are Positively Associated with Attitudes Toward Cleanliness: Exploring Multiple Routes from Godliness to Cleanliness

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Abstract

In the present study, we explore how intrinsic and extrinsic religious orientations are associated with cleanliness attitudes. We find that reported importance of religion is associated with increased cleanliness concerns and interest in cleanliness. Attitudes toward cleanliness were also associated with both intrinsic religious orientation and extrinsic religious orientation. Together, religiosity and religious orientation account for 14.7% of cleanliness attitudes and remained significant in the presence of personality, socioeconomic status, age, education, obsessive–compulsive attitudes toward cleanliness, and other covariates. These results show that religiosity is associated with cleanliness via multiple routes. We suggest that intrinsic religious orientation leads to increased interest in cleanliness due to the link between physical and spiritual purity. Extrinsic religious orientation may be linked with cleanliness because of the secondary benefits, including health and the facilitation in communal cohesiveness, that cleanliness rituals offer. The implications of these findings for the relationship between religion and health are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Lander College, 75-31 150th Street, Flushing, NY, 11367, USA

    Leib Litman

  2. Touro College and University System Health, New York Medical College, New York, NY, USA

    Leib Litman, Jonathan Robinson & Ron Finkelstein

  3. Department of Computer Science, Lander College, New York, NY, USA

    Jonathan Robinson

  4. Department of Psychology, Marymount Manhattan College, New York, NY, USA

    Sarah L. Weinberger-Litman

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  1. Leib Litman
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Correspondence to Leib Litman.

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Litman, L., Robinson, J., Weinberger-Litman, S.L. et al. Both Intrinsic and Extrinsic Religious Orientation are Positively Associated with Attitudes Toward Cleanliness: Exploring Multiple Routes from Godliness to Cleanliness. J Relig Health 58, 41–52 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-017-0460-7

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