COMPREHENSIVE EXAM – RELIGION AND HEALTH TAKE HOME FORMAT INSTRUCTIONS This is a one-day take home exam, due on Wednesday, April 20th by 1pm. You will pick up your exam on Tuesday, April 19th; please do so between the hours of 11am and 1pm. Return your exam to Evelyn on the 20th at her office in Burdine by 1pm (if she is out of the office, have the 5th floor office stamp the time of receipt and place it in her mailbox). The exam requires you to write answers to four questions. One is required, and the other three are selections from a list of paired questions; you must answer one of each pair. This is an open-book exam. By “open book,” we refer to your being allowed to use notes, texts and readings from classes you have taken and summary materials and books you have using to prepare for the exam. Although nothing prohibits you from consulting additional “new” material during the exam period, you are strongly advised against using the limited take-home time to conduct significant additional research. Regardless of the source you use, be sure to always give proper credit and citation to any book or articles that inform your answer, especially if you are using direct quotes. There is no page limit but the quality and clarity of your writing will be a factor in evaluating the merits of your answer, together with demonstration of critical/original thinking and accurate representation of the material you have reviewed. You may allocate the time across the questions in any way you see fit. A completed exam consists of four answers that have been typed, using 1” margins, 12-point font (either single or double-spaced is fine), and printed. IMPORTANT NOTE: YOU ARE ENTIRELY RESPONSIBLE FOR TURNING YOUR EXAM IN ON TIME. PLEASE VIGILENTLY ENSURE THE BACK UP AND PROPER COMPUTER STORAGE OF ALL OF YOUR WORK. THERE ARE ABSOLUTELY NO EXCEPTIONS/EXTENTIONS GRANTED FOR COMPUTER CRASHES, PRINTER PROBLEMS, OR OTHER MISHAPS. IT IS ADVISABLE THAT YOU ROUTINELY BACK UP AND PRINT MATERIAL. IF YOU FAIL TO TURN IN YOUR EXAM BY 1PM ON WEDNESDAY, APRIL 20TH FOR ANY REASON, YOU WILL BE ASKED TO TAKE COMPREHENSIVE EXAMS IN SUBSEQUENT SEMESTER. PLEASE LEAVE SUFFICIENT TIME FOR PRINTING, FOR TRAVEL TO THE UNIVERSITY, OR TO COMPENSATE FOR ANY OTHER UNEXPECTED FACTOR. UNIVERSITY HONOR CODE: "The core values of The University of Texas at Austin are learning, discovery, freedom, leadership, individual opportunity, and responsibility. Each member of the university is expected to uphold these values through integrity, honesty, trust, fairness, and respect toward peers and community." Consistent with this code, you must work on this exam without consultation with others and any form of plagiarism will not be tolerated. Please answer the following required question: 1. A well-known article by Jeff Levin is entitled “Religion and Health: Is there an association, is it Valid, and is it Causal?” highlights key questions and evidence within the religion and health literature. Please address these three basic questions, noting in detail empirical evidence concerning each of the three questions. Draw on a wide cross-section of research that has addressed such questions either directly or indirectly. Please answer one of the following two questions: 2. Summarize the evidence surrounding the relationship between religious involvement and physical health in the United States. What is the role of religion in physical health? What are the key pieces of evidence? How robust is this association across major population subgroups? What are the main limitations of this body of work? What are the most important directions for future research? 3. In recent years, researchers have become increasingly interested in religious influences on children’s academic outcomes. Identify and discuss the major strands of this research, noting major studies and key findings. In particular, what do we know about: (a) the role of parental religiosity in shaping children’s religiosity; and (b) the role of parental religion in shaping children’s academic outcomes? In your view, what are the main gaps in this body of literature? Please answer one of the following two questions: 4. Several decades ago, scholars often employed Coleman’s theory of social capital to explain the role of religious congregations in promoting social capital among its members. Much research also addressed the role that ethnic/ immigrant congregations played in facilitating the assimilation process of its members to the mainstream society. Discuss the empirical evidence about research on religion, education, and migration. 5. Among social and behavioral scientists, there is a growing interest in the role of religion and the lives of adolescents. What is the role of religion in adolescent life? What is the link between religious involvement and health risk-taking behavior? What is the evidence? What are the theoretical frameworks and empirical construction use in the literature? What are the main limitations of this body of work? What are the most important directions for future research? Please answer one of the following two questions: 6. Although much of the religion-health research reports salutary relationships, investigators are increasingly aware of possible pathological effects, sometimes termed the “shadow side” of religion. Identify three (3) of the ways in which specific aspects of religion or spirituality may have negative health implications, and discuss the theoretical basis and empirical evidence for each. 7. Are Muslim migration patterns different from Christians and, if so, does it have anything to do with Islam? What are the education, economic, and health implications of contemporary immigration patterns of Muslims and Christians?