Aging and religious participation.

With few exceptions, previous studies of the relationship between age and religious participation have either ignored the nonorganizational aspects of participation or have used a single measure of participation. Following an approach adopted in studies of the structure of well-being, we investigate the multidimensional conceptualization of religious participation. The results demonstrate that (a) the empirical definitions for the dimensions of participation are invariant over age groups, (b) there is a convergence in individuals' organizational and nonorganizational participation in the later stages of the life cycle, and (c) the dimensions of religious involvement become more distinct and determinant with increasing age.