Children who are regularly involved in church activities grow up to have a greater connection to faith than other adults, according to research by the Barna Group.

Grown-ups who attended Sunday school or other religious programs as children or as teens were found to be much more likely than those without such experiences to attend church and to have an active faith.

Among those who frequently attended such programs as a child, 50% said they had attended a worship service in the previous week--slightly higher than the national average and well ahead of those who rarely or never attended children's programs. Of those who frequently attended religious programs as teenagers, 58% said they had attended a worship service in the previous seven days.

Measures of "disassociation"-being unchurched and or departing from childhood faith-were also correlated with religious activity before age 18. The highest proportion of unchurched adults was found among those who had never attended as children or teenagers.

The study found that individuals who recalled frequent religious attendance as a child were less likely to have changed their central faith views as they got older than were those who attended less often. Of frequent childhood and teenage attendees, 22% and 21% respectively had significantly changed their faith views when they got older--substantially lower than the percentage of people who had attended such programs less often.

More than eight out of every 10 adults questioned recalled consistently attending Sunday school or some other religious training before the age of 12. Church involvement as teenagers was remembered to be less frequent, though about seven out of 10 said they went to Sunday school or other religious programs for teens at least once a month.

"The research does not prove that spiritual activity as a young person causes spiritual engagement as an adult," said Barna Group President David Kinnaman. "However, the study shows that most American adults recall frequent faith activity when they were growing up. Moreover, it provides clarity that the odds of one sticking with faith over a lifetime are enhanced in a positive direction by spiritual activity under the age of 18.

"And it raises the intriguing possibility that being involved at least a few times a month is correlated with nearly the same sticking power as weekly involvement-especially among teenagers."

Source: Barna Group

To read the full report, go to the Barna Group Web site.