Religious Identity Formation of Filipino Canadian Youth: Exploring Cluster Differences in Religiosity and Mental Health

ABSTRACT Individuals vary in how much exploration and commitment they invest in their identities, which results in different identity “statuses” across a population. Although the majority of Filipinos in Canada identify as Christian, how they each formed their religious identity status may be different, which would be important to understand given the strong relation between mental health and religiosity. Filipino Canadian youth (N = 181) aged 14 to 25 completed online questionnaires about their religious identity status, religiosity, and mental health. A cluster analysis was conducted on youth’s engagement with religious identity formation processes, and results revealed five religious identity statuses: Internalized, Ruminative Moratorium, Undifferentiated, Foreclosed, and Indifferent. Filipino youth with different religious identity statuses had distinct religious experiences and endorsed different levels of mental health. The study highlights the diverse religious experiences in a religiously homogeneous ethnic group which may have implications for mental health.