(PS11-A9) PTSD Symptoms and Psychological Growth Among Religious Disaffiliates: The Influence of High-demand Religious Disaffiliation

Religious disaffiliation, the process of physically and/or mentally exiting a religious faith or community, is a highly stressful experience that can impact well-being. This process is further complicated for individuals disaffiliating from high-demand religious groups, who engage in various behaviors that encourage retention and de-incentivize disaffiliation, including restricting contact with outsiders and shunning disaffiliates. As a result, disaffiliation from a high-demand religious groups may incur additional costs to disaffiliates psychological well-being. Additionally, some researchers suggest that religious disaffiliation can result in PTSD-like symptoms, which may be exacerbated by high-cost religious disaffiliation. However, no known studies have quantitatively examined the relationship between high-demand religious disaffiliation and PTSD symptoms. Additionally, no known research has examined potential positive outcomes of high-demand religious disaffiliation on psychological well-being. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to examine whether high-demand religious disaffiliation can predict PTSD symptoms and psychological growth among religious disaffiliates. Using a correlational study design, 1,775 adult religious disaffiliates were administered a modified form of the PTSD Checklist for DSM-5 (PCL-5) to assess for PTSD symptoms and the Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) to assess for psychological growth. Interestingly, results indicated that high-demand religious disaffiliation predicted both greater PTSD symptoms and greater psychological growth. The findings underscore that while high-demand religious disaffiliation can present a greater challenge for disaffiliates, it can result in greater opportunities for emotional/mental development.