Dr. Horwitz, an assistant professor of Jewish studies and sociology, analyzed the impact of religion on the lives of 3,290 teenagers between 2003 and 2012 and observed a positive correlation between a teenager’s religious beliefs and their academic performance. 

His research indicated while 21% of religious working-class children received full A marks in their middle and high school years, only 9% of their none to less religious peers brought about the same results. 

In his research, Dr.Horwitz limited external factors to isolate the religious variable as the causal factor.

For instance, he set the study group to focus on middle-class families. 

This was essential as children from affluent backgrounds often have advantages that children from middle-class trajectories don’t possess. 

Affluent children are less likely to be the first generation in higher education, meaning that they receive more guidance regarding their academic or social networking prospects. 

Teens from prosperous families are less likely to be burdened by financial issues during their early life and will often live in environments with high familial and geographic stability. 

For upper-middle-class families, well-developed social capital makes a difference in an adolescent’s likelihood to succeed and flourish into a secure standard of living. 

Considering that a lack of social capital is often intertwined with substandard financial income, the systematic problems of inequity and its discrepancy within households was a key factor to consider. 

However, there is a mental and social aspect connected to this predicament. 

In recent years, there has been a drastic increase in the working class’s “death of despair”, which refers to deaths caused by addiction  or suicides. 

As the research in ‘teen’ might seem somewhat irrelevant to the issue of the working class, it’s important to remember that the ‘teens’ that were analyzed , in this case, are direct sons or daughters of the working force. 

They are likely to have intimate and hereditary relationships with these individuals, and often be deeply influenced by their primary guardian’s choices. 

Reality seems to reflect this logical process as Dr. Horwitz’s study showed many of his subjects, who were limited to low to middle-class income children, often had a cynical outlook on life, tainted with despair in various elements of their wellbeing. 

Many seemed already in their mid-20s to be on the track of echoing their parent’s cycle of despair. 

However, there was a student that didn’t follow this trail. 

Upon examining and evaluating their mode of presence to identify collective traits within the noticeable group, researchers quickly realized that a majority of them were religious. 

Observation and comparison revealed that the difference between the two groups didn’t simply originate from religion’s impact on the individual’s theological ideologies. 

Though there was a difference in choice and action when having a mindset that one is constantly being encouraged and evaluated by a higher being, this made less of an impact than the religious communities' values that can impact one’s lifestyle. 

Religious children, regardless of their true beliefs, were often exposed to religious adults from church or other communities. 

These adults often hold conscientious, rule-following behaviors as crucial and thus encourage children to avoid anti-social behavior. 

Having trusting relationships with even a few role-model-worthy adults in an adolescent’s life can vastly change their  outlook on life. 

Teenagers have a wider choice of mature individuals to confide in, helping them become less prone to being exposed to harmful pressures, construct secure social ties/liaisons, and become resilient in the face of obstacles. 

In other words, attending or being a part of a well-established community, in this case, a religious institution, adds to the social capital that individuals have been born with, granting them a higher chance to grow into proper citizens. 

Clair Junghyun Park
Grade 10
Chadwick International (CI)