Abstract
Much of the research and scale development for studying the relationship between religion and coping, emphasizing Christian-centric perspectives of belief in and interaction with God. This study explores an expanded framework of religious engagement, grounded in Rabbi Mordachai Kaplan's theory of "behaviors, beliefs, and belonging," to assess how diverse dimensions of religiosity influence coping mechanisms. Utilizing a national survey of 4,569 Americans, including an oversample of 1,900 Jewish participants, the research applies factor analysis to examine whether religious behaviors and communal belonging constitute distinct constructs alongside traditional measures of positive and negative religious coping. Results indicate that religious engagement, particularly through behaviors and a sense of community, provides valuable avenues for coping with stress beyond theological beliefs. Jewish respondents, in particular, reported lower levels of positive religious coping compared to other groups but emphasized the importance of community belonging. These findings highlight the need for more inclusive frameworks in religious coping research and suggest the need to revise scales like RCOPE to reflect broader religious experiences. Future research should further explore the interplay of behavior, belief, and belonging in fostering resilience across diverse faith traditions.